EQAO standardized test success rates up slightly from previous year

Ontario students’ persistently low math scores have improved slightly since last year, results of standardized testing show.

Education Quality and Accountability Office standardized test results released Friday indicate a small rise across all categories in English-language schools.

Math scores in particular have been a focal point of successive governments, as the percentage of students meeting the provincial standard has remained low.

It is especially pronounced among Grade 6 students, where the percentage has hovered around 50 per cent for years, meaning only about half of the students are meeting the provincial standard.

Education Minister Paul Calandra said the results give valuable information about where progress is being made and where more attention is needed.

“These results are encouraging, but they also make clear that there is more work to do,” he wrote in a statement. “Too many students continue to struggle, achievement gaps persist and results remain uneven across the province.”

Story continues below advertisement

Results from the 2025-26 school year show that 52 per cent of Grade 6 students met the provincial standard, while 65 per cent of Grade 3 students and 59 per cent of Grade 9 students met the standard.

Get daily National news

Get daily Canada news delivered to your inbox so you'll never miss the day's top stories.

All of those scores are up one percentage point from the previous year.

The amount of Grade 3 students who met reading and writing standards was 75 and 67 per cent, respectively, up slightly from the previous year, and the amount of Grade 6 students who met reading and writing standards was 86 and 85 per cent, respectively, the same as the previous year.

The Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test typically written in Grade 10 saw 86 per cent of first-time eligible students meet the standard, one percentage point higher than the previous year.

Results from French-language schools were better than the average results in English-language schools in most categories.

The EQAO said in a statement that while math scores have slowly increased over time, it remains an area requiring attention. Schools designated as priority schools for math have been showing accelerated improvement, the EQAO said, suggesting targeted supports are working.

Calandra also said the results show a “significant increase” in the number of students exempted from the tests in some school boards.

Story continues below advertisement

“Exemptions are intended for students who are unable to complete an assessment, even with permitted accommodations,” he wrote in his statement.

“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.”

After the release of last year’s EQAO results, Calandra announced that he would be establishing an advisory body to do a review looking at why the pace of improvement isn’t faster, whether the curriculum and learning resources are clear, how well teachers are being prepared and whether students have the tools they need.

That work is ongoing, Calandra said.

NDP education critic Chandra Pasma suggested that EQAO scores are not higher because the government is not funding schools at high enough levels.

“EQAO results are not a reflection of our students,” she wrote in a statement. “They are a reflection on this minister of education’s failure to provide students with what they need to succeed.”