THE PROVINCIAL STUDENT ASSESSMENT PROGRAM IN BRITISH COLUMBIA

UseFUL INFORMATION FOR PARENTS

By Pierre Brochu, Education Officer BC Ministry of Education

As is the case in most other Canadian provinces and
around the world, the provincial student assessment
program in British Columbia is adapted to the specific
needs of the province.

Throughout their school years, BC students
participate in various types of assessments that are
designed to complement on-going assessments
conducted by the classroom teacher. Using a variety
of sources enables to determine the extent to which
BC students are achieving the knowledge, skills and
understanding prescribed in the provincial curriculum.

The Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA) is
administered annually to all BC students in grades
4, 7 and 10. It tests student core skills in Reading
Comprehension, Writing and Numeracy. The regular
classroom teacher administers the FSA. It is marked
in the summer under the supervision of the Ministry.
FSA results, which do not count toward a student
report card, are then sent to parents in the following
fall. Overall, the FSA takes approximately 4.5 hours
to complete over several days. It is important that
parents encourage their children to do their best on
the FSA as it offers information that is certain to
generate informal and formal dialogue about student
performance at the individual, school, district, and
provincial levels. The FSA does not yield a traditional
mark (percentage or letter grade). It provides informa-
tion on a child’s performance against one of the three
levels of achievement (not yet within expectations,
meets expectations, exceeds expectations) in the three
subject areas as defined in the provincial curricula.
Individual results are only available to the teacher, the
student, and parents/guardians.

School, district, and provincial results are in the pu-
blic domain and may be accessed on the FSA web
site at: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/assessment/fsa/
Students in the French Program write the FSA in
French while students in the French Immersion

Clan Destin

A la Télévision de Radio-Canada : Clan Destin, le rendez-vous des jeunes de |'Ouest, tous les jeudis a 18h30, en
rediffusion le samedi a 11h30, avec la participation de nos jeunes :

Le jeudi 28 février 2002 a 18h30, en rediffusion le samedi 2 mars a 11h30 : Ecole Les Pionniers de Port Coquitlam.
Le jeudi 14 mars 2002 a 18h30, en rediffusion le samedi 16 mars a 11h30 : Ecole Les Voyageurs de Langley.

Le jeudi 28 mars 2002 a 18h30, en rediffusion le samedi 30 mars a 11h30 : Ecole La Vérendrye de Chilliwack.

program write all components of the FSA in English.
Although the individual student reports are published
in English for all students, French translations are
available at the school and on the FSA web site.

Occasionally, students from across the province
participate in national and_ international
assessments in several subject areas. Samples of
BC students in various age ranges write these
tests, which compare student achievement relative
to other provinces and countries. No individual,
school, or district results are reported but these
assessments provide valuable information to guide
curricular changes at the provincial level. These
assessments generally take a couple of hours to
complete. As is the case for the FSA, students in
the French program write these assessments in
French while students in the French Immersion
program write the English version.

British Columbia has one of the most comprehensive
assessment programs at the Grade 12 level in Ca-
nada. These provincial examinations, currently
available in 21 subject areas, certify the performance
of BC students graduating from Grade 12. Grade 12
examinations are primarily used by post-secondary
institutions as an admission criterion and by the pro-
vince when awarding scholarships. Provincial
examinations count for 40% of a student course mark.
Grade 12 examinations are available both in English
and in French.

Parents are encouraged to discuss provincial
assessments with their child’s teacher or with the
school principal. Further information on the
Foundation Skills Assessment, national and inter-
national assessments, and Grade 12 examinations
may also be obtained on the Ministry web site at:
http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/assessment/

Pierre.Brochu @gems8.gov.bc.ca

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