EQAO Grade 3 - Everything You Need To Know As A Parent
Since EQAO testing begins with EQAO Grade 3, many parents will have questions about what to expect and how to prepare. We at EZ-Teach have answered some of the top questions. Keep scrolling to read more or click on the links below for answers to specific questions.
Grade 3 is the first year of Ontario’s standard EQAO testing. Image Source: Pixabay
The Scoop on EQAO Grade 3
1. What is the EQAO test for Grade 3?
First, let’s go over what EQAO stands for. EQAO stands for the Education Quality and Accountability Office. This office is meant to assess the quality of Ontario’s public education system and to help improve programming. If you have never heard of EQAO until coming to our website, you might want to take a look at the official EQAO website by clicking here.
EQAO testing begins in Grade 3 and the tests cover Reading, Writing, and Mathematics. Your child may be tested on their ability to organize ideas clearly or to answer a multiplication question. The questions are based on the Ontario curriculum and the test is now offered digitally.
For a detailed outline of the Grade 3 EQAO test, have a look at the framework provided on the EQAO website.
2. What happens if you fail the EQAO Grade 3 test?
Nothing. Breathe a sigh of relief! The test results do not affect the student’s grades at school and do not keep them from moving into Grade 4. However, the test results are a useful measure to see how your child compares with average provincial standards.
EQAO testing is a way of collecting data and researching how student learning and outcomes can be improved in Ontario. Image Source: Claudio_Scott
3. What is the EQAO grade 3 test for?
The EQAO tests are meant to assess the quality of curriculum and programming in Ontario public schools. It is a tool that is meant more to help administrators and teachers in reviewing their standards of practice than it is for assessing student learning. It is a system of accountability.
If you are interested in seeing one other way the 2018-2019 EQAO results were used, you can actually read how Ontario students are performing, which is a subsection of the Right to Read Inquiry Report from the Ontario Human Rights Commission.
4. Do EQAO tests count for anything?
The EQAO test does not count towards your child’s grades, but the school’s collective results will be made known publicly and can be used to compare to other schools in terms of student achievement. You can see each school’s results with this online tool.
EQAO test results don’t impact your child’s grades; they help administrators understand whether Ontario students are meeting curriculum expectations. Image Source: Unsplash
5. How to help your child prepare for the EQAO Grade 3 test
While it is a relief to know that the grades from the Grade 3 EQAO test do not count towards your child’s final marks, the results from the test still offer insight into your son or daughter’s levels of literacy.
The testing is actually a good opportunity for your child to review important concepts related to reading, writing and mathematics. To help students, EZ-Teach features the following 3 Prep Guides:
To find out more about these guides, click on the pictures or browse our curriculum page. With these guides, your Grade 3 students will have access to practice tests that are very similar to the real EQAO tests themselves. Below is a brief summary of the types of questions children will see.
Grade 3 Language Test Prep
Questions will target students’ understanding of:
Fiction
Nonfiction
Diagrams
Instructions
The content or structure of sentences, paragraphs and stories
There is also plenty of writing practice as students are asked to write sentences, paragraphs and stories and answer questions featuring essential writing skills.
Grade 3 Math Test Prep
Questions will target students’ understanding of:
Number sense and numeration
Patterning and algebra
Measurement
Geometry
Spatial sense
Data management
Probability
Students will also see questions that are a combination of all the math skills.
Giving your child the opportunity to prepare for the test also helps them alleviate test-taking anxiety and helps them know ahead of time what to expect and anticipate on the test. If you’d like more help preparing your child for EQAO Grade 3, you can also go to the EQAO website to see their Sample Test.
Daily review of your child’s language and math homework is one way you can help them succeed in testing!
Image Source: Andrea Piacquadio
6. Keys to scoring well on a Grade 3 EQOA test
While you can’t predict exactly how your child will perform on the test, there are some ways to help your son or daughter do well. Here are some tips:
1. First, know what your child is expected to know in Grade 3 Language and Math. The test covers Ontario Curriculum, so you can check curriculum guides yourself. You can also review the frameworks on the EQAO website to see what is being assessed.
