2002/03 Annual Service Plan Report Ministry of Education

Performance Reporting

Overview

The BC government is committed to the efficient use of public funds in order to ensure all students have opportunities to become accomplished in a range of essential academic and life skills.

The performance results presented in this report cover the goals, objectives and strategies from the Ministry of Education Service Plan 2002/03 – 2004/05 rolled up into two streamlined goals as reflected in the Ministry of Education Service Plan 2003/04 – 2005/06.

1. Improved student achievement.

2. A high quality performance-oriented education system.

Each year, the ministry collects, reviews and distributes a variety of data for accountability purposes and to support performance management. The collection of student enrolment data supports a population-based funding formula. The assignment of a unique identifier to each student, the Personal Education Number (PEN), is used to monitor student achievement and generate statistics about student movements and transitions between grades and schools. Performance data including breakout results for students with special needs, Aboriginal students and male and female students are also collected.

The ministry will always strive to improve all areas of student performance. It should also be noted that some measures included while under the sphere of influence of the ministry, are not entirely within ministry control as local school districts are responsible for the delivery of education programs. Rather than set arbitrary numbers, the target for performance measures is year-over-year improvement at the local school district level. Overall results are presented as provincial rates. When there is improvement at the district level, it will be reflected in the provincial rate.

Definitions of data sets are included as notes with the tables.

Goal 1: Improved Student Achievement

	Performance Improved
=	No Change/Baseline
	Performance Declined

Outcomes

• Students complete K-12
• Students demonstrate high quality academic and life skills capabilities

There are seven performance measures for Goal 1: Improved Student Achievement. These measures include equity group breakout results (special needs, Aboriginal, male and female). These are the same measures listed under Goal 4 of the 2002/03 – 2004/05 Service Plan; Goal 4 has been rolled up into Goal 1, however the measures remain the same.

Performance Highlights

	Percentage of students meeting or exceeding expectations on Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA) The overall results for Reading, Numeracy and Writing in grades 4, 7 and 10 show improvement.
	School completion rate (percentage of students who start Grade 8 and graduate from Grade 12 within 6 years) Overall results have improved since 1999/00.
=	Percentage of Grade 12 students receiving scholarships While the percentage was consistent, the number of students receiving scholarships increased.
	Percentage of students making transitions to work and/or post-secondary education The most current data available shows improvement in most categories
=	Percentage of students in agreement with statements reflective of socially responsible behaviour The 2001/02 school year was the baseline for Satisfaction Surveys and 2002/03 will be the baseline for collection of some equity group survey data.
	Grade 8-9 transition rate Overall rates were consistent 1999/00 – 2000/01 and increased marginally in 2001/02.
	Percentage of students with "C" or better in Grade 12 courses Communications grades decreased slightly in 2000/01. Communications, English and Principles of Math show overall improvement in 2001/02.

Opportunity for Improvement

	Percentage of students making transitions to work and/or post-secondary education Most recent data available shows that more students make the transition to work and/or post secondary, but slightly more are unemployed. Effort is needed to ensure that students are prepared for options other than university.
	Percentage of students meeting or exceeding expectations on Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA) Increased focus on literacy is important; Grade 10 had fewer students meeting or exceeding expectations in reading. The Grade 10 numeracy results also decreased slightly.
	School completion rate (percentage of students who start Grade 8 and graduate from Grade 12 within 6 years) The completion rate for Aboriginal students has improved over time; however, there is room for improvement. The ministry will continue to support and measure Aboriginal student performance as part of its efforts to increase equity in the education system.

Goal 1: Performance Measures

Targets:

The target for all Goal 1 performance measures is year-over-year improvement at the district level.

Percentage of Students meeting or exceeding expectations on Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA)

Core Business

Public and Independent Schools

Objectives:

To improve student performance in areas of intellectual development

Discussion:

Student performance remained consistent or improved in all categories for Grade 4, all categories for Grade 7 and one category for Grade 10.

Grade 10 Reading and Numeracy decreased from last year.

Source: FSA Highlights TREND_OVER_TIME\>PROP\>V7.CSV
Notes:
1	FSA provides a snapshot of public school student performance on Foundation Skills Assessments.
2	There are not yet sufficient years of data to establish a trend in the results.
3	2000/01 results are the baseline for future assessments of writing as the test was modified.

School Completion Rate

Core Business:

Public and Independent Schools

Objectives:

To improve student performance in intellectual development

To improve student performance in and career development

Discussion:

High school completion rate has increased slightly over the past two years under the Liberal government.

Completion rate is our single most important indicator of student achievement.

Source: Ministry of Education, RDDA
Notes:
1	The proportion of students who graduate with a Dogwood Diploma within six years of starting Grade 8 for the first time in a BC public or independent school.
2	Includes migrants to BC who would have been in Grade 8 in the base year and is adjusted for out-migration.

Grade 8-9 Transition Rate

Core Business:

Public and Independent Schools

Objectives:

To improve student performance in intellectual development

To improve student performance in career development

Discussion:

The majority of BC students make the transition from Grade 8 to Grade 9.

Source: School Performance Report — Provincial Summary
Notes:
1	Represents non-repeating Grade 8 students who have entered Grade 9 or higher in the next school year.
2	Data is not adjusted for out-migration (students who left BC between grades 8 and 9).

Percentage of Students with "C" or better in Grade 12 Courses

Percentage of Grade 12 Students receiving Scholarships

Core Business:

Public and Independent Schools

Objectives:

To improve student performance in areas of intellectual development

Discussion:

BC students improved in all three subject areas this year over last year.

More BC students received scholarships this year.

