Study
| EST. READ TIME 2 MIN.Report Card on Alberta's Elementary Schools 2011
The Report Card on Alberta's Elementary Schools 2011 reports a variety of relevant, objective indicators of school performance. These indicators are used to calculate an overall rating for each school. On the basis of this rating, the schools are ranked. The Report Card brings all of this information together in one easily accessible public document so that anyone can analyze and compare the performance of individual schools. By doing so, the Report Card assists parents when they choose a school for their children and encourages and assists all those seeking to improve their school.
In Alberta, many parents enjoy considerable choice regarding the school in which they will enroll their children. Where choice is available, the Report Card provides a valuable decision-making tool. Because it makes comparisons easy, the Report Card alerts parents to nearby schools that appear to have more effective academic programs. Further, parents can determine whether schools of interest are improving over time. By first studying the Report Card, parents will be better prepared to ask relevant questions when they interview the principal and teachers at the schools they are considering.
The Report Card provides a detailed picture of each schools academic outcomes that is not easily available elsewhere. Naturally, a sound academic program should be complemented by effective programs in areas of school activity not measured by the Report Card.
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Peter Cowley
Senior Fellow, Fraser Institute -
Stephen T. Easton
Stephen T. Easton was a professor of Economics at Simon Fraser University. He received his A.B. from Oberlin College in1970 and an A.M. in 1972 and a Ph.D. in 1978 from the University of Chicago. He published extensively; his publications included Rating Global Economic Freedom (with M.A. Walker, Fraser Institute 1992); Education in Canada: An Analysis of Elementary, Secondary and Vocational Schooling (Fraser Institute 1988); Legal Aid Efficiency: Cost and Competitiveness (with P.J. Brantingham and P.L. Brantingham, Queen's University 1994). He was also co-author of the School Report Card Series.Professor Easton was an associate editor for Economic Inquiry from 1980 to 1984, on the board of editors for the Canadian Journal of Economics from 1984 to 1987, organizer for the Canadian Economics Association's Canada-France Roundtable in 1988 and representative for the Canadian Economics Association to the Social Science Federation of Canada Aid to Scholarly Publications from 1991 to 1994. He was a senior research fellow of The Fraser Institute.… Read more -
Michael Thomas
Michael Thomas is the former Program Director, Children First: School Choice Trust and former Associate Director, School Performance Studies. Beforejoining the Fraser Institute, Michael Thomas served as a policy advisor in the Ontario Ministry of Education, where his files included adult education, students at risk of not meeting their graduation requirements, the new curriculum, student health initiatives, and the community use of schools. Michael is a former public school trustee, who served on the Toronto District School Board from 1997 to 2000. Michael has also held positions within the City of Toronto, and the Ontario Ministries of Tourism and Recreation, and Citizenship. He attended Centennial College and York University, graduating with a BA in Political Science.… Read more