Report Card on Ontario's Secondary Schools : 2001 Edition

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Detailed school results

View the Tables by Group

Getting the most out of the tables

The tables of detailed school results provide a great deal of information, all of which is worth attention. At the bottom of this page is an example.

The items in the upper left-hand corner of the table provide information about the school and its students. Ridgemont High School, in Ottawa, is a public school with a grade 12 enrollment in 1998/1999 of 256 students. We include the enrollment to remind readers to exercise caution when considering the data for schools with relatively small enrollments as one would expect greater variation in the results of schools with smaller enrollments.

Parents' average education

The Parents' average education (yrs.) provides an indication of the socio-economic background of the student body. This statistic is used to calculate the difference between the school's actual overall rating of academic performance and the rating that one might expect when socio-economic characteristics such as parents' level of education are taken into account. This difference is shown to the right of the Parents' average education (yrs.). For example, Ridgemont's Overall rating out of 10 (7.0 in 1998/1999) is higher than would be predicted given the family background of its students. The difference between actual and predicted overall rating (0.8 overall rating points in the example) is shown in the table. This positive difference suggests that the school is effective in enabling its students to succeed regardless of their socio-economic background.

The Parents' average education (yrs.) can also be used to identify other schools whose students have similar socio-economic backgrounds. A comparison of the results of these similar schools can identify those schools that are particularly effective in taking socio-economic conditions into account in their teaching and counselling practice.

Ridgemont High School						How the school ranks
Public						1998-99	Last 5 Years
Grade 12 enrollment:	256	Ranking in province:				185 / 568	n/a
Parent's average education (yrs):	14.1	Actual rating vs. predicted (given parent's education):				0.8
Academic Indicators:	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	Trends
Percentage of advanced courses taken	79.0	76.2	77.8	71.0	71.4	73.3
Percentage of courses passed	67.9	69.5	75.3	77.4	n/a	82.1	n/a
Core courses taken per student	2.8	2.8	3.0	2.9	3.3	3.2
Gender gap:
Language Arts mark difference	F 2.0	F 3.0	F 4.0	F 12.0	F 2.0	F 3.0	—
Mathematics mark difference	F 5.0	F 1.0	M 3.0	F 3.0	M 12.0	M 2.0	—
Overall rating out of ten	6.1	6.5	6.8	5.0	n/a	7.0	n/a

Academic Indicators

Below Parents' average education are the indicators of academic performance. Note that all the results data—with the exception of the Core courses taken per student and the Overall rating out of 10—are expressed in percentage points. Where insufficient data were available or where small numbers of results were suppressed for privacy reasons, "n/a" appears in the tables.

First, look at the Percentage of advanced courses taken indicator in the example for the most recent school year 1998/1999 (labelled 1999). Referring to the provincial results contained in table 1 below, note that Ridgemont's Percentage of advanced courses taken statistic (73.3 percent) is four percentage points higher than the provincial average. However, when we compare the school's most recent statistic with that of past years, we see that the school has experienced a decline in this indicator over the six-year period for which data are reported. The downward arrow () to the right of the Percentage of advanced courses taken indicates that we are quite confident that this downward trend is not just the result of random year-to-year fluctuations but reflects actual deterioration. It indicates that students at the school are, on average, taking fewer difficult courses.

On the other hand, Ridgemont has enjoyed considerable improvement in the Core courses taken per student statistic. On average, the schools students took 3.2 core courses, nearly one-half course more than did the province as a whole (2.8 core courses per student). The upward arrow () indicates that the school is experiencing significant improvement on this indicator.

The Gender gap results show that the Language Arts mark difference at the school is consistently lower than for the province as a whole, while the Mathematics mark difference is consistently higher. In neither case is there evidence of significant change over time in these two indicators.

Finally, since data for the Percentage of courses passed is incomplete, no trend could be determined. However, a look at the historical results and the corresponding statistics for the province as a whole, suggests that Ridgemont has improved on this indicator from below average between 1994 and 1997 to roughly average for 1999.

Overall rating out of 10 and ranking in province

The Overall rating out of 10 (Ridgemont's 1998/1999 rating of 7.0 compares favourably with the provincial average of 6.2) takes into account the school's performance on all five academic indicators. Since data for the Percentage of courses passed indicator was not available in 1998, no Overall rating out of 10 could be calculated for that year and no estimate of the trend for the Overall rating could be calculated.

It is on the basis of the school's Overall rating that Ridgemont ranked 185th out of 568 schools in 1998/1999. The rankings are shown in the top right corner of the table. Because we were unable to calculate an Overall rating for the school in 1998, no 5-year average ranking could be calculated. However, the data does indicate that the school's Overall rating is most often above the provincial average.

Interpretation

Overall, the school community at Ridgemont should be concerned about these results. While there are some positive signs, the school has not experienced consistent improvement. Parents, teachers, and administrators at Ridgemont should consider whether or not these results meet their expectations for the school. If not, plans for improvement should be put in place.

Families considering Ridgemont for their students should seek to confirm the Report Card's findings by visiting the school and interviewing teachers and school administrators. Of course, the school's academic programme should be complemented by effective programs in the areas of school activity not measured by the Report Card.

Notes to the tables of detailed school results

Note 1

Not all the province's secondary schools are included in the tables or the ranking. Excluded are schools that did not report their 1998/1999 by-grade student enrollments to the Ministry and schools at which the reported 1998/1999 grade 12 enrollment was fewer than 15 students. Schools with very small enrollments 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 centres for adult education and continuing education; schools that cater largely to non-resident foreign students; and certain alternative schools that do not offer a full program of courses.

The exclusion of a school from the Report Card should not be construed as a judgement of the school's effectiveness.

Note 2

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

Note 3

You can compare a school's results with those of Ontario as a whole in table 1 (below).

Note 4 On interpreting the Trends indicator

In four instances—Percentage of advanced courses taken, Percentage of courses passed, Core courses taken per student, and the Overall rating out of 10—an upward pointing arrow () will accompany increasing values in the statistics. For example, increasing values for Percentage of courses passed indicate improvement. For the two Gender gap indicators, however, an upward pointing arrow will accompany decreasing values in the statistics. For instance, a decreasing Language Arts mark difference indicates improvement

Note 5 On groups of schools and table 2

In the detailed tables that follow (page 23ff), the schools are grouped together based on their location. Within each group, the schools are listed in order of their 1998/1999 Provincial Rank.

Table 2 will help you find schools in the detailed tables. The school districts and individual private schools are listed in alphabetical order and the number of the Group in which they are included and the page on which the Group begins are noted to the right of the name.

Table 1 - 1998/1999 Report Card for Ontario as a whole

Table 2 Alphabetical list of school authorities and private schools showing
the Group to which each is assigned and the page on which the Group begins

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