Special Reading Initiatives
As part of the Literacy and Numeracy Strategy for increasing student achievement in Ontario, the Student Achievement Division develops and implements policies and programs; provides professional resources and learning opportunities; and provides focused interventions to districts and schools. The Student Achievement Division works to fulfill the Ministry of Education’s vision to help all students achieve excellence by ensuring equity, promoting student wellbeing, and enhancing public confidence. Results from the Education Quality and Accountability Office have shown that students who meet or exceed the provincial standard in reading have increased from 50 percent in 2002–2003 to 72 percent in 2015–2016 for students in Grade 3 English language schools. For students in Grade 6, rates increased from 56 percent in 2002–2003 to 81 percent in 2015–2016.
Student achievement officers in the Student Achievement Division work with district school board leaders to support school and district improvement planning and implementation of initiatives focused on the effective use of data and monitoring progress in student achievement. Student achievement officers also support professional learning communities as a means to mobilize research and effective practices. Ontario’s Focused Intervention Partnership has contributed to an overall decrease in the number of lower performing schools in the province. Ontario has gone from 137 schools in the 2009–2010 school year to 55 schools in the 2016–2017 school year that are qualified to receive support from the Focused Intervention Partnership. These are schools where more than 50 percent of students, over a two year period, are not achieving the provincial standard in two of three assessment areas (primary or junior only) or four of six assessment areas (both primary and junior). Schools that receive Focused Intervention support are assigned an ownership role in leading efforts to raise student achievement. These schools are supported by Ministry staff members who work with district leaders and school-based staff to provide advice and resources to increase the effectiveness of instruction.
Since the 2002–2003 school year, there have been five key shifts in beliefs and practices in literacy across Ontario: setting high expectations, ensuring that adequate time was dedicated to literacy learning, establishing a common basis of effective literacy instruction and common assessment practices, and facilitating a shift from effective literacy instruction to literacy pedagogy. Capturing the practice‑based evidence and making it accessible to other educators across the province has been a core part of this approach. Over the past decade, Ontario teachers have provided new knowledge and numerous resources for other Ontario educators. The Student Achievement Division’s Capacity Building Series is one mechanism for mobilizing the learning from Ontario educators to support leadership and pedagogical effectiveness.25 This series of short written reports captures shifts in the thinking of Ontario educators in areas such as the learning environment, assessment practices, professional learning, culturally responsive pedagogy, and student voice. The Ministry of Education continues to implement cross-disciplinary projects that support literacy development.