Report says more discussion needed on EQAO change
Teachers have long said standardized assessment does little to help kids
Areport on the future of assessment recommends no immediate changes for province-wide testing of Ontario students, sources say.
The report, by educator Carol Campbell, instead recommends further discussions on the highly contentious issue of testing all students in reading, writing and math, sources told the Star, given no consensus could be reached.
Students, over several days, write tests in literacy and numeracy in Grades 3 and 6, as well as math in Grade 9. In Grade 10, students must pass a literacy test in order to graduate.
It’s unclear how the province will respond to the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) recommendation, given the immense pressure from teacher unions to revert to random sampling or abolish the tests altogether, as well as the recent NDP platform that also recommends scaling back.
Teachers have long argued the tests take up too much time and force them to “teach to the test” instead of focusing on classroom work.
Harvey Bischof, president of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation, said the literacy test, ushered in by the Progressive Conservative government two decades ago, “is another fine example of something that arose out of mistrust” of teachers’ professionalism.
“The best (person) to assess student literacy or other academic achievement is the teacher in their classroom, through a series of appropriate assessments instead of one high-stakes test,” he has told the Star in regards to the mandatory Grade 10 test.
He said random sampling is preferred.
Campbell’s report will also make recommendations on classroom assessments and report cards.
Last fall, Campbell was asked to look at assessment and reporting in Ontario schools, as part of a wider move to “refresh” the curriculum.
It is part of a move to modernize EQAO, the body that creates and oversees the province-wide tests, and make them more inclusive and culturally appropriate given Ontario’s diverse student body, as well as take student well-being into account.