Provincial assessments provide a snapshot of student performance to a selection of provincial standards and, over time, can help to monitor some key outcomes of B.C.’s education system. Provincial assessments will continue to be rigorous and based on learning standards to evaluate student achievement, Core Competencies, and literacy and numeracy skills.

Provincial assessment in B.C. includes the Foundation Skills Assessment at Grades 4 and 7 and the graduation assessments in Literacy and Numeracy. The Foundation Skills Assessment has been redesigned to align with the new curriculum. The graduation assessments are still under development. Until the graduation assessments are implemented, the Language Arts 12 examinations remain in place.

Foundation Skills Assessment

The Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA) is a Grade 4 and 7 assessment of reading, writing, and numeracy skills. Because FSA is an important indicator of future achievement, all students are expected to take part in the assessment.

The assessment builds on the recommendations of the Advisory Group on Provincial Assessment. Following those recommendations, a working group of teachers, administrators and measurement experts provided a general design for the new assessments. Teams of educators have been working since December 2015 to develop the new assessment and prepare assessment questions for field testing.

In the fall of 2016, the assessment questions items were field-tested in 43 schools and nearly 4,000 students participated. The questions and instruments are now being revised based on the analysis from the field-testing. The new Foundation Skills Assessment is on schedule for implementation in the fall 2017.

Learn more about the new Foundation Skills Assessment.

Graduation Assessments

As part of graduation requirements, students will complete two provincial assessments focused on literacy and numeracy. The emphasis in these new assessments will be on demonstration and application of literacy and numeracy skills in relevant, real-life scenarios.

The new provincial numeracy assessment will be introduced in the 2017/18 school year. The new provincial literacy assessment will be introduced in the 2018/19 school year.

Currently, this school year and next, there are no changes to the Language Arts 12 provincial exams and equivalents. Exams will run as scheduled, aligned with the current curriculum – not the new curriculum.

Learn more about the new Graduation Assessments.

Capstone Project

As part of graduation requirements, students will complete a capstone project through their Career Life Connections course. A capstone project, also known as a culminating project or experience, or senior exhibition, is a project that allows students to demonstrate their learning using an area(s) of interest as the basis for the project. In Career Life Connections, students will design, assemble, and present a capstone project to an audience to demonstrate personal learning and achievement, growth in the core competencies, and a reflection on the post-graduation plan. For more detail see the Career Education Curriculum and detail on the Capstone Project.

Supporting Information

• Foundation Skills Assessment: Information for Parents (PDF) (Sep. 2017)
• Grades 10-12 Educator Update (PDF) (Jan. 2017)
• Graduation Assessments: Design Framework and Assessment Structure (PDF) (Jan. 2017)
• Capstone Project (PDF) (Oct. 2016)
• Advisory Group on Provincial Assessment Final Report (PDF) (September 2015)
• Advisory Group on Provincial Assessment Report I (PDF) (June 2014)
• Enabling Innovation: Transforming Curriculum and Assessment (PDF) (Aug. 2012)