The Hamilton Wentworth Catholic Disctrict School board meantime met or surpassed the provincial average in both reading and writing.
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The Education Quality and Accountability office released numbers from across the province last month showing that only 50 per cent of Grade 6 students were achieving the provincial standard in math.
For Grade 6 students, 77 per cent met or exceed the provincial standard for reading and 75 per cent for writing. For the Catholic board in Windsor-Essex, that number was slightly better, with 55 per cent passing the Grade 6 math test.
However, the math scores from one school in Toronto seems to have beat all odds.
The school board says it is taking action and plans to hire two experts to analyze the EQAO data and help develop ways to improve test scores that will focus on mathematics.
However, those were the only two of nine categories in which the board was above the provincial average in testing for literacy and math in Grades 3 and 6, math in Grade 9 and literacy in Grade 10.
Math scores for both grade levels, however, declined when compared to the last testing period in 2014, as did provincewide math scores.
Some argue that schools need to change the curriculum and return to rote learning techniques – based on repetition for memorization – rather than discovery learning, which allows students to draw on personal experience and interaction.
Reading and writing results have generally stabilized or increased in Toronto and the 905, according to individual board results released Wednesday.
“If children don’t know how to apply it, they don’t understand the concepts behind it”.
However, she said, scores do show education at the board is “on the right track”.
This year, the province will inject $60 million into a new education strategy aimed at increasing math scores in Grades 1 to 8.
Elementary teachers are also now required to provide 60 minutes of math a day, though many were already doing so before the province mandated it.
Speaking from J.R. Wilcox on Wednesday, Education Minister Mitzie Hunter said it was “urgent” that schools and school boards deal with the falling scores. “It’s going to take us time, but I do believe we’ll show improvement”.
“These results tell us we need to do better”, said Bryant.
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“Make sure we have dedicated time just like we did in literacy”.
