COMPARISON OF EQAO RESULTS: Semestered vs. Non-semestered (A/B Schedule)
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Background:
I have been advocating for a change to the delivery of Math primarily in order to eliminate the long time gap between math courses (i.e. Grades 9 & 10; Grades 10 &11). Through personal experience with my two children and research on this topic, I have found that long gaps are detrimental to the learning and retention of math. Both of my children were faced with a 12 month gap before taking Grade 11 Math (academic). [They were part of the approx. 25% of students, as explained in the first table of the presentation; follow the link below]
The Peel District School Board at the level of the Board of Trustees and senior Administration have countered my advocacy and delegations by repeatedly focusing on Grade 9 EQAO results. I decided to conduct an evaluation of Toronto District School Board EQAO Grade 9 results since this Board has both Semestered and Non-Semestered (A/B Yearlong Schedule) schools within the single Board structure. Also, the City of Toronto and Peel Region share many demographic similarities (urban density; population demographics etc.)
The Peel District School Board at the level of the Board of Trustees and senior Administration have countered my advocacy and delegations by repeatedly focusing on Grade 9 EQAO results. I decided to conduct an evaluation of Toronto District School Board EQAO Grade 9 results since this Board has both Semestered and Non-Semestered (A/B Yearlong Schedule) schools within the single Board structure. Also, the City of Toronto and Peel Region share many demographic similarities (urban density; population demographics etc.)
Findings:
This review of EQAO results demonstrates that not only is the A/B Schedule workable it is superior to the Semestered approach within the Toronto DSB experience. A further comparison of only the Toronto A/B Schedule schools and Peel DSB Semester schools demonstrates that the achievement spread between the two boards is closed by the adoption of the A/B Schedule.
A/B Schedule in Action:
R.H. King Academy, in Scarborough has implemented an A/B Schedule pairing of Grade 9 Math and Science within an otherwise semestered timetable. The head of the Math department informed me that this pairing has resulted in a remarkable improvement in EQAO test results since adoption.
More Info:
Please Follow the link below for the full presentation on how EQAO results reveal the advantages of Yearlong Math.