By the Numbers
Discover the essence of our educational community through the lens of data. Our By the Numbers section is a concise overview of key metrics that define the scope and impact of the Durham District School Board. From the diversity of our schools and enrolment figures to construction projects, budget details, and workforce statistics, this section offers a snapshot of our commitment to excellence. Join us in exploring the quantitative facets that shape our educational landscape.
135
Schools
112 Elementary
23 Secondary
79,020
Total Enrolment
Increase of 2,177 from 2022-2023
55,531
Elementary Students
55,039 In-person
492 Virtual
23,489
Secondary Students
23,068 In-person
421 Virtual
Current Construction Projects Underway
6 new schools and major additions approved and in various stages of completion;
3 schools receiving childcare additions/upgrades;
5 ventilation improvement and air conditioning projects underway;
43+ major renovation projects underway across schools.
Growing our Workforce
The Durham District School Board values all of our employees. It is important to centre the experience of students as we gather data on who our employees are. As a district, we are committed to increasing the diversity of our workforce to represent our students and communities. Students should see themselves, their families and their communities reflected in the employees that support them and all employees should feel included and accepted.
A key component to diversifying our workforce is to create an inclusive hiring process by identifying and removing barriers that impede the hiring of qualified candidates with diverse identities and lived experiences that reflect and can best support the diverse communities we serve.
Throughout 2023, the recruitment team continued to review, revise and introduce new programs and initiatives to create an inclusive recruitment strategy. For example:
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We are partnering with our Anti-Oppression department and are relaunching an updated Anti-Discrimination Interview Training for Administrators and Managers program which aligns with our new policies.
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We are reviewing our recruitment process using Indigenous rights, human rights and anti-oppression principles, including our interview guides, to align with our Equitable Recruitment Framework.
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We held an Information Night for new staff that focused on bringing together resources and department representatives to our newly hired employees, including occasional and supply staff, providing them with an opportunity to create a connection with others.
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There is ongoing recruitment outreach to different communities with diverse and intersecting identities.
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We have provided interview workshops and resources for Occasional Elementary and Secondary teachers, focused on increasing their interview skills, to support them in obtaining permanent positions and enhance their overall employee engagement in our school community.
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We strive to be an employer of choice and have begun work on an employee branding initiative focused on attracting individuals to the Durham District School Board. We want to find creative ways to communicate to prospective employees that the DDSB is a great place to work.
The DDSB continues to experience growth in terms of student enrolment and ongoing recruitment is necessary to support this growth. This includes hiring permanent and occasional employees across the system, including clerical, custodial, educational assistants, early childhood educators, teachers and other support employees. During 2023, we hired:
350
Permanent Teaching Staff
494
Occasional Teaching Staff
185
Permanent Non-Teaching Staff
241
Occasional Non-Teaching Staff
Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO)
In early November, Ontario’s Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) published board and school results for assessments conducted in the 2022-2023 school year. EQAO results continue to be one source of data among many that we have available to us to help inform teaching and learning strategies. Public EQAO results include valuable attitudinal and contextual information about DDSB students’ experiences and perceptions.
After a pause due to the pandemic, EQAO resumed administration of assessments in 2021-2022 using an interactive online assessment tool instead of paper and pencil as was done pre-COVID-19. In addition to the change in mode of delivery, EQAO assessments now feature an interactive approach where the assessment selects questions and levels of difficulty depending upon the student’s previous response. Over this same time, the Ministry of Education released new curriculum and engaged in a process of de-streaming a variety of secondary courses. As a result of these factors, the 2021-2022 school year EQAO results serve as a new baseline for comparison going forward.
We continue to recognize literacy and numeracy learning as a fundamental human right intricately tied to human dignity. The Literacy pilot implemented in 2021-2022 was continued during 2022-2023 and has had incredibly positive impacts so far towards implementation of effective literacy instruction and the updated Grades 1-8 Language and Grade 9 English curriculum.
