Public board calls for end to EQAO

The province should disband the Education Quality and Accountability Office and reinvest the money into the public school system, says Randy Sheppard, a trustee with the Near North District School Board.

Sheppard made a motion to that effect at Tuesday night’s board meeting.

The EQAO tests Ontario students in math and reading and assesses their performance, while making recommendations for improving results to the Ontario Education Minister.

Get rid of it
But Sheppard said he’s skeptical about what good the EQAO does.

He said the Ontario government has spent $100 million dollars on EQAO testing.

“And what good is it doing for any kids? Get rid of it or show me how it’s done any good for kids,” Sheppard said.

Ontario students, he added, have done well in other national and international tests, but poorly in those administered by the EQAO.

Money should be reinvested
Sheppard’s original motion called on the board to ask the Ontario Public School Board Association to take up the cause to eliminate the EQAO.

“It’s very expensive to give those tests and that money should be reinvested in Ontario public schools,” Sheppard said.

Trustee Chris Rees took Sheppard’s motion one step further, suggesting the board contact Education Minister Gerard Kennedy “and petition him to eliminate the EQAO” while simultaneously approaching OPSBA.

Punishment and a waste
The amended motion did receive support from other trustees.

Al Bottomley called the EQAO “contrived, with no objective but to keep some people employed.”

“It’s not a measure but a punishment and a waste of money,” Bottomley said.

Recorded vote
Not everyone agreed with the motion, though.

“EQAO tests are a good standard of measurement,” said trustee Shelly Johnson.

“I’m not with you on this one.”

Board vice-chairwoman Linda Williams believes EQAO test results will improve once teachers and pupils become used to Ontario’s new curriculum.

“I believe this is something we do have to have,” Williams said.

Sheppard called for a recorded vote, which passed 4-3. He, Rees, Bottomley and Craig Ruggles, voted in favour, while chairwoman Eunice Saari, Williams and Johnson vote against the motion.

Awesome decision
Keith Pacey, president of District 4 Teachers’ Bargaining Unit of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation, was at Tuesday meeting and applauded when the motion passed.

He called the results an “awesome decision” for "kids" and teachers, "but mostly kids.”

“Randy hit the nail on the head when he asked what good EQAO testing has done for students, for kids in the classroom,” Pacey said.

“What we’ve done is dragged Grade 3 kids into just an atrocious week of testing every year, we’ve put applied level students in our secondary schools through hell in terms of math testing where we give them the same test as the academic kids, and we put them through just chaos and so many problems and so much stress in terms of literacy tests.”

Doesn't have to be done yearly
But Saari said asking for the elimination of the EQAO was a little like “throwing the baby out with the bath water."

“I believe there are many negative things about EQAO but it does have positive things. I believe it leads in this system to school improvement plans, and never before have I seen schools looking so closely at each individual paper and saying ‘this is where this school has to go’ so I believe it’s for school improvement,” Saari said.

Saari disputed that EQAO tests have cost $100 million, stating she believes the true figure to be $40 million.

Just a problem
At the same time she said the EQAO “overtests.”

“It doesn’t have to be done yearly, and I think the items in the test are very difficult, so it could be looked at and reviewed,” Saari said.

“Let’s make it worthwhile. Testing from the province is not all bad. It’s just a problem when it’s overdone.”