2007 EQAO Study

Each year, the Educational Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) conducts province-wide assessments at the primary, junior and secondary levels to measure student achievement against curriculum expectations.

A 2007 study¹ examined the effect of exposure to the Living School model on student academic achievement. The findings showed that, after one year of exposure to the Living School model (LS), schools significantly improved their Grade 3 EQAO (Education
Quality and Accountability Office) Reading, Writing and Math test scores.

Schools who had been exposed to LS for two years (LS2Y) improved all Grade 3 and Grade 6 EQAO test type scores. LS2Y schools also scored a higher mean than Non-LS on all EQAO test type scores.

Specifically, after two years of exposure, LS2Y schools significantly improved their Grade 3 Reading scores by 36.36 per cent, Grade 3 Writing scores by 16.98 per cent, Grade 3 Math scores by 24.13 per cent, and Grade 6 Reading scores by 8.08 per cent.

¹Guertin, M., (2007). An Examination of the Effect of a Comprehensive School Health Model on Academic Achievement: The Effect of Living School on EQAO Test Scores. Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. mguertin@oise.utoronto.ca