September 17th, 2014

September 17, 2014, Kitchener, ON: Today, the Education, Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) released school board results for Grade 3 and 6 Reading, Writing and Mathematics assessments.

“The Waterloo Region District School Board is pleased to see that Reading and Writing results for our Grade 3 and 6 students continue to increase,” says Scott Miller, Assistant (to) Superintendent – Learning Services. “As a system we have been experiencing gains in our Reading and Writing EQAO Results over a 5 year period, and are proud that our efforts in these areas are making a difference.”

While results for Reading and Writing have shown improvement, results in Mathematics have not experienced the same increase. “Mathematics is identified in the 2014-2015 Board Improvement Plan for Student Achievement (BIPSA) as an area of focus. The Waterloo Region District School Board’s BIPSA sets system goals for the school year, and prioritizes supports and resources for staff that strive to optimize student learning and achievement.”

Highlights

Overall: Grade 3 Mathematics increased by 1 percentage point over 2013 EQAO Results, while Grade 6 experienced a decline of 4 percentage points in comparison to the 2013 EQAO results. This decline reflects similar trends across the province.
Boys: Results show steady improvements for boys in Reading and Writing. Over the past ten years, we have continued to close the gap in these areas.
English Language Learners (ELL): The board continues to maintain gains in the areas of Reading and Writing, for our English Language Learners. Since 2010, Grade 3 Reading achievement has risen 6 percentage points, and Grade 6 Reading achievement has increased by 7 percentage points.
Students with Special Education Needs: Over the past 5 years, Students with Special Education Needs have increased by 9 percentage points, in Grade 6 Writing, and 8 percentage points in Grade 6 Reading.
Other Information:

• Approximately 4280 Grade 3 students and 3988 Grade 6 students participated in the testing;
• EQAO reports the number of students achieving a high level of achievement (Levels 3 and 4; there are four levels of achievement)
• Literacy has been an area of focus for Ontario educators
• Over time, resource documents, best practices and supports for Literacy have been developed to better assist teachers with assessment and planning for improved Reading and Writing outcomes

 

About the Waterloo Region District School Board
The Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) has approximately 40,000 elementary students and 20,000 secondary in 118 school locations in the Region of Waterloo. From Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 students, our schools provide instruction designed to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to provide a solid foundation for living and learning.

About the Education, Quality and Accountability Office
The objective and reliable results from EQAO’s assessments complement the information obtained from classroom and other assessments to provide students, parents, teachers and administrators with a clear and comprehensive picture of student achievement and a basis for targeted improvement planning at the individual, school, school board and provincial levels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Categories: Learning · Press Releases Tags: Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO)