Importance of Education and the Factor it plays when Searching for your new Home

Finding a home is one thing but finding the right area is a whole other monster. One of the first things many of my clients ask me are about schools in the area. How are the schools in this area? How far is the closest school? Is the near by school a "good" school?

There are two main reasons people move, to upsize and/or because of your job (ie. closer to work etc). But after the decision to move has been determined, the single most important factor in choosing the right home for most families is based on the best situation of their children... especially if they are young children under the age of 16. While children don't make the top of the list on motivations to move, I can assure you as a parent myself, its the only thing on your mind when looking for a place. That is why I have put together some very important links that will assist you in finding out more about the schools in the areas you wish to move to.

Ontario Ministry of Education School Information Finder

The Ministry of Education maintains an excellent site, the School Information Finder, that allows parents to learn more about both elementary and secondary schools throughout the province. The search results show Grade 3 and Grade 6 EQAO achievement levels, with a comparison to Provincial averages, as well as the change in achievement over three years.

For secondary schools, the tables show the Grade 9 EQAO math achievement levels, and the Grade 10 OSSLT (Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test) test results.

In addition, the easy-to-read tables show some socio-economic background for the student population; and provide information on class sizes.

EQAO Test Results

Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO)

From the EQAO web site:

"EQAO ensures greater accountability and better quality in Ontario’s publicly funded school system. An arm’s-length agency of the provincial government, EQAO provides parents, teachers and the public with accurate and reliable information about student achievement. EQAO also makes recommendations for improvement that educators, parents, policy-makers and others in the education community can use to improve learning and teaching."

Fraser Institute School Report Cards

The Fraser Institute is an independent non-partisan research and educational organization based in Canada. The Institute uses EQAO test results to calculate each school’s academic ranking and rating out of 10.

Ontario  School Performance Report Cards

From the Fraser Institute web site:

"The annual report cards on Ontario schools collect a variety of relevant, objective indicators of school performance into one easily accessible, public document so that all interested parties—teachers, parents, school administrators, students, and taxpayers—can analyze and compare the performance of individual schools."

Each school’s overall rating answers the question, “In general, how is the school doing academically?”