On the Peninsula
Glossary
Plain-English definitions for the terms that come up most when comparing Peninsula schools and districts.
Jump to a letter
A
AP (Advanced Placement)
College-level courses offered in high school. Students who do well on the year-end AP exam can sometimes earn college credit or place out of an introductory college class. Not every high school offers the same number of AP courses, so the count can be a useful comparison point.
Attendance Area / Boundary
The geographic zone tied to a specific home address that determines which public school a child is assigned to. Boundaries are drawn by the district and can change over time. Two homes a few blocks apart can fall in different attendance areas and be assigned to different schools.
B
Basic Aid vs LCFF funding
Two ways California public school districts are funded. Basic Aid districts, also called community-funded, are funded mainly by local property taxes and keep that money, which often means more funding per student. LCFF districts, named for the state's Local Control Funding Formula, are funded mainly by the state based on enrollment and student needs. In wealthy areas, Basic Aid districts tend to be the best resourced, while LCFF districts like San Carlos often rely more on community fundraising and parcel taxes to fund extras. A district's funding type does not determine quality, but it explains why some districts lean heavily on foundations and donations.
C
CAASPP
The California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress, the state's standardized test given each spring in subjects like English and math. Results are usually reported as the percentage of students who scored Advanced or Proficient, the top two of four levels. It is one input among several for judging how a school or district is performing academically.
CAST (California Science Test)
The state's science exam, given as part of the CAASPP testing system. It is given in grades five and eight and once in high school, with results reported as the percentage of students who scored Advanced or Proficient, the top two of four levels. Like CAASPP scores, it is one input among several for judging how a school is performing academically.
E
Elementary School District
A district that only runs schools for younger grades, commonly kindergarten through 8th grade. A separate, larger high school district usually covers the same area for grades 9 through 12. This split is common on the Peninsula and is one reason two nearby homes can be zoned for different sets of schools.
F
Feeder Pattern / Feeder School
The typical path a student follows from one school level to the next, for example a specific elementary school that feeds into a specific middle school, which in turn feeds into a specific high school. Feeder patterns matter to buyers because they show which schools a child is likely to attend over time, not just the one attached to a specific address today.
Four-Year College Rate
The share of a high school's graduating class that enrolls in a four-year college the following fall. It does not capture students who choose a two-year college, a trade program, the workforce, or a gap year, so it is only one measure of outcomes after graduation.
G
GATE (Gifted and Talented Education)
A program some districts offer for students identified as academically advanced, usually through testing or teacher referral. Services vary widely between districts, from occasional pull-out enrichment to separate classrooms. It is worth asking a specific district how its GATE program actually works rather than assuming it matches another district's version.
Graduation Rate
The percentage of a high school's entering class that earns a diploma within four years, sometimes reported alongside a five-year rate as well. It is a broad measure of whether students stay enrolled and finish school, not a measure of academic rigor on its own.
GreatSchools Rating
A 1 to 10 score published by the nonprofit GreatSchools that summarizes test scores, academic growth, and other factors for a school. It is one of several third-party ratings used to compare schools and should be read alongside other sources, since different rating providers weigh factors differently.
H
High School District
A district that only runs high schools, typically serving several elementary school districts within its boundaries. A single high school district can pull students from multiple K-8 districts with very different reputations and price points, which is why buyers should check both the elementary and high school district for any address.
Honors Course
A class that moves faster or covers material in more depth than the standard version of the same subject, without the college-credit component of an AP class. Availability and rigor vary by school, so an honors label at one high school is not automatically equivalent to the same label at another.
I
Inter-district Transfer
A request to enroll a student in a district other than the one assigned by the student's home address. These transfers are granted at the receiving district's discretion, are often capped by grade or by space, and can be denied or revoked, so they should not be relied on as a substitute for verifying the assigned district before buying.
Intra-district Transfer
A request to move a student from their assigned school to a different school within the same district. Like inter-district transfers, these are typically subject to space, sibling priority, and district-specific rules, and are not guaranteed.
N
Niche Rating
A letter grade, from A+ to F, published by the company Niche based on a mix of test scores, surveys from students and parents, and other public data. It is one of several third-party rating sources and can differ from GreatSchools or SchoolDigger for the same school, since each uses its own methodology.
O
Open Enrollment
A policy that lets families apply to schools outside their assigned attendance area, either within the same district or, where allowed, in another district. Open enrollment is not universal, and where it exists it is usually limited by available space, so it should be confirmed directly with the district rather than assumed.
P
Per-Pupil Spending
The amount a district spends per enrolled student in a given year, usually drawn from state financial reports. It can vary based on local funding sources like parcel taxes and parent foundations, in addition to state and federal dollars, so higher spending in one district does not automatically mean better outcomes.
Proficient
The share of students who scored Advanced or Proficient on a subject, the top two of four achievement levels on tests like CAASPP (these were called Standard Met and Standard Exceeded before 2025-26). A score of "74% proficient" in math means 74% of tested students scored Advanced or Proficient in that grade and subject.
PTA / PTO
Parent Teacher Association or Parent Teacher Organization, a parent-run group at an individual school or district that raises money and organizes volunteer support. In many Peninsula districts, PTA or PTO fundraising supplements the official budget in meaningful ways, from classroom aides to enrichment programs.
S
SAT
A standardized college admissions test covering reading, writing, and math, scored on a scale up to 1600. Many colleges have made SAT scores optional in admissions in recent years, so average school-wide SAT scores are one data point among several, not a full picture of a school's academics.
SchoolDigger
A company that publishes school and district rankings based primarily on standardized test scores. Its rankings are numeric, such as a district's rank out of all districts in the state, rather than letter grades, and like any single source it should be weighed alongside other information.
Student-Teacher Ratio
The number of students per teacher at a school or district, calculated by dividing total enrollment by the number of teaching staff. It is a rough proxy for class size but is not the same thing, since it is a school-wide or district-wide average rather than a count of any specific classroom.
T
Tinsley Voluntary Transfer Program
A voluntary transfer program in San Mateo County that lets some students from the Ravenswood City School District, which serves East Palo Alto and the Belle Haven area of Menlo Park, transfer to participating higher-resourced districts elsewhere on the Peninsula. It stems from a 1986 court settlement aimed at expanding educational options. Eligibility, available seats, and participating districts change from year to year, so families should confirm current details directly with Ravenswood or the San Mateo County Office of Education.
Title I School
A public school that receives additional federal funding because a significant share of its students come from lower-income households. Title I status is about funding eligibility, not academic quality, and Title I schools can be found across a wide range of performance levels.
U
Unified School District
A single district that runs schools for all grades, from kindergarten through 12th grade, under one governing board. This differs from the split structure common elsewhere on the Peninsula, where separate elementary and high school districts cover the same area.