Literacy among students in Campbell River has declined to below the provincial average, the latest data shows.
School District 72 Superintendent Geoff Manning went through the latest Framework for Advanced Student Learning report at this month’s meeting, with the numbers showing that literacy, particularly among elementary-school age kids, has declined since the pandemic.
“For the most part, in general, we’re dipping below the provincial average in Grade 4 literacy FSA [Foundational Skills Assessment] skills,” he said.
In the plus side, literacy in increasing among Indigenous students, better than the provincial average.
The overall downward trend is province-wide, but Campbell River students are now below the BC average.
On the bright side, numeracy skills are increasing locally, and in terms of Indigenous students, Campbell River can boast some major successes, including high school graduation rates.
“For Indigenous students on reserve, and Indigenous students not on reserve, we’re above the provincial average,” he said.
Manning said the rate of participation in the assessments was high for all age groups. The assessments are done in Grades 4, 7, and 10 for both literacy and numeracy. He says Campbell River schools participated at rates higher than the provincial average, meaning the data will be useful for the district to use to fine-tune its programming.
The full report is available on School District 72’s website.Â
