How does James B. Davidson Middle compare to other middle schools in San Rafael?

James B. Davidson Middle has a Scope Score of 54.9/100, ranked #732 among California middle schools. 18% of students exceed standard, with a total of 2,025 students tested across grades and subjects.

What percentage of students exceed standards at James B. Davidson Middle?

17.7% of students at James B. Davidson Middle exceed the state standard on CAASPP assessments, while 37.9% meet or exceed it. The gap between these two numbers reveals whether the school pushes students beyond basic proficiency.

Is James B. Davidson Middle improving or declining?

Based on CAASPP data, James B. Davidson Middle's proficiency rate increases by 3.5 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth. This suggests the school may be adding value over time.

What is the chronic absenteeism rate at James B. Davidson Middle?

13.2% of students at James B. Davidson Middle are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days). This metric reflects school culture and family engagement, and is weighted at 15% in the Scope Score.

James B. Davidson Middle

Middle School

San Rafael City Elementary San RafaelMarin County94901

📍 280 Woodland Avenue

Scope Score

out of 100

State Rank

of 1,714 California middle schools

📈

On the Rise

On an upward trajectory — scores are improving faster than average. Worth a closer look.

Scope Scores are SchoolScope's analysis of public data from the California Dept. of Education (CAASPP, chronic absenteeism, suspension rates). They are not official CDE ratings and should not be the sole basis for school decisions. See methodology.

School overview

Enrollment

1,040 students

Student-Teacher Ratio

19:1

Free/Reduced Lunch

73%

Teachers

54 full-time

Dashboard indicators

How this school's scores changed from last year to this year

ELA Year-over-Year

Increased

+12.2 pts DFS change

Math Year-over-Year

Declined

-4.7 pts DFS change

EL Proficiency (ELPAC)

20.3%

English learners at Level 4 (Well Developed) · 374 tested

Data source: California School Dashboard 2025, ELPAC 2024

Student demographics

Hispanic72.0%

White21.5%

Asian1.8%

Black1.1%

Other3.5%

Performance breakdown

Performance breakdown for James B. Davidson Middle
Category	Percentage
Exceeded Standard	17.7%
Met Standard	20.2%
Below Standard	62.1%

Score Factors

Helping

✓Exceeded standard: 17.7%

0.4pp above state avg (state avg 17.3%)

30% weight

✓Growth (G6→G8): +3.5pp

Scores improve across grades (state avg +0.8pp)

15% weight

✓Chronic absenteeism: 13.2%

6.1pp below state avg (state avg 19.3%)

15% weight

Holding Back

▼Met or exceeded: 37.9%

1.6pp below state avg (state avg 39.5%)

20% weight

▼Baseline proficiency: 37.9%

Below state baseline (state avg 39.5%)

10% weight

▼Suspension rate: 7.6%

3.5pp above state avg (state avg 4.1%)

10% weight

Unlike traditional school ratings, we show our work. Every factor, its weight, and how this school compares to the state average — so you can decide what matters most to your family. The middle school Scope Score is weighted across 6 dimensions. See full methodology →

What other rankings don't show you

Most rating sites report "38% proficient" for James B. Davidson Middle and stop there. Here's what that number hides:

17.7% of students exceeded standard while 20.2% met it. That exceeded rate is near the state average of 17.3%. That's 3.6 points below the San Rafael City Elementary district average of 21.3%. The 2 nearby schools within ~3 miles average 49.6% exceeded — 31.9 points higher. The gap between "met" and "exceeded" can reveal how much a school's curriculum challenges students beyond proficiency.

Students here improve by 3.5 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth, suggesting the school is adding value beyond what students arrive with.

California's Dashboard shows ELA performance increased and Math declined year-over-year. 20.3% of English learners reached Level 4 (Well Developed) on ELPAC.

Chronic absenteeism is 13.2%, better than the state average of 19.3%.

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters →

Key metrics

% Exceeded Standard

17.7%

Students scoring above proficient

% Met or Above

37.9%

Students meeting standard

Growth (G6→G8)

+3.5pp

Change in proficiency rate

Chronic Absenteeism

13.2%

Students missing 10%+ of days

Suspension Rate

7.6%

Students suspended at least once

Total Tested

2,025

Across all grades & subjects

Grade trajectory

How proficiency compares across grade levels this year (different students, same test year)

ELA Trajectory

G6 → G7 → G8

Math Trajectory

G6 → G7 → G8

ELA scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	332	15.4%	27.7%	24.4%	32.5%	43.1%
7th	332	22.6%	23.5%	22.9%	31.0%	46.1%
8th	341	16.4%	28.7%	23.8%	31.1%	45.2%

Math scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	335	15.5%	11.0%	21.8%	51.6%	26.6%
7th	338	20.7%	14.2%	15.4%	49.7%	34.9%
8th	347	15.6%	15.8%	24.5%	44.1%	31.4%

K-12 Feeder PathBoundary data

Elementary

Sun Valley Elementary

81.4# in state

Glenwood Elementary

72.0# in state

Laurel Dell Elementary

64.4# in state

Coleman Elementary

59.2# in state

Bahia Vista Elementary

27.6# in state

San Pedro Elementary

21.3# in state

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Middle

James B. Davidson Middle

54.9# in state

This school

▼

High School

No feeder data available for this level

Feeder patterns derived from 2015-16 NCES attendance boundary data. Boundaries may have changed. Contact your school district for current information.