“It shows that overall, about 68 per cent of teacher candidates passed the test on their first try, with that number jumping to 82 per cent once people who failed the first time took the test again.”
“But demographic breakdowns showed lower success rates, relative to other groups, for would-be teachers who identified as being from certain racialized backgrounds, French-language speakers, and older teacher candidates.”
“However, the new data from the fall of 2024 to the fall of 2025 appears to show some wide gaps even after multiple attempts. After three attempts, for example, 92 per cent of white candidates succeeded while 64 per cent of Black teacher candidates were successful.”
“A score of at least 70 per cent on the test is considered a pass, and candidates can attempt it as many times as they want, for free.”
“In addition to race, there were other disparities in the results based on age and language. Candidates under 25 years old had a 78 per cent success rate on their first attempt, with that percentage decreasing with each age bracket, to 47 per cent for people 40 and over.”
“Overall, 71 per cent of candidates were successful on their first attempt of the English-language test, while 44 per cent were successful on the first try of the French-language test.”
“The numbers also suggest that the vast majority of that one-third of Black teacher candidates who were still unsuccessful after three attempts gave up, and did not try again.
“What really troubles me is the question of how many great teachers did we lose as a result of the barrier that this math test put in place?” Cowley said. “That’s sad to think about, especially when we need teachers in our schools.”
I dont know about that last part, If a math teacher is not able to pass basic grade 9 math test three times in a row, I am glad they are not allowed to be math teachers.
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how hard is the test?
some excerpts from the article
“It shows that overall, about 68 per cent of teacher candidates passed the test on their first try, with that number jumping to 82 per cent once people who failed the first time took the test again.”
“But demographic breakdowns showed lower success rates, relative to other groups, for would-be teachers who identified as being from certain racialized backgrounds, French-language speakers, and older teacher candidates.”
“However, the new data from the fall of 2024 to the fall of 2025 appears to show some wide gaps even after multiple attempts. After three attempts, for example, 92 per cent of white candidates succeeded while 64 per cent of Black teacher candidates were successful.”
“A score of at least 70 per cent on the test is considered a pass, and candidates can attempt it as many times as they want, for free.”
“In addition to race, there were other disparities in the results based on age and language. Candidates under 25 years old had a 78 per cent success rate on their first attempt, with that percentage decreasing with each age bracket, to 47 per cent for people 40 and over.”
“Overall, 71 per cent of candidates were successful on their first attempt of the English-language test, while 44 per cent were successful on the first try of the French-language test.”
“The numbers also suggest that the vast majority of that one-third of Black teacher candidates who were still unsuccessful after three attempts gave up, and did not try again.
“What really troubles me is the question of how many great teachers did we lose as a result of the barrier that this math test put in place?” Cowley said. “That’s sad to think about, especially when we need teachers in our schools.”
I dont know about that last part, If a math teacher is not able to pass basic grade 9 math test three times in a row, I am glad they are not allowed to be math teachers.