Ontario’s top court has upheld a mandatory math test for new teachers.
A lower-court ruling had found the test was unconstitutional because it had a disproportionate impact on racialized teachers.
The Ontario government fought that ruling and the Appeal Court on Tuesday sided with the province, saying that decision was based on preliminary and incomplete data.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce said he is pleased with the decision.
“Ontario’s Grade 9 math standard was introduced to assure parents that those responsible for educating students have the fundamental math skills they need to help students graduate,” he wrote in a statement.
Teachers’ unions objected to the test being applied broadly to all teachers — questioning, for example, why a kindergarten teacher needed to be tested on secondary school math concepts.
The court noted that all certified teachers in Ontario may be assigned to teach math to students in Grade 6 or below and in some cases they can be assigned to teach Grade 7 to 12 math.