2022-2023 Provincial Comparison
When compared with the province, the DDSB results are at or above the provincial achievement on each assessment:
Elementary
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Reading: 2 percentage points higher in grade 3 and 1 percentage point higher in grade 6 than the province
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Writing: 1 percentage points higher in grade 3 and same as the province in grade 6
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Math: 3 percentage points higher in grade 3 and same as the province in grade 6
Secondary
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Grade 9 Mathematics: 3 percentage points higher than the province
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OSSLT: same as the province
2022-2023 Historical Comparison
When compared with the 2021-2022 DDSB achievement, the results are:
Elementary
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Reading: down 1 percentage point in grade 3 and no change in grade 6 from last year
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Writing: down 1 percentage point in grade 3 and no change in grade 6 from last year
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Math: down 1 percentage point in grade 3 and up 3 percentage points in grade 6 from last year
Secondary
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Grade 9 Mathematics: up 1 percentage point from last year
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OSSLT: up 1 percentage point from last year
Student Census: Know Every Student, Grow Every Student
In Spring 2023, the second DDSB Student Census was conducted to help gain a clearer understanding of who our students are and their lived experiences in order to uphold Indigenous and human rights, student achievement and well-being. Student Census findings are helping the board and schools to:
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Better understand student populations and school communities.
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Identify barriers to student success, engagement and well-being.
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Address barriers and to improve experiences and outcomes for students.
The Student Census consisted of approximately eight multiple choice questions about various aspects of students’ identities such as Indigenous identity, racial and ethnic backgrounds, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation (Grade 7-12 only), disability/different abilities, and first language learned at home. Although some boards have included in their census many additional questions around student experience and school climate, the DDSB Census has been kept to only those identity questions and response options that are not already available through other data collections. All of the questions included in the census come from (or are informed by) the direction, guidance and/or best practices of the Ministry of Education, the Ontario Human Rights Commission, the Anti-Racism Directorate, other Ontario school boards, and/or community organizations that reflect the diverse communities we serve. The initial summaries that were shared with the Board on January 8, 2024 helps us understand who our students are.
Overall, identity information was shared for 23% (N=18,883) of all students enrolled in the DDSB. Although we had hoped for more people to participate, we recognize that the winter/spring of 2023 was very busy with school climate surveys, strategic planning consultations, and administration of the Early Development Instrument. We are grateful to those that shared their information with us and we look forward to the work we will be engaged in that is informed by this information. We will continue to explore our student experiences and outcomes and include analyses in upcoming reports such as the Positive School Climate Report and other updates to the Board. These reports will help us understand the impact we are having in supporting our students. Infographics and data files for both of our student censuses can be found on the DDSB website.
Workforce Census
In 2017, the DDSB’s first Workforce Census was administered to better understand the demographics of the dynamic team of staff across the District. The results told us that while progress is being made in many areas, there were more opportunities to increase diversity and work towards a workforce that is more reflective of the students, families and communities that we serve and where all staff feel included, accepted and welcome, no matter their role.
An updated Workforce Census was administered in the spring of 2022 and consisted of three components:
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Organizational demographics: questions related to an employee’s position within the DDSB.
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Staff demographics: questions related to the self-reported characteristics of each individual.
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Perceptions of equity and inclusion: each person completing the census was invited to reflect on their workplace in terms of how equitable and inclusive they find it related to each demographic characteristic.
All staff were encouraged to participate in this anonymous and voluntary census in an effort to collect as much feedback as possible to help inform development of new strategies and supports that address workplace equity, respect, belonging, inclusion and the needs of all staff and students.
Of the 30% of staff that participated in the 2022 workforce census:
Organizational Demographics
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80% live in the Durham Region.
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74% were permanent full-time employees.
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48% plan to retire in the next 15 years.
Staff Demographics
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There was an 11 percentage point growth in racialized identities since the 2017-2018 workforce census.
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7% identify as 2SLGBTQ.
Perceptions of Equity and Inclusion
Although we are encouraged to see that we are making progress in several areas, we understand that not everyone is having the same experience and that we have more work to do. As was shared in the June Board report, not all staff feel their workplace is equitable or inclusive. As we move forward with our new strategic plan, we will be working toward making our workplaces safe, equitable, and inclusive for all of our staff.