More drops than gains in Alberta high school performance report

With summer vacation coming up for Alberta’s students, the Fraser Institute released their rankings of the province’s high schools – and the report cards aren’t flattering for some schools.

The report analyzed 262 public, independent, separate and charter schools in the province. They were ranked on eight indicators, including average marks on grade 12 diploma exams, the gender gap in Language Arts and Math exams and the average number of diploma courses completed by each student.

This year, 41 schools across the province dropped in the rankings, while just 24 schools saw improvement over previous years.

Director of school performance studies Peter Cowley tells the Alberta Morning News one key factor in any school is the principal. Cowley says in some instances he’s seen school improvements directly related to who is in the principal’s office.

“(We’ve seen) many instances where there’s been a principal that got the staff together, going in the same way, improving their rankings.

“Then the principal leaves, and there may be a year or two of lag, but oftentimes the results go down if the second principal isn’t as effective.”

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At the same time, Cowley says it’s important to have an active parent group who will raise concerns to the principal of a school that doesn’t improve. He also encourages parents to look at surrounding schools to see how their child’s school compares.

However, Cowley says there is still hope for schools that saw a decline this year.

“No matter what part of the province you’re in, whether you’re in a private or separate school, low income or high income, any school can improve.”

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Overall, 9 of the top 10 schools in the rankings were based in Calgary or Edmonton. Calgary’s Webber Academy, Rundle College, and Calgary French and International School, along with Edmonton’s Old Scona, tied for first place.

Edmonton’s Archbishop McDonald and Millwoods Christian, and Calgary’s West Island College, FFCA and Bearspaw Christian also ranked in the top 10. The lone school outside of Alberta’s two largest cities was Olds Koinonia, which ranked ninth.