test

Ontario’s Education Minister is encouraged by the latest results of the province’s standardized tests.

Results released by the Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO), which oversees student testing, show slight increases in the number of students meeting math standards.

At the grade 3 level, 65% of all students who wrote last spring’s test met the provincial standard, an increase of one percent.

Fifty-two percent of Grade 6s met the standard, also a one percent increase over 2025 numbers.

The number in the grade 9 math assessment also grew one percent to 59% this past spring.

Students continue to perform better in the writing and reading tests.

Sixty-seven percent of grade 3s and 85% of grade 6 students met the provincial standard in writing.

In the reading portion, 75% of Grade 3s and 86% of Grade 6s met the standard, with both scores seeing upticks from 2025.

Improvements were also seen in the Grade 10 literacy test, with 86% of those writing for the first time meeting standards, and 49% rewriting the test hitting the preferred benchmark.

Education Minister Paul Calandra says while the numbers are encouraging, there is still more work to do.

“Too many students continue to struggle, achievement gaps persist, and results remain uneven across the province,” states Calandra in a statement.

“The results give us valuable information about where progress is being made and where added action is needed.”

He has directed his Ministry to review school boards’ Student Achievement Plans and monitor the progress made.

“These plans are an important tool for boards to use local assessment results to identify where students are falling behind and set out concrete actions to improve student outcomes,” states Calandra.

The Minister also wants to know why there has been a high number of students who have been exempted from the testing.

Exemptions are often given to students who are unable to complete an assessment.

“This increase requires a closer look. I have therefore directed EQAO leadership to investigate the reasons for this increase and report back on what is driving the changes and whether any further action is needed.”