Framework for Enhancing Student Learning

Date came into force or revised

July 6, 2020

Status

Revised 

Policy statement

Improve Educational Outcomes for all Students

Boards of education will set, create and maintain a strategic plan, annually report on student outcomes and put systems in place to continuously improve the educational outcomes for all students and improve equity for Indigenous students, children and youth in care, and students with disabilities or diverse abilities.

Focus on The Educated Citizen

The preamble to the School Act and the Statement of Education Policy Order (Mandate for the School System) states, the purpose of the British Columbia school system is to enable all learners to become literate, to develop their individual potential and to acquire the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to contribute to a healthy, democratic and pluralistic society and a prosperous and sustainable economy. To achieve this purpose, we have a collective mandate to develop the Educated Citizen defined as the intellectual, human and social and career development of every student.

Enable through capacity building, strategic planning, coordinated implementation and reporting

In order to ensure a system-wide focus on continuously improving educational outcomes for all students, this policy specifies the responsibilities for the Ministry and boards of education with respect to strategic planning and reporting of educational outcomes. The policy also identifies ways that the Ministry, boards, Indigenous peoples and other education partners can contribute to improving educational outcomes in the K-12 education system.

Authority

School Act (PDF) ss. 8.3, 65 (1.1), and 81 and 168 (2) (t)

Policy in full

Boards of education will set, create and maintain a strategic plan, annually report on student outcomes and put systems in place to continuously improve the educational outcomes for all students and improve equity for Indigenous students, children and youth in care, and students with disabilities or diverse abilities. The policy is grounded in a shared commitment and common values including literacy, numeracy, graduation, belonging and career and life goals to support each and every learner and improve equity of outcomes.

Provincial, district and school educational outcomes, goals, objectives and measures should be specific, meaningful, measurable, and evidence informed. The focus of planning and reporting is to understand the evidence and develop and implement actions to improve student outcomes.

Provincial, district, and school educational outcomes should align with the School Act, the Goals of Education and the Educated Citizen in Parts B and C of the Statement of Education Policy Order (Mandate for the School System). The Ministry will adhere to its commitments under the BC Tri-partite Education Agreement (BCTEA) and support boards of education in an effort to meet those provincial commitments.

Educational outcomes should also align with policies, reports and other frameworks that focus on supporting educational outcomes of all students.

The Province is committed to true, lasting reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. The commitment is aligned with the Draft Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples, the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. When developing educational goals, objectives, strategies and measures for strategic planning, the Ministry will collaborate with Indigenous peoples and key education stakeholders in the process, including partners, parents, students, teachers, support staff, and representatives for Indigenous students, children and youth in care, and students with disabilities or diverse abilities. The Ministry will align the work with the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (BC). Boards should take a similar approach to collaboration with First Nations and Indigenous peoples to identify specific actions to support equitable outcomes and opportunities for Indigenous students.

The Ministry has established expected provincial educational outcomes and measures in intellectual, human and social development and career development that must be reported by boards in accordance with the Enhancing Student Learning Reporting Order.

Boards and schools will focus on the minimum education outcomes and measures articulated in the reporting requirements in the strategic planning process and supplement with multiple sources of information to identify actions to improve student success and emerging areas of focus.

The Ministry will:

1. Provide provincial oversight of policy including:
   1. Conduct a review program to ensure boards of education continuously improve educational outcomes
   2. Publish educational outcomes and measures for each school district each year. Results will be provided for all students and separately for each of the following student populations: Indigenous students, children and youth in care, and students with disabilities or diverse abilities. The provision of student results is subject to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Ministry’s Protection of Personal Information when Reporting on Small Populations policy; data for small student groups may be masked to protect student privacy
   3. Collaborate with Indigenous peoples and key education stakeholders throughout the process; and
   4. Work with boards to build capacity along a continuum of supports including communicate, facilitate, cooperate and direct using provincial and local information

Boards of education will:

1. Develop and implement a multi-year district strategic plan and individual school plans and publish annually on or before September 30
2. Use the district strategic and individual school plans to align all district annual operational plans, including but not limited to financial plans; human resources, Information Technology, engagement and communications and long-range facilities plans with the educational objectives from the district strategic plan; and
3. Participate in a continuous improvement review program, including:
   1. Reviewing the alignment of school district strategic plan and the results of the educational outcomes for the school district to address student outcome deficiencies and inequities
   2. Acting on findings coming out of the continuous improvement review
   3. Collaborating with Indigenous peoples and key education stakeholders throughout the process.

Boards will submit an annual report to the Minister in accordance with the requirements in the Enhancing Student Learning Reporting Order.

The Ministry will work with Boards of Education to build capacity along a continuum of needs, including:

1. Communicate: To provide leadership, share promising practices and lessons learned, and offer support for achieving provincial goals, district and school goals and objectives as identified by provincial and local information
2. Facilitate: To use new and existing structures such as a continuous improvement review program and establish expert, peer-based teams to facilitate capacity building at the local and provincial levels. Teams will be formed based on the areas of focus as identified by provincial, and local information to achieve district and school goals and objectives
3. Cooperate: To assist and support school districts in addressing challenges arising from a continuous improvement review program or other means and may involve completing in-depth reviews, action planning, providing training and professional learning opportunities, etc.
4. Direct: Pursuant to sections 168.03 of the School Act, the Minister may issue administrative directives if a board is failing to meet its obligations under the School Act or if it is in the public interest to do so. In certain circumstances, section 172 of the School Act empowers Cabinet to appoint official trustees. The Minister may also appoint special advisors or advisory teams under section 171.1 of the School Act