September 30th, 2013

Waterloo Region District School Board – Board Meeting

On September 30, 2013 at 7:00pm, the WRDSB held its monthly Board Meeting. The agenda and reports for this meeting are available on the Board’s website by clicking here.

No delegations appeared at this meeting.

Consent Agenda

Trustees received and approved the following minutes:

  • Approve Minutes – Special Education Advisory Committee Meeting of June 5, 3013
  • Approve Minutes – Parent Involvement Committee Meeting of June 4, 2013
  • Receive Minutes – Board Meeting of June 24, 2013
  • Approve Minutes – Committee of the Whole Meeting of September 16, 2013
  • Approve Minutes – Committee of the Whole Meeting of September 23, 2013

Trustees received and approved the following monthly reports:

Reports

2012-13 Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test & Grade 9 EQAO Mathematics Assessment Results
Successful completion of the OSSLT is a requirement for students who are working toward an Ontario Secondary School Diploma. Students who are unsuccessful on the test are provided additional opportunities to pass.

Participation rates of first-time eligible students on the OSSLT continue to rise in the Waterloo Region District School Board and have surpassed provincial rates. Over the past five years, rates have increased 2 percentage points to a total of 94% of students writing the May 2013 test.

Results for first-time eligible students who participated in the May 2013 test increased from the 2012 results by one percentage point, to 83%. A similar trend was evident in the results of students who were previously eligible to attempt the test, where 52% of students who participated were successful on the test (an increase from 50% in the previous year).

More information on student achievement in the OSSLT is available in the report.

EQAO 2013 Grade 9 Mathematics Provincial Assessment Results
In January and May/June, Grade 9 students across the province participated in the Grade 9 Mathematics assessment. In the WRDSB, approximately 4300 students participated.

Participation rates have remained high in the Academic assessments over the last five years. Participation rates for all specified groups, and most notably for students with Special Education needs in the Applied assessment, continue to show significant improvement.

Students in the Waterloo Region District School Board continue to demonstrate high levels of achievement in the Grade 9 Academic assessment of Mathematics, with 84% of students achieving levels 3 and 4.

Grade 9 Applied Mathematics results indicate that the number of students meeting the provincial standard in the Waterloo Region District School Board has risen by 2 percentage points in 2012-13, after a 3 percentage point increase in the previous year, to match the provincial results.

More information on the assessment can be found in the report.

Trustee Distribution and Determination Discussion
Chairperson Martin made a presentation to Trustees regarding the distribution and determination of Trustees throughout the Region of Waterloo.