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Getting the most out of the detailed school results

Where to find the detailed results tables

The table showing the detailed results for the schools will be found on the French version of this study, Bulletin des écoles secondaires du Québec.

The tables provide a great deal of information, all of which is worth attention. As a general rule, we recommend that all the statistics presented be considered. No one number--indicator data, the overall rating, or provincial ranking--can provide as much information as the whole set. Parents choosing a school will have to decide which, if any, of these measures of academic achievement is important to them. Then, the data may form the basis of questions that parents ask of teachers and administrators at the school. Similarly, during the process of improvement planning, the school community may consider each number in the same way: Is it important to us? Do we want to improve this aspect of our school's performance? If so, how can improvement be accomplished?

Look at the table at the bottom of this page. The items in the upper left-hand corner of the table provide information about the school and its students. Vincent Massey Collegiate in Montreal is a anglophone public school with a total enrolment (Nombre d'élèves) of 575 students. We include the enrolment number to remind readers to exercise caution when considering the data for schools with relatively small enrolments. One would expect greater variation in the results of schools with smaller enrolments.

The Parents' average employment income (Revenus des parents) for the families of students at Vincent Massey is $36,200--nearly $9,000 lower than the average for all schools. This indicator can be used to identify other schools whose students have similar economic backgrounds. The socio-economic effect indicator (Effet socio-économique, found opposite the parents' average employment income) provides a more interesting and useful comparison among schools. Using both economic and social factors, it shows that family characteristics of Vincent Massey's student body account for about -1.0 rating points in its overall rating (Cote globale) out of 10. That is, the school's overall rating out of 10 would be 1 rating point higher (or about 9.8) when socio-economic factors are taken into account. This indicator can be used to compare the impact of student family characteristics on the results at different schools.

Below the Parents' average employment income are the indicators of academic performance (Performance scolaire). Note that all the results data--with the exception of the overall rating out of 10--are expressed in percentage points. Where there were insufficient data available with which to calculate an indicator, "nd" appears in the tables.

First, look at the statistics for the current school year 1998/1999 (labelled 1999). Referring to the table, All Schools Average, below, notice how the school's average examination marks (Résultats aux épreuves) compare to the average values. The examination results at Vincent Massey exceed the average for all schools in all four courses. The school's examination failure rate (Échec) of just 3.4% is much lower than average for all schools of 15.2%. These two indicators suggest that, on average, the teachers at the school have been relatively effective in teaching the material contained in these core courses. The school also did better than average on the measurement of grade inflation by the school (Surestimation par l'école). This shows that at Vincent Massey, the school-based assessments are reasonably accurate predictors of the subsequent uniform examination mark received. Finally, at Vincent Massey, school-based assessments tend not to favour one sex over the other (see Écarte sexes).

The overall rating out of 10 (Cote globale sur 10) (Vincent Massey scored 8.8 in 1998/1999) takes into account the school's performance on all of the indicators discussed in the previous paragraph. The school's provincial academic ranking of 41st out of 476 (Rang provincial, shown in the top right-hand corner of the table) is based on this overall rating. The 1999 ranking is substantially better than Vincent Massey's ranking for the period from 1995 to 1999, 103rd out of 450). A better ranking in the current year as compared to the five-year average is a sign of improvement. Directly below the provincial ranking, is the school's rank in its district (Rang régional) for the latest year and for the last five years.

Now, what can we learn from the statistics for previous years taken as a whole? Trends (Tendances) were calculated for the average examination mark for all four courses combined (Résultats aux épreuves), the failure rate (Échec), indicator of grade inflation by the school (Surestimation par l'école), the two gender gap indicators (Écart sexes), and the overall rating out of 10 (Cote globale sur 10). Since, the graduation rate (Diplomation) was not used in the overall rating out of 10 and since no data were available for private schools, trends were not calculated.

Improvement, if any, over the last five years for each indicator and the overall rating is noted with an upward pointing arrow () in the last column of the row. A downward pointing arrow () is used to note that the school is very likely experiencing a deterioration in performance. The arrows are only used where a statistically significant trend is detected. In this context, the term "statistically significant" means that, nine times out of 10, the trend that is noted is real; that is, it would not have happened just by chance. Because the trends are based on standardized scores rather than the raw data in the table, changes outside of the school's control--like year-to-year variations in the difficulty of the examinations--have been taken into account. Where no upward or downward pointing arrow appears, no significant change has occurred over the reported period or trends were not calculated due to lack of sufficient data.

