A recent report reveals that sixth-grade students transitioning to middle schools in Ontario perform less effectively on standardized literacy and numeracy tests compared to their peers remaining in elementary schools. The report, titled “Signposts of Success: Evaluating Ontario’s Elementary Schools,” conducted by education researcher David R. Johnson, analyzed the outcomes of Grade 3 and Grade 6 students in reading, writing, and math skills through EQAO standardized testing. Johnson’s analysis, released by the C.D. Howe Institute in late August, focused on a three-year period ending in the 2023-2024 academic year.
The study highlighted a notable difference in performance, indicating that Grade 6 students entering middle school consistently exhibit lower pass rates in EQAO tests compared to students in K-6 or K-8 schools. Johnson emphasized that the pass rates in literacy and numeracy are approximately five percentage points lower for middle school attendees.
Moreover, Johnson pointed out that the academic impact of attending middle school can have long-term consequences, citing a previous analysis from 2012 that showed students who attended middle school scored lower in math during Grade 9 assessments. As a former church volunteer working with youth for four decades, Johnson highlighted the challenges faced by tweens in navigating their identity amidst physical and psychological changes, questioning the necessity of adding another transitional phase.
The debate surrounding the effectiveness of middle schools extends beyond Ontario, with various provinces and territories in Canada adopting similar educational structures. Middle schools, also known as senior public schools, intermediate schools, or junior high schools, typically cater to students in grades 7 and 8, with some variations including Grade 6 or Grade 9. However, Quebec follows a distinct grade configuration with kindergarten, six years of elementary, five years of secondary, and CEGEP before university or the workforce.
The concept of middle schools emerged in the early 1960s to address the needs of early adolescents, aiming to provide a balance between supporting students’ growth and shielding them from perceived risks in high school. Despite ongoing construction of new middle schools across Canada to accommodate increasing student populations, researchers like Kelly Gallagher-Mackay emphasize the importance of evaluating the efficacy of such structures. While acknowledging the potential disruptions in student achievement during transitions, Gallagher-Mackay advocates for a comprehensive assessment beyond test scores to understand the full impact of different school configurations.
In response to the findings, stakeholders hope for further research to explore successful educational models, such as the observed higher scores in separate French and Catholic school boards. Amidst the ongoing discussions, individual experiences like that of Grade 7 student Cleo Tryssenaar in Toronto offer insights into the varied perspectives on middle schools. Cleo’s positive experience and her mother’s perspective on the benefits of middle school as a transitional phase between elementary and secondary education highlight the nuanced views surrounding the debate on educational structures.