New report ranks the best elementary and secondary schools in Alberta

Alberta students have been away from their schools since March 16 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic (file)

Calgary — The tumultuous 2019-20 school year has just wrapped up, and the Fraser Institute is marking the occasion by releasing a ranking of Alberta's best schools.

Using data compiled during the 2018-19 school year, the independent Canadian public policy group released its annual ranking of elementary and secondary schools.

The organization says the list helps parents weight their options when it comes to schooling by comparing the academic performance of schools across the province.

"Our Report Cards offer parents information they can’t easily get anywhere else, about how their child’s school performs and how it compares to other schools in Alberta," said Peter Cowley, a Fraser Institute senior fellow in a release.

This year's list ranked 863 public, Catholic, independent and charter elementary schools based on seven academic indicators derived from province-wide test results.

The top 10 elementary schools in Alberta are:

The Fraser Institute also ranked 253 public, independent, Catholic and charter secondary schools using similar criteria.

The top 10 secondary schools in Alberta are:

Despite the ranking of any school on its list, the Fraser Institute says any school in the province can improve, regardless of type, location and student characteristics.

"It doesn’t matter where a school is ranked, or what challenges its students may face. The evidence is clear — all types of schools, located all over the province with different types of students are capable of improvement," Cowley said.

The full ranking can be found on the Fraser Institute's website.