In the table for Vincent Massey Collegiate, the Trend indicator (Tendances) shows that, relative to other schools in the province, Vincent Massey is improving in average examination mark (Résultats aux épreuves), the failure rate (Échec), and the indicator of grade inflation by the school (Surestimation par l'école). The gender gap indicators (Écart sexes) show no improvement or decline. As a result of these changes over time, the overall rating out of 10 (Cote globale sur 10) has improved significantly.

Important note on interpreting the Trend indicator (Tendances)

In two instances--average examination mark (Résultats aux épreuves) and overall rating out of 10 (Cote globale sur 10)--an upward pointing arrow () will accompany increasing values in the statistics. For example, increasing values for the average mark indicate improvement. For the other four indicators--failure rate (Échec), grade inflation by the school (Surestimation par l'école), and the two gender gap indicators (Écart sexes), an upward pointing arrow will accompany decreasing values in the statistics. For example, a decreasing rate of failure also indicates improvement.

Overall, the school community at Vincent Massey should be pleased with the steady improvement in school performance over the last five years. Indeed, of the indicators for which trends were calculated, Vincent Massey improved in all but the gender-gap measures. Values for the latter were substantially better than average in Language of Instruction (langue maternelle) and just a little below average in Physical Science (sciences physiques). Overall, this is a very good Report Card for Vincent Massey Collegiate.

Important Notes to the Detailed Tables

Note 1

Not all the province's secondary schools are included in the tables or the ranking. Excluded are schools at which fewer than 15 students were enrolled in Secondary V. These schools do not generate a sufficiently large set of student data to allow a fair and reasonable analysis and presentation of the results. Also excluded from the ratings and rankings are adult education centres; continuing education facilities; schools that cater largely to non-resident foreign students; schools for which insufficient data is available, and certain alternative schools.

The exclusion of a school from the Report Card should in no way be construed as a judgement of the school's effectiveness.

Note 2

Where there were insufficient data available with which to calculate an indicator or where a school was not in operation during a specific year, "nd" appears in the tables.

Note 3

You can compare a school's results with these average results for all the schools in the Report Card.

Because they are based on aggregated standard scores, the overall ratings out of 10 (Cote globale sur 10) in the table, All Schools Average, will not change appreciably over time. Where applicable, trends indicated in this table only are based on the raw data, not standardized scores.

VINCENT MASSEY COLLEGIATE						1999	1995-1999
Secteur public anglophone				Rang provincial:		41 / 476	103 / 450
Nombre d’élèves:	575			Rang régional:		22 / 136	43 / 131
Revenus des parents:	36 200 $			Effet socio-économique:		-1,0	nd
Performance scolaire	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	Tendances
Résultats aux épreuves (%)
Langue maternelle	71,7	68,2	70,3	71,1	70,1	76,5
Langue seconde	78,4	75,4	83,0	85,4	78,5	83,2
Histoire	69,6	76,7	70,2	77,2	87,7	82,1
Sciences physiques	37,1	64,2	56,0	64,7	82,7	80,5
Échec (%)	13,6	10,5	9,9	4,1	6,1	3,4
Surestimation par l’école (%)	6,1	3,2	3,7	1,1	0,7	1,4
Écart sexes (%):    langue maternelle	F 2,3	M 0,1	M 0,3	F 0,1	F 1,1	F 0,8
sciences physiques	F 5,5	nd	M 15,3	F 18,0	F 1,4	F 1,9
Diplomation (%)	nd	nd	93,7	91,7	93,9	99,1
Cote globale sur 10	6,0	6,8	6,6	7,6	7,7	8,8

AVERAGE FOR ALL SCHOOLS						1999	1995-1999
Sector					Provincial rank:
Enrollment:	792				Regional rank:
Parents' income:	45 000$				Socio-economic effect:	0
Academic Performance	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	Trend
Average uniform exam marks (%)
First language	72,0	71,4	72,9	75,3	68,6	74,7
Second language	77,2	76,3	77,4	76,9	81,1	79,7
History	68,0	69,9	68,3	66,1	75,1	70,3
Physical sciences	48,4	61,7	64,2	61,6	73,3	69,1
Percentage of uniform exams failed (%)	18,6	18,2	15,9	15,9	14,5	15,2
School-level grade inflation (%)	3,2	2,1	2,1	3,0	1,8	2,4
Gender gap (%): first language	F 1,6	F 1,7	F 1,9	F 1,9	F 1,8	F 2,0
physical sciences	F 1,6	F 2,1	F 3,3	F 1,3	E 0,0	F 1,7
Graduation rate(%)	nd	nd	59,2	58,6	58,2	59,0
Overall rating out of ten	6,3	6,3	6,3	6,3	6,3	6,2

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Last Modified: October 20, 2000.