Leveraging EQAO’s Assessment Data
The Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) is a board-governed agency of the Ministry of Education that supports student learning in Ontario. By administering curriculum-aligned large-scale assessments to students at key stages of their academic development, EQAO collects data that empower parents and guardians, educators, policy makers and others with the information needed to make evidence-informed decisions about how best to strengthen student outcomes across the province. Additionally, the agency works on research initiatives, develops resources and assists Ontarians along with the education community in understanding, analyzing and appropriately using its data.
Reliable Large-Scale Assessments
We know that no single test can offer a complete picture of a child’s learning. EQAO assessment results are designed to be considered alongside other achievement information such as report cards and classroom formative and summative assessments, to provide a more complete view of students’ learning.
EQAO’s assessment data are a valuable tool available to educators for measuring how well their students are meeting the numeracy and literacy expectations defined in The Ontario Curriculum at a specific point in time. Not only are the agency’s achievement data comparable at the school, school board and provincial levels from year to year but EQAO also gathers contextual, attitudinal and behavioural information, along with data on specific student populations, to offer insights into students’ experiences and learning circumstances.
Additionally, each student who completes an EQAO assessment receives an Individual Student Report (ISR) to inform their individual learning. The personalized report, provided to students and parents and guardians through the student’s school, is a reliable source of information that contributes to a more complete picture of a student’s progress in relation to the Ontario curriculum.
Access to Your School and Board Results
Ontario’s principals have access to a wealth of data to guide their plans for school improvement. In the 2023–2024 school year, school administrators have been asked to leverage these data as part of student achievement plans and math achievement action plans.
EQAO provides schools and boards with comprehensive and customizable data visualizations designed to enrich conversations about EQAO results. This online tool uses interactive dashboards to show important data and information on the attitudes and achievements of students at the local level, and allows for customization and download of reports. The agency offers user guides that contain detailed information on accessing these interactive dashboards, and EQAO staff are available to answer any additional questions.
The creation of specific, measurable goals for improvement requires a baseline and comparable, annual data to monitor progress. EQAO assessments are aligned to the Ontario curriculum. They provide results that are comparable over time and across the school system. For these reasons, EQAO’s data visualizations and research reports are highly valuable when setting and monitoring goals for continuous improvement.
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EQAO also developed user-friendly interactive dashboards on its website that parents and guardians can use to easily and quickly access information about students’ achievement and learning perceptions, while respecting the privacy and confidentiality of data.
School Support and Outreach
EQAO helps educators and administrators navigate the agency’s modernized assessments and digital platform to support student success. The agency’s School Support and Outreach team works in partnership with schools and boards to develop professional learning programs that leverage EQAO’s latest research and data.
EQAO develops self-paced learning modules and also hosts live webinars on how to access EQAO data, administer assessments and get the most out of EQAO resources. In addition, the agency offers sessions to support the analysis of EQAO data and disaggregated demographic data collection through boards’ student censuses.
You can find the links to register for upcoming live sessions here.
EQAO’s outreach team is available for local tailored presentations to meet the current and specific needs of each school or board team. Contact the outreach team by e-mailing [email protected].
Top Resources for Principals
EQAO’s website contains multiple resources intended to support partners, including educators.
- Assessment support
Sample and practice tests, informational videos, and assessment user guides and frameworks help familiarize educators and students with EQAO’s e-assessment system.
- Math resources
Newly published “Released Questions” provide examples of questions from the EQAO Assessment of Mathematics for the various grades. The documents include detailed information including the overall expectation and the category of knowledge and skills to which each question is mapped. These released questions can help guide conversations with educators about EQAO assessments.
You can access these documents by grade below:
- Video series for parents and guardians
EQAO provides short videos to explain Ontario’s large-scale assessments to parents and guardians. Share the “What to expect on EQAO Assessments” video series with your school community.
EQAO is committed to supporting teachers, principals and school administrators, and we value the dedication and expertise of Ontario’s educators as well as the positive difference their efforts make in the lives of their students. EQAO will continue to welcome feedback from education partners on how to improve initiatives that help students achieve their full potential on their education journey.
For any questions and comments, including requests to arrange presentations from a member of EQAO’s outreach team, please e-mail [email protected] or call 1-888-327-7377 (Ontario only) or 416-916-0708 (outside Ontario).