Also, keep an eye on what your child is doing at school and take time to review homework together so you can help them understand things that may be challenging for them. Kids may feel more comfortable asking questions at home with you than at school among their peers, so try to make a safe space for them to tell you if there is anything they are struggling with.
Even if you can’t help them yourself, you’ll be able to get them some help. Having parental support will boost your child’s confidence. You can read this article from KidsHealth to learn more about how to help support your kids in school: 10 Ways to Help Your Child Succeed in Elementary School.
2. Use the practice guides and tests available to help your child understand how to read and carefully follow instructions. Sometimes students don’t understand a question or they jump too quickly to answer a question before understanding what the question actually asks of them.
3. Don’t wait until the last minute. Review schoolwork regularly and, if your child is struggling in school, consider getting them extra help. Whether it’s formally hiring a tutor or sending them to an afterschool program, or informally spending 1:1 time with your child reviewing problems together, make sure you make the time. Sometimes a minor intervention early on can help you avoid greater challenges down the road.
Students in public schools throughout Ontario are required to partake in EQAO Testing.
Image Source: Katerina Holmes
7. Does my child have to write EQAO?
This depends on how your child is being educated. If your child attends a publicly funded school in Ontario, then yes. However, if you are homeschooling your child, then they do not need to do the EQAO testing.
Homeschoolers also have the option to do the EQAO testing, but parents will need to notify their local school board to find out how they can participate.
8. What are current EQAO scores?
Based on the most recent EQAO Grade 3 testing in 2021-2022, here are the following results:
Reading: 73% of students met provincial standards
Writing: 65% of students met provincial standards
Mathematics: 59% of students met provincial standards in mathematics
Compared with 2018-2019 results, these percentages were lower. Keep in mind though that EQAO was paused for 2 years during the pandemic and a new mathematics curriculum was introduced in 2020-2021. So students are still catching up after all these challenges.
Remember to review homework regularly with your child to help them prepare for the EQAO questions.
Image Source: Oleksandr Pidvalnyi
9. How many questions is EQAO?
The language portion of the EQAO test includes 29 questions. There are 26 questions where the student has to select the correct answer provided (drop-down menu, checklist, drag and drop type questions, etc.) and 3 questions that are open-response.
The math portion involves 44 total questions, 40 operational-type questions and 4 field-test questions.
10. How much does it cost to run EQAO?
According to an article published by CBC in June 2022, EQAO testing costs about $50 per student tested. If you search online, you’ll see people making comments that it costs taxpayers over $30 million dollars to run EQAO.
Whatever the actual costs, it no doubt costs a fair bit of money to organize and administer tests, and then score, analyze, interpret and present the data to the public.
Not all students in Ontario have to write EQAO tests. Image Source: Julia M Cameron
11. Can parents opt out of EQAO?
It depends. If your child goes to a public school in Ontario, then they are expected to do EQAO testing. If your child goes to a private school, then it depends on whether that school is participating in EQAO testing or not as they are not required to but often participate.
Parents may opt-out of the testing if they are homeschooling their children. The Canadian Homeschooler notes: “You do have the legal option for your children to take the EQAO in grades 3, 6 and 9 and the Literacy test in Gr. 10, but they are not required.”
12. Which schools do EQAO testing and which schools do not?
Public schools in Ontario are required to participate in EQAO testing. Private schools are not required to participate; however, they may choose to participate. The same thing applies to homeschoolers (see above for more information).
EZ-Teach
We’re glad that you stopped by to check out our website and hope that we have helped answer some of your questions about EQAO Grade 3. As the first EQAO test, your child will experience, it is a great idea to help them prepare. With fewer unknowns, there is less stress.
If you have other questions or you want to learn more about EZ-Teach, contact us here. Or, click on the button below. And don’t forget to check out our curriculum page for helpful Test Prep Guides, too.
And all the best to all the kids out there doing EQAO testing - you got this!
