French-language system's Grade 9 EQAO math results taper off but show positive trends in students' achievement as they progress from Grade 6 to 9. Results not available for the English-language system this year.

TORONTO, Sept. 30, 2015 /CNW/ - Provincial results on EQAO's Grade 9 math assessment for the English-language school system will not be available this year. Due to labour disruptions, not all schools in that system participated.

Every school and school board in the English system that fully participated in the Grade 9 math assessment will receive a report of their results, to be published on October 28.

In the French-language system,

• achievement rates on the Grade 9 math assessment have dropped slightly since last year, though they remain significantly higher than five years ago.
• student achievement in the applied math course remains low and requires continued attention.
• student cohort tracking shows more students maintaining the provincial standard from Grade 6 to 9 and fewer students taking a step backward between Grade 6 and 9 or performing below the standard in both Grade 6 and Grade 9.

QUICK FACTS FOR THE FRENCH-LANGUAGE SYSTEM

Overall Grade 9 Student Achievement in the French-Language System

• 82% of students in the academic math course met the provincial standard. This is a drop of 2 percentage points from 2014, though it is 12 points higher than in 2011.
• 49% of students in the applied math course met the provincial standard. This is a drop of 2 percentage points from 2014, though it is also 12 points higher than in 2011.
• Although the success rate in the applied math course has increased from 37% in 2011 to 49% in 2015, it has remained persistently low. More than half of the students enrolled in this course are not meeting the provincial standard.

Tracking the Progress of Students from Grade 6 to 9 in the French-Language System
Since 2011,

• more students in both the academic and applied math courses are maintaining a high level of math success between Grade 6 and 9.
  • There has been an increase of 13 percentage points in the number of students who meet the provincial standard in both Grades 6 and 9 in the academic course and an increase of 9 percentage points in the applied course.
• fewer students in both the academic and applied math courses are performing below the standard in both Grade 6 and Grade 9.
  • There has been a decrease of 3 percentage points in the number of students who have not met the standard in Grade 6 and also have not in Grade 9 in the academic course and a decrease of 6% points in the applied course.
• fewer students in both the academic and applied math courses are taking a step backward in their math achievement between Grade 6 and 9.
  • There has been a decrease of 9 percentage points in the number of students who did not meet the standard in Grade 9 after having met it in Grade 6 in the academic course and a decrease of 6 percentage points in the applied course.
• more students are improving their math skills between Grade 6 and 9 in the applied course.
  • There has been an increase of 3 percentage points in the number of students who met the standard in Grade 9 after having not met it in Grade 6. There has been a decrease of 1 percentage point for students in this category in the academic course.

QUOTES

"EQAO results have proven to be a key measure of accountability in Ontario's education system and an important tool for improvement planning. The fact that we have lost the ability to assess what's going on in the English-language system this year is regrettable—particularly in the applied math course, which we know has had persistently low achievement rates for some time."
—Dave Cooke, Chair, EQAO

"It's encouraging to note the positive trends in students' achievement as they progress from Grade 6 to Grade 9 in the French-language system. This suggests many students are getting the right supports to overcome their early math struggles. The provincial tests are an important way to assess this progress each year, so we can ensure that all students have the math essentials they need to be successful in school and beyond."
—Bruce Rodrigues, CEO, EQAO     

LEARN MORE

Faits saillants des résultats provinciaux – Test de mathématiques, 9e année, 2014-2015 – Élèves  de langue française (Highlights of the provincial results from the 2014–2015 French-language Grade 9 Assessment of Mathematics) (Document exists in French only)

On October 28, reports will be released for all schools and boards that participated in the Grade 9 math assessment. A full report of provincial results for the French-language system will also be released on this date.

Aussi disponible en français

About EQAO

EQAO is an independent agency that creates and administers large-scale assessments to measure Ontario students' achievement in reading, writing and math at key stages of their education. All EQAO assessments are developed by Ontario educators to align with The Ontario Curriculum. The assessments evaluate student achievement objectively and in relation to a common provincial standard. EQAO is undertaking a multi-year project to move the provincial assessments online.

EQAO provides results to each student who writes an assessment. Its personalized reports help support individual student learning. The agency provides schools and school boards with detailed reports about their students' achievement, as well as contextual, attitudinal and behavioural information from questionnaires, in an interactive online reporting tool. These data are used to improve school programming and classroom instruction. EQAO also reports the results of the provincial assessments publicly. This helps keep the public education system accountable to taxpayers.

EQAO is committed to building capacity for the use of data through articles, workshops, school stories and programs like the Dr. Bette M. Stephenson Recognition of Achievement. EQAO has an active research program that investigates factors that influence student achievement, school effectiveness and best assessment practices.

EQAO coordinates Ontario's participation in national and international assessments.

SOURCE Education Quality and Accountability Office

For further information and to arrange interviews, please contact Angele Dufresne, Communications Officer, 416-314-4327, [email protected]