How did students in Waterloo Region fare on EQAO tests?

A chalkboard and textbooks are seen in this file photo. (Pexels)

The province is promising to review learning within schools, citing “insufficient progress” in the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) testing, but school boards in Waterloo Region have gained ground in several key areas.

On Wednesday, the province released the results of the yearly test, giving parents and educators a look at where students stand.

Students with the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) made significant progress in the Grade 9 mathematics assessment, while students with the Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) improved in the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test.

Here is a breakdown of the scores throughout the testing.

*All provincial results listed are for English-language schools.

Grade 3 reading, writing and mathematics

Across Ontario, 64 per cent of Grade 3 students met or exceeded the provincial standard for mathematics, 74 per cent made the grade in reading, and 65 per cent met the standard for writing.

Despite falling below the overall provincial results in all three categories, Grade 3 students in the WRDSB made some gains compared to the year before. The largest improvements were in mathematics and reading, where the number of students who met or exceeded the provincial standards increased by four per cent in both categories.

There was a small change for students in the Waterloo Catholic District School Board, with the largest improvements in reading and writing at two per cent each.

Students meeting or exceeding the provincial standard:

• WRDSB mathematics: 62 per cent (previously 58 per cent)
• WRDSB reading: 72 per cent (previously 68 per cent)
• WRDSB writing: 62 per cent (previously 60 per cent)

• WCDSB mathematics: 65 per cent (previously 64 per cent)
• WCDSB reading: 75 per cent (previously 73 per cent)
• WCDSB writing: 65 per cent (previously 63 per cent)

• Province-wide mathematics: 64 per cent (previously 61 per cent)
• Province-wide reading: 74 per cent (previously 71 per cent)
• Province-wide writing: 65 per cent (previously 64 per cent)

Grade 6 reading writing and mathematics

Math continued to pose a challenge for students throughout Waterloo Region. Scores remained unchanged for both school boards, however the number of students meeting or exceeding the mathematics standard in the WRDSB and WCDSB surpassed the provincial average of 51 per cent.

Reading and writing scores improved modestly for both school boards, but the WCDSB lagged behind the overall provincial results in both categories. WRDSB students, meanwhile, tied the overall provincial results for writing.

Students meeting or exceeding the provincial standard:

• WRDSB mathematics: 52 per cent (previously 52 per cent)
• WRDSB reading: 85 per cent (previously 82 per cent)
• WRDSB writing: 85 per cent (previously 81 per cent)

• WCDSB mathematics: 53 per cent (previously 53 per cent)
• WCDSB reading: 84 per cent (previously 81 per cent)
• WCDSB writing: 82 per cent (previously 79 per cent)

• Province-wide mathematics: 51 per cent (previously 50 per cent)
• Province-wide reading: 86 per cent (previously 82 per cent)
• Province-wide writing: 85 per cent (previously 80 per cent)

Grade 9 mathematics

Things seem to be adding up in the WRDSB. Grade 9 students posted a 10 per cent gain over the previous year in the mathematics assessment, which was four per cent higher than the overall provincial result.

The same could not be said in the Catholic board, where results year-over-year slipped slightly to land five per cent below the provincial average.

Students meeting or exceeding the provincial standard:

• WRDSB: 62 per cent (previously: 52 per cent)
• WCDSB: 53 per cent (previously: 55 per cent)
• Province-wide: 58 percent (previously: 54 per cent)

Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test

Many students continued to excel in the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test. The Catholic board posted a 6 per cent overall improvement over the previous year. The number of students meeting or exceeding standards in the public school board remained unchanged from the 2023/2024 testing year.

Students meeting or exceeding the provincial standard:

• WRDSB: 85 per cent (previously 85 per cent)
• WCDSB: 92 per cent (previously 86 per cent)
• Province-wide: 85 percent (previously: 85 per cent)