Rainbow DSB top achieving English School Board in Northeast in EQAO

R.L. Beattie Public School student Zoey Cacciotti completes a math exercise in class.

For the second consecutive year, Rainbow District School Board remains the overall top achieving English-language school board in EQAO in the Northeast Region. In the 2025-2026 school year, students in Rainbow Schools exceeded provincial results in all areas of the Primary assessment. The Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test was the highest result ever.

Five-year trends for the Rainbow District School Board show gains over time in all assessments – Primary and Junior reading, writing and math, Grade 9 math, and the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT). Students with special education identifications achieved their highest results in the past five years in Junior reading, Junior writing, Primary mathematics, Junior mathematics (tied with 2022-2023), and Grade 9 mathematics. The Education Quality and Accountability Office supports student learning through annual data.

“Once again, Rainbow District School Board has much to celebrate with its EQAO results,” said Chair David Farrow. “On behalf of the Board, I congratulate students on their outstanding achievement, acknowledge parents/guardians for their support, and thank administrators, teachers and support staff at the system level and in our schools for their exceptional work.”

“We have been very purposeful in our efforts to ensure students develop strong skills in reading, writing and mathematics, which is evident by the consistent growth in our EQAO results,” said Bruce Bourget, Chief Executive Officer with the Rainbow District School Board. “Literacy and numeracy blocks are protected time where students build their competence and confidence in the critical skills that are essential for learning in all subject areas.”

He added: “I am very proud of our students and grateful for the dedicated and talented teachers, administrators, and educational support staff who continue to work hard to support student success. I also thank our parents/guardians for practising these foundational skills with their children at home, reinforcing what they are learning at school. Ensuring students attend school regularly is also important. Every day counts towards building knowledge, confidence and skills.”

The ongoing use of best practices for reading instruction through a variety of initiatives, including the cumulative impact of lighthouse classrooms in previous years, consultant support and professional learning, are proving successful. Students are receiving daily reading instruction, with an explicit focus on phonological awareness, phonics and comprehension strategies.

Rainbow teachers provide rich writing opportunities for students daily to develop their proficiency. In the past school year, there was also a model classroom in intermediate French Immersion.

The Board continues to provide students with high fidelity math instruction, supported by the work of consultants, coaches and coordinators.

In Grade 9 math, there are now five years of data since the implementation of the de-streamed curriculum. Year over year results show steady improvements over time.

In 2023-2024, the number of first-time eligible Grade 10 students who passed the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) represented the highest level of achievement in

20 years. The Board has since surpassed this milestone by almost two percentage points, achieving the highest result ever in the 2025-2026 school year.

EQAO results provide a measure of how well students understand the expectations outlined in The Ontario Curriculum. Student assessment is most effective when data is interpreted in context, examined over time to determine trends in performance, and used to inform professional dialogue and school improvement planning.

Primary and Junior reading, writing and mathematics tests were written in late May and early June 2026. A total of 864 students participated in the Primary assessment while 935 students participated in the Junior assessment. Very few students were exempt from the assessments.

The Grade 9 math assessments were completed in January 2026 (Semester 1) and June 2026 (Semester 2). A total of 996 students participated in the Grade 9 math assessments.

The Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) was written in the fall of 2025 and spring of 2026. A total of 939 first-time eligible Grade 10 students wrote the OSSLT.

The Ministry of Education has set Level 3 as the provincial standard. Students in Level 4 have demonstrated a very high to outstanding level of achievement (80% to 100%). Achievement is above the provincial standard. Students in Level 3 have demonstrated a high level of achievement (70% to 79%).

EQAO results are available at www.eqao.com.

EQAO RESULTS FOR RAINBOW DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD

PRIMARY DIVISION (GRADES 1 TO 3) READING, WRITING AND MATHEMATICS

2025-2026 Assessment Results