Monitoring Student Progress in Reading

At the end of elementary school, students take a compulsory ministerial examination in French or English, depending on their language of instruction. These examinations are graded by teachers using a guide. For certification purposes, students also take compulsory ministerial uniform examinations at the end of secondary school. The writing examination in French language classes is graded by the Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement supérieur (Ministry of Education and Higher Education, or MEES). Student evaluation is the responsibility of schools, which must implement an evaluation policy that complies with the ministerial directive stipulating that reading must account for 40 percent of students’ final grades. Although MEES administers only one compulsory reading examination at the end of elementary school, elementary and secondary school students are required to read several texts in preparation for writing examinations. As part of the Plan d’action pour l’amélioration du français (Action Plan for Improving French), MEES administers writing examinations and publishes reports on the results of students in the fourth and sixth years of elementary school, and in the second and fifth years of secondary school.