September 24, 2014                                                                                           

EQAO Provides Snapshot of Student Learning 

The Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) has released results of the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) and the Grade 9 math tests written by students in the 2013-14 school year. 

Overall, 82% of DSBN students who wrote the test for the first time met or exceeded the provincial standard, which is measured as Level 3 on a 4 point scale, equivalent to a ‘B’ grade. This represents an increase of 2 percentage points over the previous year’s results and 4 percentage points over the Board’s 2010-11 results. 

Included in this year’s results, 9 DSBN high schools had success rates of 80% or above, while three schools achieved success rates of 90% and above. Ten schools increased their success rates compared to last year, while one schools maintained its position.  

“Overall, we’re encouraged with the progress our students are making in literacy. It is an area where our determined focus has benefited students,” said Helen McGregor, Superintendent of Education.  

In Grade 9 Academic Math, 81% of DSBN students met or exceeded the provincial standard. These results show a 2 percentage point improvement over 2012-13 and an 8percentage point improvement over 2010-11. Grade 9 Applied Math results increased 5 percentage points from the previous year and 8percentage points over the 2010-11 results. In total, 44% percent of applied students were successful on the test.  

“We know there is work to be done in math, which has been identified as an area of concern across Ontario. Similar to the successes we’ve seen in literacy, we are confident that increased focus in this area will lead to improvements in student achievement,” said McGregor.  

“However, it is important to keep in mind that the EQAO is just one assessment of many that we use to gauge student learning and having a combination of assessments helps give us a clearer picture of how students are progressing,” added McGregor.  

DSBN Director of Education Warren Hoshizaki said that the Board is committed to providing students with the support they need to become successful in school. “The EQAO helps inform this process by providing each school with a detailed report which they review and analyze alongside other data to determine their literacy/numeracy focus,” said Hoshizaki. 

For more information about the EQAO, please visit www.eqao.com.