The hard truth: Ontario EQAO result show poor standards in Math between 2022-24. Is there a silver lining?

African parents and their school-aged children living in the diaspora (Ontario, precisely) probably may not know that the province's system of education is struggling to reach the standards it has set for itself.

In the 2022-2023 rounds, the majority of Grade 6 students in Ontario failed the province’s standardised math test, according to figures obtained by Global News, despite a pledge by the Ford government to boost grades and achievement. The EQAO is a standardised test which students undertake to help assess the state's progress. The evidence published on the EQAO website show poor outcomes in Math between 2022-2024.

The same data shows 59 per cent of Grade 3 students met the provincial mathematics standard. Just 47 per cent of Grade 6 students met the threshold, while 52 per cent of Grade 9 students were at the standard.

In the 2023-2024 rounds, about 59.7 per cent of Grade 3 students and 49.5 per cent of Grade 6 students met or exceeded provincial standards when it came to mathematics, the EQAO reported. This represents a less than one percentage point improvement for the younger students and just over a two percentage point increase for those in Grade 6

When comparing these data, we find that Ontario students’ math and literacy scores have not seen a big improvement over the last year, according to new data released by the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO).

EQAO: Minister's response to poor standards in Ontario Math.

Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce says the data speaks “to a broader phenomenon of stabilisation in our core fundamental areas of reading, writing and math.”

He noted the scores were “a good sign” and “an incremental move towards the right direction.

The Progressive Conservative government has made a big push to overhaul math and language curriculums over the last few years. In 2020, the province revealed a new math curriculum that focused on financial literacy, coding and “back to basics” fundamentals. In 2023, a new Language Arts curriculum for elementary school was enforced.

READ THE FULL BREAKDOWN OF RESULTS ON THE EQAO WEBSITE

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In areas of Reading and Writing

Grade 3 reading and writing scores were similar. About 72.6 per cent of students were at or above provincial standards for reading, a slight dip from the 73.2 per cent last year.

Meanwhile, writing scores improved by about 0.6 percentage points.

For Grade 6 students, scores for writing dropped slightly from 84.1 per cent to 83.6 per cent. A similar dip was recorded in reading.

How poor results in Ontario's EQAO Math concerns you: What every concerned parent should know?

What we’re seeing is an increase in the anxiety as a result of any gaps in education,” said Olaide Olasupo. “We’re getting a lot more calls related to ‘my kid has lost confidence, they’re scared of asking questions, they feel really anxious in math class.”

Olaide Olasupo, founder of a behaviour-based tutoring Company - LOOMI Education, shared.

Although the 2022-2023 rounds were held in the aftermath of COVID-19's disruptions to learning, it's surprising to find that there has been little to no improvements for majority of students within the past 3 years.