OttawaOntario Education Minister Paul Calandra says the math scores among the province’s Grade 3, 6 and 9 students could be better, but the latest test results for Ottawa’s four school boards shows pupils in Canada’s capital are already performing above the provincial averages. Only about half of the province’s Grade 6 students meet the math targetCBC News · Posted: Dec 04, 2025 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 2 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Ontario Minister of Education Paul Calandra, second from the left, visits children at the Blessed Chiara Badano Child Care Centre in Stouffville, Ont., earlier this year. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press)Ontario Education Minister Paul Calandra says math scores among the province’s Grade 3, 6 and 9 students are showing “inadequate” signs of improvement. But in Ottawa, the latest test results for the city’s four school boards show pupils in Canada’s capital are performing at a level above the provincial averages. Calandra announced Wednesday that he’s tapping a two-person advisory body to review Ontario’s Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) standardized testing approach, which also measures reading and writing skills.Calandra singled out math scores, pointing out that one half of Grade 6 students in Ontario are not meeting the province’s math standard. But in Ottawa, the four main school boards largely fared better than the provincial standard. One board, Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est (CECCE), saw more than two-thirds of its Grade 6 students besting the math target for children at that level. Local French boards did better than their English counterparts, and the Catholic boards scored better than public ones. “That’s consistent with the dynamics that have been in place in the province for a long time,” said Sachin Maharaj, an assistant professor of educational leadership, policy and program evaluation at the University of Ottawa.Here’s a look at how many students with each of the city’s four boards met the provincial math score standard for 2024-25, as well as their scores from the previous school year and the provincial average.Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB)Grade 3: 63% (up from 62% the year before, below the provincial average of 64%) Grade 6: 53% (up from 52% the year before, above the provincial average of 51%)Grade 9: 61% (up from 55% the year before, above the provincial average of 58%) An OCDSB spokesperson said via email the board is pleased with the overall increase in the percentage of students meeting the provincial standard, noting especially the considerable year-over-year increase among Grade 9 students. Ottawa Catholic School Board (OCSB) Grade 3: 70% (up from 67% the year before, above the provincial average of 64%)Grade 6: 58% (up from 52% the year before, above the provincial average of 51%)Grade 9: 58% (up from 57% the year before, on par with the provincial average of 58%)”Results were great this year, as they usually are,” said Mary Donaghy, OCSB’s director of education. “We were above the provincial average and we improved from last year.””I was able to celebrate with our principals briefly [Wednesday] morning,” she added. The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board said it’s pleased with the fact a higher percentage of its students met the provincial math standard for 2024-25. (Danny Globerman/CBC)Conseil des écoles publiques de l’Est de l’Ontario (CEPEO) Grade 3: 76% (on par with 76% the year before, above the provincial average of 64%)Grade 6: 66% (up from 62% the year before, above the provincial average of 51%)Grade 9: 68% (up from 62% the year before, above the provincial average of 58%)”Although our results are above the provincial average, there is always room for improvement,” CEPEO said via email. “We are committed to continuing our work to create learning environments conducive to the success and well-being of all our students.”Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est (CECCE)Grade 3: 78% (down from 79% the year before, above the provincial average of 64%)Grade 6: 68% (up from 64% the year before, above the provincial average of 51%)Grade 9: 72% (up from 70% the year before, above the provincial average of 58%)In a news release, CECCE called its results “outstanding.””Again this year, [we stand] out by surpassing the provincial average across all tests and achieving the best results among Francophone school boards in the region,” the release stated. With files from Cameron Mahler
The education minister says Ontario’s math scores don’t add up. Here’s how Ottawa schools factor in
