Student Testing: An International Context

— Jun 16, 2022

Student Testing: An International Context is a new study that finds more than 80 countries or jurisdictions are participating in this year’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) study for the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, a group of comparable, highly developed nations, including Canada. The OECD reports that about three-quarters of 15-year-old students in those participating countries attend schools in which mandatory standardized tests are used at least once a year.

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Why Educational Testing is Necessary

— Jun 16, 2022

Why Educational Testing is Necessary is a new essay that highlights the importance of test standardization, and examines the benefits of objective testing versus grade inflation in the education system.

Testing Canadian K-12 Students—Regional Variability, Room for Improvement

— May 10, 2022

Testing of Canadian K-12 Students: Regional Variability and Room for Improvement finds that governments across Canada could improve provincewide student testing programs by offering regular uniform testing at multiple grade levels and making school and district performance results available to the public, which would incentivize educational improvements.

The Decline of Standardized Testing in Canada

— Mar 29, 2022

The Decline of Standardized Testing in Canada finds that the erosion of standardized testing in schools across the country will limit the ability of parents, teachers and principals to measure student performance and the overall health of the education system.

Strong Parental Support for Standardized Testing across Canada

— Jan 27, 2022

Strong Parental Support for Standardized Testing across Canada is a new study that finds 84 per cent of parents of school-aged children in Canada support standardized testing to understand how their child and their child’s school are performing in reading, writing and mathematics, according to a new Leger poll.

Worrying Trends in BC’s Testing of Grade 10 Students

— Jan 11, 2022

Worrying Trends in BC’s Testing of Grade 10 Students finds that in 2019/20 only 40 per cent of Grade 10 students in British Columbia scored proficient or above in numeracy and only 75 per cent scored proficient or above in literacy.

Education Spending in Public Schools in Canada, Fall 2021

— Aug 26, 2021

Education Spending in Public Schools in Canada, Fall 2021 finds from 2014/15 to 2018/19 per-student education spending increased across Canada, with compensation (salaries, benefits and pensions) accounting for most of the growth in spending.

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The foundation of the Fraser Institute’s current research on education policy was built thanks to a very generous grant for an initiative in the name of Barbara Mitchell from the Weston Family Foundation.

Recent Education Commentaries and Blog Posts

Parents want standardized tests even if unions don’t

Matthew Lau

Appeared in the National Post, June 16, 2022

In Ontario, 52 per cent of students in Sixth Grade failed to meet provincial standards in mathematics.

All provinces—not just Alberta—should allow charter schools

Michael Zwaagstra

Appeared in the Toronto Sun, June 8, 2022

Charter schools increase the choices available to families, particularly those with limited means.

Nine out of 10 parents in Atlantic Canada support standardized testing

Paige MacPherson, Alex Whalen

Appeared in the Fredericton Daily Gleaner, June 8, 2022

Standardized testing provides an objective assessment of student progress and proficiency in core subjects.

Student assessments can help kids succeed—but it depends where you live

Paige MacPherson

Appeared in the Edmonton Sun, May 25, 2022

During the pandemic, most provinces suspended their testing programs.

Class size caps would likely hurt—not help—Ontario schools

Michael Zwaagstra

Appeared in the Ottawa Citizen, May 24, 2022

The proposal includes a hard cap of 20 students in all classrooms and 10,000 new teachers.

Saskatchewan only province that rejects provincewide student testing

Paige MacPherson

Appeared in the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, May 12, 2022

Provincewide assessments allow the public to see how students are doing in school.

B.C. government should revitalize standardized testing in schools

Michael Zwaagstra

Appeared in the Vancouver Sun, April 18, 2022

Students in the province now write numeracy and literacy assessments that don’t count towards their final marks.

P.E.I. demonstrates value of standardized testing in schools

Michael Zwaagstra

Appeared in the Charlottetown Guardian, April 15, 2022

The province's students, who used to score at the bottom, now score at the Canadian average.

Alberta government should revitalize standardized testing

Michael Zwaagstra

Appeared in the Globe and Mail, March 29, 2022

The province's Grade 12 exams used to be worth 50 per cent of a student’s final grade compared to 10 per cent this school year.

Provincial governments should strengthen—not weaken—standardized testing in schools

Michael Zwaagstra

Appeared in the National Post, March 29, 2022

Today's tests place less emphasis on subject-specific knowledge than they once did.

Research Experts

Vicki Alger

Research Fellow, Independent Institute
Derek J. Allison

Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Education, The University of Western Ontario
Jason Clemens

Executive Vice President, Fraser Institute
Stephen T. Easton

Professor of Economics, Simon Fraser University
John M. Krieg

Professor of Economics, Western Washington University
Paige MacPherson

Associate Director, Education Policy
Deani Van Pelt

Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute
Michael Zwaagstra

Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute

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Education Policy

Student Testing: An International Context

Why Educational Testing is Necessary

Testing Canadian K-12 Students—Regional Variability, Room for Improvement

The Decline of Standardized Testing in Canada

Strong Parental Support for Standardized Testing across Canada

Worrying Trends in BC’s Testing of Grade 10 Students

Education Spending in Public Schools in Canada, Fall 2021

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Research Experts