Province to lower students' assessment targets
The current target is for 90 per cent of students to 'achieve appropriate or higher levels on provincial language, mathematical and scientific literacies on provincial assessments at the elementary, middle and high school levels.'
While assessment scores are showing an upward trend – in 2023-2024, percentages rose in 10 of 15 subjects on a year-over-year basis – the 90 per cent mark isn't being hit anywhere.
And in most cases, it's not close to being achieved.
Education Minister Claire Johnson revealed the news while talking to Brunswick News during a break from her department's appearance before a legislative committee on Thursday.
'We're developing a new 10-year (education) plan, so part of that is going to be to revisit those targets and to have more realistic goals,' Johnson said.
Asked if that means the targets will be lowered, Johnson confirmed it would.
'We'd like some more realistic, more attainable goals. So yes, I envision that that's going to be part of our 10-year plan … we're looking at making incremental improvements and to track them over time and to make sure that they're realistic.'
She didn't say what the new target might be.
Johnson agreed that it's a similar situation to the health department's targets, which generally call for about four to six per cent improvements over the Liberals' mandate. Those targets, unveiled at January's State of the Province address, were immediately slammed as 'unambitious' by the Progressive Conservatives and Greens.
Johnson was one of five cabinet ministers called up to the stage that night to talk about how her department will hit the targets it's been set. There was no discussion about lowering the existing 90 per cent target.
When Brunswick News noted that the targets Johnson intends to lower were set by the Gallant Liberal government, and whether she thinks that administration set them too high, Johnson initially said no, before suggesting they were.
'I can understand why (they did it),' she said. 'Why not shoot for the stars? Why not aim for really, really, really good?
'But what we've noticed is that that's not particularly helpful, because then when we can't reach those goals, people feel deflated. So instead of having that type of setup, we're preferring to do it in a more incremental, realistic way.
'And I mean, hey, we live and learn. We tried it, it didn't work that well. So we're readjusting and coming up with a new plan for the next years to come.'
Progressive Conservative education critic Ian Lee described the 2023-2024 results as 'quite abysmal.' He told Brunswick News that he's crunched the numbers, and at the current rate of improvement, it would take 20 years to hit the 90 per cent target.
Successive governments' track records with hitting their education targets have been woeful.
For example, the current 10-year education plan, which expires in August 2026, set dozens of targets for the anglophone and francophone sectors.
Currently, only four of those targets have been met, and none are academic.
The 2023-2024 results paint a picture of an education system clearly failing to hit the government's targets.
'Ninety per cent of students will achieve appropriate or higher levels on provincial language, mathematical and scientific literacies on provincial assessments at the elementary, middle and high school levels,' reads a note above the results.
No district came close.
The message also discusses the importance of the results.
'Provincial assessments provide important information about the education system in New Brunswick. For educators, they provide feedback about alignment with provincial curricular standards and the appropriateness of their expectations for students. For the public, it ensures transparency related to how the system is performing,' it reads.
The short answer to the performance question? Not great.
In Anglophone School District North, for example, the grades four and five English reading score was 56.2 per cent, a two per cent year-over-year drop. But it was still better than the provincial average of 55.6 per cent.
The highest score in the district was 81.1 per cent, achieved in Grade 6 English reading. The lowest score was 51.8 per cent in Grade 10 French second language reading.
In Anglophone School District West, French second language reading scores were lowest, at 45.7 per cent. The provincial average was even lower (44.6 per cent). The highest score was 79.1 per cent in Grade 9 English reading.
Grade 9 English reading was also a strong point in Anglophone School District South (85.7 per cent), while the low mark was Grade 7 French second language reading (43.3 per cent).
In Anglophone School District East, the Grade 9 English Language Proficiency Assessment was the highest, at 83.2 per cent. The lowest was in Grade 7 math (48.8 per cent).
In a message accompanying the results, Johnson painted a generally positive picture of the state of the education system, and didn't mention the 90 per cent target.
'Looking at the 2023-24 assessments results, we are pleased that 10 of the 15 assessments showed improved results compared to the previous year,' she said.
'In particular, the continued growth in English reading is encouraging. Seventy-six per cent of Grade 6 students and eighty-two per cent of Grade 9 students were successful on these assessments. There were also gains in scientific literacy, where seventy-six per cent of Grade 6 students and seventy-five per cent of Grade 8 students were successful in these assessments. These are accomplishments worth celebrating and motivate us to keep working.
'The results showed a decline in English reading assessments in Grade 4. While the decline was small – one percentage point across the province – we are concerned because we know how important literacy is.
'We continue to work tirelessly to ensure we can help our students develop those skills. Our efforts are illustrated by a six per cent increase in assessment success for Grade 6 students, and an almost two per cent increase in success on the Grade 9 English Language Proficiency Assessment, compared to last year.'
Under questioning from Lee on Thursday, Johnson did her best to put a positive spin on the results, while agreeing they aren't stellar.
'The good news is that we've got data to show what our baseline is, and it shows that there are improvements that need to happen further to that,' Johnson said. 'We've got a solid plan based on research, evidence and data.'
Asked by Brunswick News why she'd say that given that the province has been tracking provincial test scores for years, Johnson said she was referring to the new Liberal government having a baseline of data to work from.
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