Alberta students have placed first in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2022, a test used internationally to assess 15-year-old students and key outcomes in education.
According to a report published by Councils of Ministers of Education in Canada, 87 per cent of Canadian students performed at or above Level 2 in financial literacy in 2022. This is higher than the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average of 82 per cent.
Around 15 per cent of Canadian students performed at Level 5 – the higher end of the PISA financial literacy scale – compared with the OECD average of 11 per cent. Provincially, 19 per cent of Alberta students performed at Level 5, higher than British Columbia and Ontario (both at 15 per cent).
Around 24 per cent of Alberta students performed at Level 3.
In Alberta, 13 per cent of students did not reach the baseline level of financial literacy. That is on par with the Canadian average but lower than the OECD average (18 per cent).
The report also said the average score for Alberta students was 528, higher than Ontario and British Columbia where the average score for both provinces is 521. That is also higher than the Canadian average (519).
Alberta also placed first internationally, beating the Flemish community of Belgium (527), Denmark (521) and the Netherlands (517).
In a statement on Wednesday morning, Alberta’s Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides said the results show that Alberta is a world leader in education.
The financial literacy results comes after previous PISA 2022 results showed Alberta students rank first in science, reading and creative thinking across Canada. Alberta students also ranked second in mathematics nationally.
Globally, Alberta students ranked second in science, reading and creative thinking. Singapore was ranked first.
“Ensuring Alberta’s youth can build the financial literacy skills they need to make informed decisions about their finances and their future continues to be a focus for our government,” Nicolaides said in his emailed statement.
“That’s why we have invested $5 million to support practical, hands-on financial literacy programming for students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 and our renewed K–6 curriculum that includes a stronger foundation in financial literacy. As we look forward, we will continue to develop new curriculum for grades 7–12 and ensure financial literacy is incorporated throughout all grades where appropriate.”
