ZWAAGSTRA: Striving for second-best in BC schools

Michael Zwaagstra is a public high school teacher and a senior fellow at the Fraser InstituteHere’s a troubling statistic. British Columbia students are about two years farther behind in their math skills than they were 20 years ago. According to the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA,) the math skills of B.C. students declined by 42 points from 2003 to 2022, the latest year for which data is available. PISA considers 20 points to be the approximate equivalent of one grade level.Things aren’t much better when it comes to reading — B.C. students dropped by 24 points over the same period, which puts them about one year behind where they were in 2003. This is unacceptable.School boards and teacher unions are quick to blame inadequate provincial funding for these poor results. However, inflation-adjusted per-student spending in B.C. grew by 6.7 per cent over the last decade. And B.C. spends approximately 10 per cent more per student than Alberta even though Alberta gets better academic results. Clearly, pouring more money into B.C.’s education system will not fix the problem. The province needs real reforms.So, what should the Eby government do?For starters, in public schools it should reverse changes made to the provincial curriculum more than a decade ago, which included a new K-12 curriculum that de-emphasizes knowledge acquisition. This new curriculum has been a disaster, and it should never have been imposed on schools.The government should also restore the previous course-based standardized exams that had been in place in grades 10 and 12. And include performance from such testing as part of Grade 12 grades and require such testing as a condition of graduation. This would go a long way to hold schools accountable for meeting essential academic standards.Of course, not all students attend government public schools. In fact, among the provinces, B.C. has the highest percentage (13.2 per cent) of students in independent schools. This proves there’s a huge demand in B.C. for other educational options.Given this fact, B.C. should follow the example of Alberta and pass legislation that enables parents and other community members to establish charter schools — publicly funded, non-sectarian schools that do not fall under the authority of the local school board. A comprehensive analysis of charter schools in Alberta found that they tend to outperform all other types of schools in that province.Moreover, a review of charter schools in Canada and the United States concluded that charter schools were particularly effective at improving student performance for students from poorer communities, ethnic minorities and students entering school with lower educational levels. In short, charter schools have been good for Alberta. It makes sense to bring them to B.C. as well.Finally, the Eby government should make it easier for parents of all income levels to enroll their children in independent schools. While the government currently provides per-student operational funding of 35 to 50 per cent to independent schools that hire certified teachers and follow the provincial curriculum, this remains considerably less than the 70 per cent funding provided to independent schools in Alberta.Consequently, parents in B.C. must pay the difference through tuition fees. While this is not a huge problem for wealthy families, it’s a significant barrier for households with limited financial means. Increasing the per-student funding to independent schools would put power where it belongs — in the hands of parents.As for the argument that independent schools cater to the ultra-wealthy, only 7.7 per cent of independent schools in B.C. could be reasonably described as “elite.” In addition, the average after-tax income for families with children enrolled in non-elite B.C. independent schools is only 1.9 per cent higher than the average income for families with children attending government public schools. Families of all income levels are interested in, and in many cases, making sacrifices to attend independent schools now — and this should be made more accessible.It’s often said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. In light of B.C.’s steep academic decline, it’s time to do something different.Michael Zwaagstra is a public high school teacher and a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute.

ZWAAGSTRA: Striving for second-best in BC schools

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