Lisgar Collegiate Institute placed 34th in an annual ranking of Ontario’s high schools released April 1, a drop of 20 spots compared to their 14th-place ranking in 2011.
The rankings are compiled annually by the Fraser Institute, a right-leaning public policy think-tank, using schools’ Grade 9 Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) standardized math test scores and Grade 10 EQAO standardized literacy test scores.
Lisgar’s 2011 math scores were similar to its test scores in the last five years, but the school’s ranking still dropped.
Each school’s report card includes the average test scores for the math test and the percentage of students who completed the literacy test going back five years.
Using the current year’s information, along with figures on tests that scored below the provincial standard, gender gaps in the scores on both tests and the percentage of students absent for the test, the think-tank comes up with a score out of 10 for each school. The schools are then ranked according to their scores out of 10.
Lisgar’s score of 8.4 out of 10 is the lowest it has received in the past five years, down from a high of 9.2 in 2007.
The Fraser Institute did see one upward trend in Lisgar’s test scores. The school is seen to be improving in the percentage of students passing the literacy test on their first attempt, the report said.
The full rankings included 718 high schools across the province. To make the list, schools must test students using both the Grade 9 and Grade 10 tests. Some private high schools don’t administer the Grade 9 math test, leaving them off the list. Schools must also have at least 15 students sitting each test to qualify in a given year.
Colonel By Secondary School in Gloucester was the highest-ranking school in the Ottawa area, placing sixth in Ontario with a score of 9.1 out of 10.