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Education
December 10, 2012

Students Make the Grade in International Reading Assessment

The results of an international assessment of Grade 4 students’ reading skills indicate that Newfoundland and Labrador’s intense focus on developing strong language arts skills at the primary level is paying off.

The Honourable Clyde Jackman, Minister of Education, said the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) shows that Grade 4 students in this province are performing at the Canadian average, along with their counterparts in Alberta, Ontario and Nova Scotia. Only students in British Columbia scored above the Canadian average.

“When you consider that the Canadian results are better than those of the majority of participating countries, this is tremendous news for us,” said Minister Jackman. “For example, this province’s students scored higher than those in Sweden, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Austria, France, Spain and Norway, among others. It is very gratifying to see that our government’s deliberate emphasis on early childhood learning, and building a solid foundation of literacy skills, is producing concrete results.”

The PIRLS report was released today by the Council of Ministers of Education (CMEC) and the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). The study tested more than 325,000 students from 45 countries, including over 23,000 students in Canada, and 2,461 in this province.

Minister Jackman noted the PIRLS report also examined contextual information on factors that could affect student performance, such as the home and school environment. It showed Newfoundland and Labrador ranked first in Canada in several categories, including: teachers with the most training; teachers with the most experience; teachers who were mostly satisfied with their work conditions, and teachers who report schools were safe and orderly. The province also scored best in the country when it came to issues around student discipline and bullying.

Meanwhile, there were also categories which indicate some improvements can be made, Minister Jackman said. The PIRLS report showed there is a gap between the reading levels of girls and boys – with the girls scoring higher – and that while students had the highest level of engaged reading during school hours, they had the lowest level of reading outside the school environment.

“Our students are performing well in the classroom, and our teachers are trained and well-prepared to position our students for future success,” said Minister Jackman. “But this report also reinforces the notion that learning begins at birth, reading at home is important, and that it is a combination of home and school efforts that will develop a highly literate young population.”

The full PIRLS report can be viewed at: www.cmec.ca/en/ Opens in a new window

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Media contact:
Heather May
Director of Communications
Department of Education
709-729-0048, 697-5061
heathermay@gov.nl.ca

2012 12 11                               11:20 a.m.

 
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