Education Spending and Outcomes

Topic Box from the 2006 Sixth Annual Benchmark Report

British Columbia spends more, on a per student basis, than most other provinces. In the last seven years, BC's real spending ($1992) was the highest in two, second-highest in four and third-highest in one. On average, British Columbia spent $6,888 per student (in 1992 dollars) between 1997/98 and 2003/04, followed by Quebec at $6,769 and Ontario at $6,763. The lowest spending provinces, on average between 1997/98 and 2003/04 were Nova Scotia at $5,790, Saskatchewan at $5,688 and Prince Edward Island at $5,544.

British Columbia's per student spending was $156 less than Manitoba's and $121 less than Quebec's in 2003/04 and ahead of spending in the other provinces with margins ranging from $31 over Ontario to $1,227 over Nova Scotia. Real per student spending in British Columbia increased by $461 (7.0%) between 1997/98 and 2003/04. Spending increases in the other provinces range from $226 (3.2%) in Ontario to $1,382 (26.7%) per student in Newfoundland and Labrador.

As with health care spending and outcomes (discussed on page 106 of this volume), a simple review of per student spending levels and education outcome measures does not suggest any clear causal relationship between spending and outcomes. In Alberta, with sixth-highest average spending, students ranked first in comparisons among forty countries on math, reading, science and problem solving and generally well on recent Canadian tests. New Brunswick, with fifth-highest average spending, ranked ninth on the international comparisons and seventh or eighth on three of the four Canadian comparisons.

Sources: Statistics Canada, Summary Public School Indicators for the Provinces and Territories, 1997-1998 to 2003-2004, August 2006; Statistics Canada, Linking Provincial Student Assessments with National and International Assessments, May 2003; Statistics Canada and the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, Education Indicators in Canada, Report of the Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program 2005, April 2006.