The list of secondary schools in Newspaper is making a big comeback this year after a pandemic-related break. At the top are a large number of institutions that have achieved a perfect score, including the vast majority of private schools, this brand new edition reveals.
• Also read: Here are the 10 best public and private secondary schools in Quebec
Ten companies have an “overall rating” of 10 out of 10, compared to six in the last edition three years ago.
“This is remarkable because it is not easy to achieve a perfect result. The school must be at the top of each of the indicators,” says Peter Cowley, author of this ranking prepared by the Fraser Institute.
This list includes eight private schools and two public schools, located primarily in Montreal, that select all of their students.
So the private sector seems to be making a comeback at the top, as in the last edition half of the schools that achieved the top score came from the public network.
A post-pandemic track record
The detailed results of this ranking, which allows a comparison of 468 public and private secondary schools, will be published in full on Saturday in a special section on the pages of your journal.
An interactive tool available online also allows access to all of this data with just a few clicks.
This ranking is based primarily on the results of students in the fourth and fifth ministerial secondary school examinations obtained in June 2022.
These exams were canceled during the health crisis in 2020 and 2021, making it impossible to achieve this ranking in recent years.
“This is the first ranking post-pandemic and it is excellent news that it is back,” says Mr Cowley.
“This tool remains relevant, especially because it makes it possible to measure the performance of the same school over the years.”
45 schools that are improving
This year, 45 schools managed to significantly improve their students’ results, a real feat after the upheaval caused by the health crisis.
The Journal also brings you a profile of several of these establishments on Saturday to reveal the secrets of their success.
This ranking also makes it possible to compare institutions with each other, but the exercise only remains valid if the schools admit the same type of students, emphasizes Mr Cowley, who is aware that this type of exercise is far from the Achieve unanimity The school network.
“Schools that have very different characteristics should not be compared with each other,” he warns.
Another clear ranking
To facilitate this exercise, Le Journal presents again this year another ranking that highlights the schools with a high proportion of students with difficulties who perform best.
At the top is Sainte-Anne secondary school in Daveluyville, where 34% of students struggle. It is also the best public school where none of the students are handpicked.
Highlights
More and more students are completing their degrees without delay
The proportion of fourth-grade students who do not complete secondary school within the usual two-year period is declining, falling from 26% to 20% between 2016 and 2022, according to a Fraser Institute analysis of Department of Education data. This is obviously “good news,” emphasizes the author of this list, Peter Cowley.
Results in English are increasing
Despite the decline in academic results seen post-pandemic, when ministerial tests resume in June 2022, there is no significant downward trend in any subject over a five-year period, data analyzed by the Fraser Institute show. Student performance in English as a second language has actually increased since 2016.
Overcrowded schools
The average number of students per school has also increased since 2019, rising from 786 to 869 young people. The mini-baby boom about fifteen years ago and immigration have contributed to an increase in the number of young people attending secondary schools. Secondary school construction and expansion projects are increasing in several regions of Quebec.
Secondary schools in Quebec in numbers
- 468 secondary schools overall in the 2023 ranking
- 342 public schools
- 126 Private schools
- 869 students on average per school
- 30% of students are disabled or have adaptation or learning difficulties (EHDAA)
Source: Fraser Institute