In 2003, the provincial and territorial ministers of education, through the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC), agreed to develop the Pan-Canadian Assessment Program (PCAP) to replace its School Achievement Indicators Program (SAIP). This new program will assess at regular intervals the reading, science, and mathematics knowledge and skills of 13-year-old students from across Canada. The major component of each PCAP assessment will be one of these areas of learning, but each assessment will include minor components of the other two. PCAP will provide an excellent opportunity to show the education community, as well as the general public, the efficacy of our education systems with regard to learning in these subject areas.
The first PCAP assessment is scheduled to be administered in the spring of 2007. Over 30,000 students from more than 1,500 schools across Canada will respond to the assessment either in English or in French.
For the first assessment in 2007, reading will be the major component, and science and mathematics will be the minors. Between May 14 and June 1, 2007, a random sample of 13-year-old students in schools across Canada will participate in PCAP-13. In jurisdictions where there are small student populations, all students will be tested.
Towards the end of 2007, CMEC will report the assessment results at both the provincial/territorial level and the pan-Canadian level, and by language of instruction. Each province or territory will also receive detailed technical information. However, results for individual students, schools, or school board/school district will not be reported by CMEC.
If you require further information about this program, please e-mail the PCAP Coordinator.
