Manitoba will ditch some high school exams as it embarks on years-long assessment overhaul
Province should review, update exams without cancelling them: U of Winnipeg prof
A year after they were reintroduced, some Grade 12 provincial exams are being scrapped again in Manitoba, along with Grade 10 exams — at least temporarily.
In a letter last week, the provincial NDP government informed school divisions it decided to halt the provincial assessment program in mathematics and English language arts for the 2024-25 school year as it undertakes "a complete review and redevelopment of the program."
The letter was signed by deputy education minister Brian O'Leary, who was superintendent of Seven Oaks School Division before he was hired by the province in October.
Manitoba Education Minister Nello Altomare says the pause is about modernizing the system.
"We need to know that what we're asking of kids is something that's going to prepare them for university, or … whatever career they're moving into, and we want to make sure our assessments are reflective of the need that's out there right now," he said Tuesday.
The overhaul is expected to take several years.
The education department says the redevelopment will move the exams online, and will help ensure that assessments are "integrated and aligned" in early, middle and senior years.
The changes are also meant to give teachers and policy-makers data to help them support learning in schools, and to help "meaningfully track cohorts of students from kindergarten through senior years," the department's letter says.
Other ways to assess students
Matt Henderson, superintendent of the Winnipeg School Division and a former assistant superintendent under O'Leary in the Seven Oaks School Division, agrees with the move.
Exams can be important evaluations that help teachers see if they were successful in passing on the necessary information, and help students determine whether they understand it, said Henderson.
But there are multiple ways to assess learning, including other tests, projects and presentations, he said.
"Because we're not going to do a Grade 12 English and a Grade 12 math provincial evaluation doesn't mean that the sky is going to begin to fall and crumble."
There will undoubtedly be parents concerned their students will be ill-prepared for post-secondary school if they don't do high school exams, but that's exactly why the program needs to be functioning as well as possible, he said.
"As a society, we often say that we want critical thinkers, we want people who are going to be creative, we want people who are going to be collaborative, and yet a lot of our assessments don't actually match that," said Henderson.
"If we're really wanting learners to become democratic citizens who are kind and empathetic, who can think historically, who know a lot about the world, then how are we assessing for that? Are we actually teaching kids to be that type of citizen?"
He also noted adjustments can be made if any issues are identified, and that not all exams are being paused, including some in his division — the province's largest.
"In Winnipeg School Division, there'll still be a Grade 11 history exam. At some schools, there'll still be a chemistry exam."
'Can't fix what you can't see'
But Anna Stokke, a math professor at the University of Winnipeg, says while projects, assignments and other tests are important, standardized exams are an important part of a successful education program.
"They're a uniform measure to make sure that everyone is learning the material that we need them to learn, so we know they're prepared for post-secondary or for other things in life."
Stokke says the province could review and update the system without cancelling the tests, calling that move unfortunate.
"You can't fix what you can't see, so it's important to collect data so that we can see how students are doing."
Wayne Ewasko, interim leader of the Opposition Progressive Conservatives and Manitoba's former education minister, agrees that assessments are vital to measure student progress.
"The NDP's decision to not assess student progress will leave Manitoba youth unprepared for post-secondary education and the real world," he said in a Tuesday statement to Radio-Canada.
WATCH | Manitoba to pause, review some exams:
Altomare says parents shouldn't be worried about the effect the changes will have on students' ability to handle exams, saying kids take other tests in school "all the time."
O'Leary's letter says assessments in English and math in grades 3-4 and 7-8 will still be done. Those will be combined with the ongoing collection of student performance data in Grade 9 to determine comprehension and graduation rates.
Manitoba will also continue to participate in pan-Canadian and international assessments, the letter says.
Read the province's letter below or by clicking here:
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With files from Meaghan Ketcheson, Alana Cole and Radio-Canada's Anne Louise Michel