The Toronto School Board plans to abolish entrance exams, grades and auditions as a means of deciding who will be accepted into dozens of much-sought-after specialized schools and programs.
Officials have developed a new admission policy for TDSB’s specialized programs, which will be presented to the board of trustees for final approval later this month.
The board says the new policy will allow schools to “move away from a model that accepts only those with demonstrated strength and / or ability” to a model that will give all interested students an equal chance to enroll in one from the programs.
“The proposed policy aims to address data from a decade that consistently shows that not all students have benefited fairly from TDSB’s specialized programs,” the TDSB website said in a statement. “While these programs provide incredible opportunities, benefits, and experiences for some students, barriers to access — including admission processes, entry criteria, and geography — limit these opportunities for a significant number of students.
TDSB’s new policy will create a centralized application for all specialized programs on board this fall. This policy, in turn, will apply to students applying for admission to specialized programs for September 2023 and beyond.
Officials say students can still be asked to share their “passion, interest and motivation” in the subject area as part of the app and in some circumstances be required to present “reflections or demonstrations of creativity”.
But they say academic grades will no longer be taken into account and administrators will no longer be allowed to use entrance exams and formal auditions as a means of assessing candidates.
In addition, they will be prohibited from collecting application fees.
“Students who meet the basic application requirements will be considered for a random selection process if the demand exceeds the available places,” the staff report said. “Priority access will be given to students who self-identify as currently and historically underserved communities and students residing in the city of Toronto.
The TDSB says that as part of the new policy, schools will have the flexibility “to accommodate all students, including English and those with special education and / or requirements”.
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