Source: Key Information Summary TRAX1274D
Notes:
1	Data includes students who received the final letter grade of C, C+, B and A
2	Awards earned include students in group 1 and 2 independent schools.

Percentage of Students making transitions to work and/or post secondary

Core Business:

Public and Independent Schools

Objectives:

To improve student performance in areas of career development

Discussion:

The percentage of students making the transition to university is consistent or increasing in most categories.

Economic conditions such as the provincial unemployment rate will affect the number of students who make the transition to work.

This year, the ministry consulted with the education partners to recommend changes to the graduation requirements. The proposed changes will provide more options for students after high school, and will help them develop life skills necessary to compete in our global economy.

Source: Ministry of Education, RDDA
Notes:
1	2001/02 data for university not available at time of printing.
2	Simple random sampling includes both public and independent students.
3	In 2001 1,250 graduates contacted, 2002, 903 were contacted. Sampling error 19 times out of 20 was 3% in 2001 and 3.3% in 2002.

Percentage of students in agreement with statements reflective of socially responsible behaviour

Core Business:

Public Schools

Objectives:

To improve student performance in areas of human and social development

Discussion:

2001/02 was the baseline for the Satisfaction Surveys. Future surveys will have more questions on human and social development and some equity group data.

Effort is required to make the survey meaningful to students in grades 10 and 12, who may not understand it to be of value.

Source: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/sat_survey/2002results/province.pdf
Notes:
1	2001/02 was the baseline for the Satisfaction Surveys. See Goal 2 for more survey data.
2	Base measures are provincial averages taken from 2001/02 Satisfaction Survey Report. These data are for the 2001/02 school year. For participation rates see the provincial report online: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/sat_survey/2002results/province.pdf

Goal 2: A High Quality Performance-oriented Education System

	Performance Improved
=	No Change/Baseline
	Performance Declined

Outcomes

• Access to quality education for all students
• Learning choices for students and parents
• Evidence-based goals are used to improve achievement
• Increased efficiency and effectiveness throughout the system

There were originally sixteen performance measures for Goal 2 — A high quality performance-oriented education system. These include those relevant measures from former Goal 3 of the same name. Six measures have been discontinued (see the table on page 17) and for several measures, 2002/03 was the baseline:

Performance Highlights

Opportunity for Improvement

Goal 2: Performance Measures

Targets:

The target for Goal 2 performance measures is year-over-year improvement at the district level.

Note: Many of the performance measures for Goal 2 are from the Satisfaction Survey and are therefore presented together here.

Core Business:

Public Schools

Objectives:

To establish the infrastructure needed to focus the education system on student achievement

To build a performance-oriented culture within each school district

To improve and maintain student, parent and teacher support for the K-12 education system

Percentage of parents who report they can play a meaningful role in their children's school

Percentage of students that feel their school is helping improve their computer skills

This measure has been revised and 2002/03 will be the baseline.

Percentage of education partners who report that the funding system is understandable, transparent and comprehensive

2002/03 is the baseline for this measure. The new population-based multi-year funding formula was introduced in legislation in 2002.

Percentage of students satisfied with their school and education

Percentage of parents satisfied with their child's school and education
Percentage of school staff satisfied with their school

Source: Satisfaction Survey Report 2002
Notes:
Base measures are provincial averages taken from 2001/02 Satisfaction Survey Report. These data are for the 2001/02 school year. For participation rates see the provincial report online: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/sat_survey/2002results/province.pdf.

Discussion:

For the first time ever, BC students, parents, teachers and staff were surveyed about how satisfied they are with the education system. The Satisfaction Surveys will be an annual measure.

Proportion of curriculum documents older than 5 years

Core Business:

Public Schools

Objectives:

To establish the infrastructure needed to focus the education system on student achievement

Discussion:

This measure has been reworked as the role of the ministry in curriculum development has been reviewed. Provincial curricula will undergo a review for relevance and currency within eight years of the implementation date (by subject area).

Proportion of buildings with life expectancy under 10 years

Core Business:

Public Schools

Objectives:

To establish the infrastructure needed to focus the education system on student achievement

Discussion:

The ministry provides capital funding to school boards for public schools. Local school boards set capital project priorities for school districts.

Demographics affect the capital planning cycle. Currently many districts are facing declining enrolment. Data show that there are more students in senior grades than there are primary grades. This is projected to continue for several years.

Source: School Funding and Allocation
Notes:
1	Future service plans set a target of fewer than 15 per cent of all buildings to have a life expectancy of less than 10 years.

Number of visits to ministry website

Core Business:

Public Schools and Independent Schools

Objectives:

To improve and maintain student, parent and teacher support for the K-12 education system

Discussion:

2001/02 was the baseline and the target is to increase the number of visitor sessions by one million in the following year.

The ministry continues to provide performance data and reports electronically. Students, parents, teachers, administrators, researchers and staff use the ministry's Internet site.

Source: Web Reports 2002
Notes:
1	Base measures are taken from Web reports and indicate data for the 2001/02 school year.

BC's standing on national and international assessments

Core Business:

Public and Independent Schools

Objectives:

To perform at a high level in comparison to other jurisdictions (in future service plans this objective moves to support Goal 1).

Discussion:

BC students perform well on national and international assessments.

These assessments provide another snapshot of student performance.

Source: PISA 2000, SAIP 2001 reports
Notes:
1	For more information on PISA: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/assessment/pisa_yits.htm
2	For more information on SAIP: http://www.cmec.ca/saip/math2001/indexe.stm
3	There is no assessment data available for 2001/02 at the time of printing.