Shirakawa (george Sr.) Elementary, San Jose CA

Original Research by School Decision on Shirakawa (george Sr.) Elementary

Shirakawa (George Sr.) Elementary is a public school serving kindergarten through eighth grade in San Jose, with enrollment distributed across a compact, mixed-age campus. The student body is about half Hispanic and over a third Asian, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a neighborhood of moderate to lower income. The school sits in the zip code surrounding the school address at 665 Wool Creek Drive, where housing values are moderately elevated and rents have ticked upward in recent years, typical of the greater San Jose market.

The school's academic profile shows consistent proficiency patterns across tested grade levels and subjects. In English language arts, results range from lower in the elementary grades through stronger performance in grades five and seven, then decline again by grade eight. Math proficiency follows a similar arc, with upper-elementary grades in the low-to-mid range and middle grades dropping further, particularly by grade eight. Science testing, available for grades five and eight, shows comparable trends. These results place the school below the midpoint when compared against other districts in Santa Clara County on an overall proficiency index.

The pattern of proficiency suggests that students in this school's elementary grades establish foundational skills at modest levels, with some subjects and grades performing better than others, while transition to and advancement through the middle grades corresponds with declining proficiency rates. This trajectory is worth monitoring closely. A parent may want to discuss with the school what support systems are in place for students moving into grades six through eight and what specific interventions or programs address the steeper drops in math and science by eighth grade.

The school serves a diverse student community, which can mean exposure to multiple languages and cultures but may also mean varying levels of English language proficiency and prior academic preparation. The relatively high free and reduced lunch participation indicates that economic resource disparities among families are pronounced, a factor that correlates with broader achievement gaps in most school systems. The school is part of Franklin-McKinley Elementary, a district that serves the western San Jose area.

No data was available on chronic absenteeism, discipline, special education or English learner enrollment rates, staffing, or attendance patterns, all of which would provide additional context on school environment and student support. No information on course offerings, clubs, or extended programs appears in the available records. San Jose itself is a dense, car-dependent city with distinct neighborhoods, from downtown urban core to sprawling residential areas, and strong tech-sector employment that shapes the region's economy and housing market pressures.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 343%

School 43% · District 34% · ▲ 9 pts above district

even with state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 443%

School 43% · District 30% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 538%

School 38% · District 25% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 632%

School 32% · District 29% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 734%

School 34% · District 27% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 822%

School 22% · District 27% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 336%

School 36% · District 31% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 442%

School 42% · District 32% · ▲ 10 pts above district

even with state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 549%

School 49% · District 35% · ▲ 14 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 640%

School 40% · District 37% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 748%

School 48% · District 41% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 828%

School 28% · District 40% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 26 pts below county median

Science

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 21% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 819%

School 19% · District 20% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 866%

School 66% · District 48% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

This schoolFranklin-McKinley Elementary, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 4Lower-income31%Higher-income91%60 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income39%Higher-income43%4 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income43%Higher-income75%32 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income31%Higher-income92%61 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income36%Higher-income46%10 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income31%Higher-income36%4 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income28%Higher-income67%39 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income19%Higher-income36%17 pp gap