The Fraser Institute has released its annual rankings for secondary schools across British Columbia.
In School District 69 (Qualicum) Kwalikum Secondary earned a rating of 7.2, ranking 55th out of 252. Ballenas Secondary ranked 191st out of 252, with a score of 4.9,
The Fraser Institute said “this year’s report card ranks 252 public and independent secondary schools based on six academic indicators using student results from annual provincewide exams, grade-to-grade transition rates and graduation rates.”
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SD69 superintendent Keven Elder says he considers the numbers unimportant and misleading. Elder said the numbers cater to high-end and exclusive schools and don’t consider most aspects of schooling.
“It’s an extremely limited set of indicators that highly favour schools that focus on just those indicators and for the most part, that’s independent schools, and it’s terribly biased against schools that provide services to children with unique needs and vulnerabilities,” he said.
Ultimately, Elder says he views success in a much different way. He said he thinks high rankings in the Fraser Institute actually equate to worse learning environments.
“What some don’t have and what good schools have is an invitation to the unique and the vulnerable to come in, knowing that there may be less success on those kinds of measures and not caring about that,” he said. “I’m proud of our schools that have that kind of mid-range numbers because that means they’re welcoming in all kinds of learners and proudly serving them.”
