Students who attend Ontario middle schools perform worse on EQAO tests than those who don’t: report

A school classroom is seen in this file photo. (CTV)

Ontario students who transition to middle school for Grade 6 “lose academic ground” compared to students who do not switch schools, according to a new study by the C.D. Howe Institute.

The report, titled Signposts of Success: Evaluating Ontario’s Elementary Schools, analyzes three years’ worth of Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) test scores in Grade 3 and Grade 6 literacy and math. The study found that those students who transition to a middle school in Grade 6 do not perform as well on the EQAO assessments compared to other students.

“Students who move to a middle school in Grade 6 – leaving their junior school after Grade 5 – perform significantly worse on the Grade 6 assessment than other students, suggesting that this transition presents a substantial academic challenge at least in the short run,” the report’s author, David R. Johnson, wrote.

According to the data, Grade 6 middle school students are predicted to have a 4.6-percentage-point lower pass rate on the EQAO literacy test compared to other students. In math, there is a reduction in the pass rate of 4.3 percentage points, the study says.

“The overall negative effect of middle schools on the EQAO Grade 6 academic results, combined with other evidence from outside this paper, leads to the question of why we have middle schools at all – let alone middle schools that begin in Grade 6,” the report read.

“There is no obvious academic justification for middle schools. For boards already facing declining enrolment – either overall or in specific catchment areas – this could be a compelling reason to reconsider or phase out middle schools.”

The province did not directly respond to a question from CP24.com about whether it would entertain the idea of eliminating middle schools in Ontario. The Ford government has previously indicated that it may be open to closing some underutilized schools, adding that it is committed to considering “every option” for the five boards placed under provincial supervision over the summer.

“As the minister has said publicly, the government understands that while EQAO results have improved in recent years, they are still not up to the standards expected from parents,” Emma Testani, a spokesperson for the Minister of Education, said in an email to CP24.com.

“It’s why we continue to build on the government’s back-to-basics focus on reading, writing and math. The Minister has been clear: our top priority is supporting students and teachers in the classroom. This includes further analysis of EQAO results and concrete steps to ensure Ontario students receive the education they need to succeed.”

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