Provincial Achievement Tests (PATs)
Provincial Achievement Test (PATs) are administered annually to all Alberta students in grades 6 and 9. These tests are written in all four core subjects: Math, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies.
Why are PATs important?
Assessing student progress is an important part of learning and instruction. PATs measure knowledge and skills in language arts, mathematics, science and social studies and show a common provincial achievement standard for students in a grade. They are based on what students are expected to know and be able to do according to the Programs of Study. Knowledge about our students’ current level of achievement is essential for planning learning activities to meet the student’s learning needs.
The number of students who achieve the acceptable standard and the standard of excellence are reported to help understand local school results and to enable comparisons of these results to provincial and local school division targets. These are important for school and school division improvement.
For more information on PATs, visit the Alberta Government Provincial Achievement Tests webpage.
2022/2023 PAT Writing Session Information:
The current schedule for PATs with Vista Virtual School is:
Grade 6
| PAT DATES |
|---|
| Grade 6 Français/French Language Arts Partie A - May 15, 9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. Grade 6 Français/French Language Arts Partie B - June 16, 9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. Grade 6 English Language Arts Part A - May 17, 9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. Grade 6 English Language Arts Part B - June 20, 9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. Grade 6 Mathematics Part(ie) A - June 22 9:00 a.m.-9:20 a.m. Grade 6 Mathematics Part(ie) B - June 23, 9:00 a.m.-10:10 a.m. Grade 6 Social Studies - June 26, 9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. Grade 6 Science - June 27, 9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. |
Grade 9
| PAT DATES |
|---|
| Grade 9 Français/French Language Arts Partie A - May 17, 9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. Grade 9 Français/French Language Arts Partie B - June 16, 9:00 a.m.-10:15 a.m. Grade 9 English Language Arts Part A - May 15, 9:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. Grade 9 English Language Arts Part B - June 20, 9:00 a.m.-10:15 a.m. Grade 9 Mathematics Part(ie) A - June 22 9:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m. Grade 9 Mathematics Part(ie) B - June 23, 9:00 a.m.-10:20 a.m. Grade 9 Social Studies - June 26, 9:00 a.m.-10:20 a.m. Grade 9 Science - June 27, 9:00 a.m.-10:15 a.m. |
Writing Locations
We offer two writing locations for PATs, one in Southern Alberta and one in Northern Alberta. The Southern Alberta location is the Hotel Blackfoot in Calgary (5940 Blackfoot Trail SE, Calgary, AB T2H 2B5). The Northern Alberta location will be in Sherwood Park. An exact venue will be announced in the coming weeks.
Registration is NOT required for PATs. Students will be notified of the specific location details via email closer to the writing dates. Updates regarding writing locations will also be provided on the PATs page of our website.
We do not expect students to travel hundreds of kilometers to write their PATs. If there is an extensive distance between your home and the writing location, you can ask a local school to supervise your PATs, but they are not required to do so.
2021/2022 PAT Results
For a better understanding of your total score calculation on the 2021/2022 Mathematics and English Language Arts PATs, please review the Part A and Part B weightings below.
Mathematics
Grade 6
Part A is worth 10% and Part B is worth 90% in the calculation of your total Mathematics 6 score.
Grade 9
Part A is worth 20% and Part B is worth 80% in the calculation of your total Mathematics 9 score.
English Language Arts
Grade 6
Reading and writing are weighted equally in the calculation of your total English Language Arts 6 score.
Grade 9
Reading and writing are weighted equally in the calculation of your total English Language Arts 9 score.