Jasper Junior/Senior High School received top marks on its report card from the province this month.

Alberta Education creates an accountability report, released in October, for every school in the province. The report is a way for school authorities to measure their success, and assess their progress in achieving their learning goals, according to Alberta Education.

It includes seven categories that are broken down further into subcategories, some of which include dropout rates, high school completion rates, Rutherford Scholarship eligibility rates, citizenship and parental involvement.

Mark Crozier, principal of Jasper Junior/Senior High School, said the report helps schools target what’s working and what needs to improve. 

This year, with dropout rates down, graduation rates up and student learning achievement above provincial rates, he said it’s clear students, staff, teachers and parents are doing something right.

“It’s a nice pat on the back for us,” he said. “It’s exciting to see in quite a few different areas we really made gains.”

Crozier said the most exciting results are the ones that show students are ranked well above average on provincial achievement tests and in their eligibility for the Rutherford Scholarships.

“When it comes to knowing and proving your ability in say Mathematics 30 ... we’re very high compared to the rest of the province, we’re an above-average school. Those categories are very exciting for me because it’s not just feedback, it’s actual proven data.”

The provincial achievement tests are taken by students in Grade 3, Grade 6 and Grade 9.

The provincial average for students reaching an acceptable level on the tests is 79.3 per cent, while 93.5 per cent of Jasper’s students are achieving that mark.

Crozier said there are many things the school is doing to foster these results.

For example, at the junior high level, grades are no longer represented by a percentage, but rather by a number between one and four.

He said the reason for the change was to stop students from obsessing over a couple percentage points. That way they can focus on what they did and didn’t achieve and where they need to focus their attention. For this method of grading to work, he said the most important thing is detailed feedback.

“More important than a grade on a test is feedback, saying this is where you had an area of difficulty, so lets try to improve that area and not move on right away (to another concept.)”

Crozier said the school has also started giving junior high students a grade for citizenship. This gives teachers a place to rate their academic achievements solely on academics, while also giving them the opportunity to rate a student on how they conduct themselves in class.

“If a student didn’t participate, their mark might have reflected that a bit, when really that’s not a reflection of whether they know the curriculum or don’t, it’s a reflection of a skill, maybe their social skills need to be enhanced or they’re shy, so that shouldn’t be reflected in their academics.”

Despite all of the school’s success, there is still work to be done. Crozier said his focus is on the section of the report titled work preparation – the only category the report identifies as an issue for Jasper Junior/Senior High School.

Crozier said things are already being done to address the issue. Last week, a meeting was held with parents to inform them about unique credits their children can be earning toward graduation through working or registered apprentice programs.

To see the full results of the report card, visit Alberta Education’s website at www.education.alberta.ca