2026-2027 Student Achievement Plan

We are pleased to present our 2026-2027 Student Achievement Plan priority areas. We have included the goals for each priority, along with an overview of the strategies and actions planned throughout the year. We invite you to learn more about how the DCDSB will support faith & wellbeing, advanced human rights & equity and improved student learning in the 2026-2027 school year.

Supporting Faith and Well-Being

Faith - Catholic Identity

DCDSB Goal: Develop and strengthen Catholic identity through a focus on the five key elements of Catholic schools

  • Reflect upon the symbolic elements of the spiritual theme design poster to foster a deeper understanding of the theme, “Shining Our Light”
  • Promote understanding of Mary as Mother of All through diverse cultural representations that deepen faith, strengthen belonging, and reflect the universality of the Church

  • Strengthen partnerships between schools and parishes through intentional opportunities for mutual sharing, reciprocal support, and collaboration in sacramental preparation

  • Provide professional learning for Grade 3 and Grade 4 educators to support the implementation of the new Family Life Education resource
  • Provide professional learning for Grade 9 educators to support the implementation of the new Religious Education resource

  • Support educators in using the DCDSB Catholic Social Teaching Framework to integrate Catholicity across the Ministry of Education's Consistent Educational Resource, available through Edwin

  • Engage new educators and their mentors in purposeful formation through the New Teacher Induction Program (NTIP) to cultivate an understanding of Catholic education as a vocation rooted in faith and service

Improving Students' Participation

DCDSB Goal: Improve students’ participation in class time and learning

  • Strengthen system-wide educator practice in Universal Design for Learning to improve student well-being, participation, and access to learning.
  • Broaden system-wide educator knowledge and practice in IEP development, implementation and monitoring
  • Increase teacher awareness of academic and non-academic intervention strategies to address student need 

  • Build system-wide parent and administrator capacity in trauma-informed, tiered intervention practices to support positive student attendance
  • Promote parent participation in establishing positive attendance patterns with their primary-age children.
  • Review attendance data and related supports with school administrators twice annually to inform responsive strategies to attendance concerns 

Mental Health and Well-Being

DCDSB Goal: Improve student well-being

  • Support the BWell student group with engaging elementary students at select schools in age-appropriate ways
  • Promote staff and student well-being through weekly wellness activities (“Wellness Wednesdays”) 
  • Implement a system-wide trauma-sensitive framework to build staff capacity, foster safe and inclusive learning environments, and support student well-being and engagement.
  • Build system-wide staff capacity in identity-affirming Social-Emotional Learning to strengthen consistent, inclusive, and responsive practices that support student skills and resiliency. 

  • Advance specialized professional learning for school mental health professionals to strengthen evidence-informed, responsive support for specialized student needs.
  • Advance tier two strategies to support the well-being of all students who may be struggling with their mental health through training for specific audiences (i.e. gatekeepers)
  • Implement Ontario Health and Peer Relations study to understand student needs and target approaches to address those needs 

  • Employ a multi-tiered system of support through brief clinical intervention social work services at the elementary level
  • Strengthen student access to community-based supports by enhancing collaboration between school boards and community-based mental health and addictions agencies  

  • Expand parent and guardian learning opportunities through a variety of media to build understanding and support culturally relevant student mental health and well-being
  • Strengthen safety net supporting suicide prevention and intervention by annual mandatory refresher of the protocol
  • Increase number of staff who are trained in suicide intervention 

Advancing Human Rights & Equity

  • Build on existing learning and resources to strengthen the capacity of educators, administrators, and staff to identify, prevent, and effectively respond to human rights concerns, discrimination, and barriers to inclusion.
  • Promote a culture of psychological safety, belonging, and respect through professional learning that equips staff to support student and employee well-being, achievement, and success.
  • Expand opportunities for student leadership, engagement, and capacity building by supporting student-led initiatives that promote safe, inclusive, and equitable school communities.

  • Provide professional development to build staff capacity to effectively implement the reviewed human rights concern / complaints resolution process to promote confidence in the process and support the continued maintenance of an inclusive and discrimination-free learning and working community.
  • Strengthen confidence in the Board's human rights framework through timely, transparent, restorative, and accountable approaches to addressing concerns and resolving complaints.
  • Enhance the collection, analysis, and use of data to strengthen the human rights concern / complaints resolution process.

  • Strengthen meaningful engagement and collaboration with students, families, and community partners to inform decision-making, build trust, and advance equitable outcomes for all learners.

