National and International Assessments

British Columbia students participate in a number of national and international assessments to help determine how our education system performs in relation to education systems nationally and from around the world.
[See Reports and Publications]

  • Pan-Canadian Assessment Program (PCAP)

    • PCAP was developed by the provincial and territorial ministers of education, through the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) to replace its School Achievement Indicators Program (SAIP). It assesses 13 to 15 year old students' reading, science and mathematics knowledge and skills.

    The first main assessment will be administered to 13 year old students in the spring 2007. The major component of the 2007 assessment is reading. The field test of the reading items took place in May 2006, and the field test of the science and mathematics items will take place in October.

    Further information can be found at Council of Ministers of Education, Canada.

  • Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS)

    • PIRLS 2006 is the second, after PIRLS 2001, in a five-year cycle of assessment that measures trends in Grade 4 children’s reading literacy achievement and policy and practices related to literacy.

    Led by the International Association for Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) Secretariat, the management consortium also includes Statistics Canada, the IEA Data Processing Center, and the Educational Testing Service. IEA also coordinates the Third Internationa Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS).

    British Columbia participates in PIRLS 2006. Further information can be found at International Association for Evaluation of Educational Achievement.

  • Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) / Youth in Transition Survey (YITS)

    • The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Youth in Transition Survey (YITS) is an assessment and survey developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Statistics Canada.

    Samples of 15-year-old students enrolled in selected BC schools participated in this assessment. See the Pan-Canadian PISA report, that includes BC's results.

    For more information on international results, refer to the OECD PISA Web site.

    For more information on YITS, refer to the PISA Canada Web site.

  • Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)

    • TIMSS 2007 is the fourth in a four-year cycle of assessment that measures trends in Grade 4 and Grade 8 students' achievement in mathematics and science.

    Led by the International Association for Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) Secretariat, the management consortium also includes Statistics Canada, the IEA Data Processing Center, and the Educational Testing Service. IEA also coordinates the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS).

    British Columbia participates in TIMSS 2007, the field test was administered in the spring of 2006. The main assessment will take place in April 2007. Further information can be found at International Association for Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA).