Understanding Determinants of Student Performance in K-12 Education System in Canada: A Behavioural Approach

This thesis examines the performance of 15-year-old students in Canadian public schools in the 2012 math examination organized by the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). The research aims to determine the level of influence three actors (the province, schools, and students) have on students’ performance in the 2012 PISA mathematics examinations. Due to the nested nature of the data, the three-level Hierarchical Linear Model (HLM) method was used to address the research questions. The study found that of the three levels of influence, the strongest influence on math achievement (81%) is the individual students, followed by school (17%) and the province (2%). Among the variables at the individual level, gender and socioeconomic status of students are statistically significant. At the school level, parent expectations, school enrolment, class size, and teacher qualification variables were used. Parent expectations and school enrolment were found to impact student math achievement. The results from the study suggest that policies such as establishing parent engagement offices in schools, instituting gender equity programs and providing support for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds are key in enhancing student learning in Canada