Grey Bruce school boards are seeing positive trends in education after the release for the recent Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) assessment results.
EQAO measures how well Ontario’s public education system is developing student’s abilities in reading, writing, and math skills by the percentage of students achieving at least the provincial standard.
Bluewater District School Board Superintendent of Education Keith Lefebvre says the recent results are a testament to the dedication and resilience of their students, education and school communities.
“When you are thinking of a B or an A (letter grade), that is typically what you are thinking of in terms of a provincial standard being a B, and obviously exceeding that being and A. Anything under that, is not considered failing, we are just saying the student is not yet at provincial standard,” says Lefebvre.
Results from the previous year rose by four per cent to 68 in Grade Three reading, one per cent to 57 in Grade Three writing, seven per cent to 62 in Grade Three math, three per cent to 79 in Grade Six reading, and 7 per cent to 78 in Grade Six writing.
“The steady upward trend in literacy and mathematics achievement, especially in our primary grades, reflects our ongoing commitment to evidence-based instruction and targeted supports,” says Lefebvre.
He adds while there certainly were positives, Grade Six math stayed at 39 per cent, Grade Nine math dropped from 52 per cent to 49, and the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) fell to 82 per cent from 86.
“We have a number of students when we look at the data even more closely, we have a number of students who are very close to that provincial standard, so it is a matter of, and this is where EQAO can be very handy for us, it is a matter of us refining some of our strategies to help those students get across that provincial standard line,” says Lefebvre.
To help students get to where they need to be, Lefebvre says the Ministry of Education has provided school boards across the province with funding for staff to work with both teachers and students and provide assistance.
“They are in all of our schools to help support and move the literacy and math instruction forward and help target the work that we need to do,” says Lefebvre.
The Bruce-Grey Catholic District School Board is also marking significant gains from the EQAO results.
Grade Three reading is up 13 per cent to 79, Grade Three Writing is up almost eight per cent to 62, Grade Three math is up two per cent to 59, Grade Six reading is up four per cent to 89, and OSSLT literacy got 84 per cent for first-time eligible students.
Additionally, six of 10 schools achieved 100 per cent in at least one literacy category and 90 per cent of schools achieved in the 80 to 100 per cent range in Grade Six literacy.
Chair of the Board Lori Di Castri says, “To see such improvement in year-over-year results demonstrates that our Catholic schools are places where student achievement and well-being go hand in hand.”