  • Strengthen the collection, analysis, and use of quantitative and qualitative data to identify systemic barriers, measure progress, inform decision-making, and improve outcomes for historically underserved and equity-deserving groups.
  • Build staff capacity to implement outcome-focused accountability with a view to demonstrating the impact of human rights and equity initiatives on student, staff, and community wellbeing.

Indigenous Education

  • Expand Indigenous Student Circle opportunities to amplify student voice, belonging, leadership, and connection to culture and community.
  • Strengthen relationships with First Nation, Métis, and Inuit families through intentional outreach, communication, and engagement opportunities that support student success.

  • Deepen staff and student understanding of Treaties, territory, Land, and Indigenous rights through learning connected to curriculum and local contexts.
  • Provide professional learning that promotes culturally safe practice, authentic relationship-building, and accurate teaching about First Nations, Métis, and Inuit histories and perspectives.
  • Support the consistent use of reviewed resources, Indigenous Education protocols, and community-informed practices across schools and departments.

  • Support educators in implementing First Nation, Métis, and Inuit perspectives across the curriculum through job-embedded learning, reviewed resources, and practical classroom supports.
  • Increase opportunities for Land-based and place-based learning that strengthen understanding of relationships among Land, history, language, Treaties, and community.
  • Build educator confidence and capacity through Indigenous Story Work, curriculum-linked learning opportunities, and exemplars of effective practice.

Improving Student Learning

Literacy

DCDSB Goal: Improve students’ literacy learning and achievement

  • Provide professional development and deploy literacy intervention teachers to kindergarten classrooms to address identified reading gaps
  • Provide job-embedded learning opportunities for staff to analyze and respond to school-based data of EQAO, Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) and Universal Reading Screeners results through the school improvement process.

  • Through the school improvement process and inservices, provide professional development, focusing particularly on addressing disparities in achievement for students with special needs.
  • Provide staff and students with resources to support digital citizenship in literacy, including the responsible and appropriate use of artificial intelligence.
  • Provide access to the use of consistent classroom resources in Kindergarten through Gr. 12

Mathematics

DCDSB Goal: Improve students’ math learning and achievement

  • Prioritize educator understanding of the Ontario Mathematics Curriculum and continuum of learning through the use of board-developed Scope and Sequence documents, collaborative planning, and cross-grade learning opportunities.
  • Support consistent implementation of the Ministry's High-Impact Instructional Practices in Mathematics through classroom observations, learning walks, co-planning, and professional learning focused on direct instruction, small-group instruction, and deliberate practice.
  • Increase educator use of MathUP Classroom as the board's primary digital mathematics resource through targeted professional learning, implementation supports, and administrator monitoring of resource integration into classroom practice.
  • Support educators in implementing accessible mathematics instruction through the intentional use of manipulatives, visual models, mathematical discourse, small-group instruction, and low-floor/high-ceiling tasks.

  • Facilitate differentiated professional learning opportunities for educators focused on deepening conceptual understanding of mathematics, curriculum expectations, and effective instructional practices.
  • Provide ongoing mathematics leadership learning for principals and vice-principals focused on instructional leadership, data-informed decision making, and mathematics achievement improvement.
  • Provide targeted mathematics learning opportunities focused on supporting students with special education needs, including differentiated instruction, accommodations, intervention planning, and accessible task design.
  • Expand job-embedded learning opportunities through co-planning, co-teaching, classroom modelling, peer observation, and professional inquiry cycles.
  • Extend mathematics programming supports, including Numeracy Intervention Teachers, to additional schools to strengthen student learning and achievement.

  • Strengthen implementation of the Continuum-Based Mathematics (CBM) assessment to identify learning gaps, inform instructional planning, and monitor student growth throughout the school year.
  • Provide professional learning and coaching to educators on using assessment evidence to develop targeted interventions and responsive instructional supports.
  • Analyze 2025-26 EQAO strand and skills data to identify system-wide and school-specific areas of need and align supports accordingly.
  • Expand the use of common digital assessment tools to gather evidence of student learning and support responsive instruction.

Pathways

DCDSB Goal: Improve graduation rates and preparedness for future success

  • Expand community partnerships and opportunities for Project SEARCH student interns as well as STEP coop students to support enhanced employability skills post-graduation.
  • Create inclusive opportunities that support skill development, well-being and independence while supporting the transition to meaningful volunteer or employment within the community.

  • Diversify learning opportunities and experiences with community partners connected to various post-secondary pathways. 

  • Continue to support Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM), Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP), Centre for Success, Supervised Alternative Learning (SAL), Cooperative Education and Dual Credit programming through promotion of these specialized pathways and engagement of community partners.