Toronto Real Estate and Neighbourhoods Blog | Move Smartly

Best Toronto Elementary Schools - the Alternative List (Realosophy Top Ten)

Realosophy Team in Toronto Schools, Toronto Neighbourhoods, Top Ten Neighbourhoods, Home Buying

The first Sat of every month, Realosophy hosts our popular Schools for Home Buyers Workshop. Free for all to attend, we share our proprietary analytics on the relationship between school quality and house prices in Toronto -all assessed at the microlevel of the individual school district. If you want to learn which school districts offer the most value for your housing dollar, book your spot - next session is this Sat Feb 2nd at 12pm noon (sign up below).

And now for our latest Realosophy Top Ten - Toronto's Best "Alternative" or "Specialized" Elementary Schools. If you still suffer flashbacks of that rather grim day spent choosing between Mr. Grimes's shop class and Ms. Cleeney's home economics course, it may surprise (or infuriate) you to learn that many of Toronto's youngest students are already studying electronics and graphic design. ("I coulda been a contender!")

This week, the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) has updated the status of elementary schools, letting you know which schools are now accepting students from outside designated catchment areas. Among the most popular are those designated as "Alternative" or "Specialized." While the Board may be clear on these bureaucratic differentiators, the differences are hard to discern online (a quick look at any school's What Sets Us Apart webpage makes you hope they are not teaching any students marketing or "writing to explain.")

Kristen, the newest member of our intrepid Realosophy Analytics team, has chopped through the cyberjungle that is the interlinked websites of the Toronto District School Board (TDSB), individual schools and the Ontario Ministry of Education to help you navigate. One rough distinction to keep in mind is that "Alternative" schools feature smaller class sizes and unique programs such as environmental awareness, while "Specialized" schools cater to students with a special interest in (and in some cases, a demonstrated talent for) particular fields such as arts or athletics.

As always, we strongly advise you to visit each individual school in order to 1) figure out what really sets them apart and 2) figure out if you can get in. (Phone numbers provided below.)

Best Toronto Elementary Schools - Alternative or Specialized

Understanding the Data

• The Province of Ontario's Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) scores (0-100%) indicate the number of students at or above the provincial standard in a subject.
• Covers all TDSB schools - the province does not report results for some schools which are excluded.
• Schools are ranked by Realosophy Overall Score. Overall Score represents average EQAO score for 6 tests written by elementary students in 2011-2012 (for elementary schools, these tests are Reading, Writing and Math at Gr. 3 and 6 levels).
• Note: the province does not report some test scores for some schools - these test scores are excluded.
• Note: While a school may be co-located with a mainstream school, it may operate on a completely separate basis.
• Type: Alternative (smaller classes and different approach to learning) or Specialized (focused on a particular field, e.g., Arts or Athletics)
• Status: Open (students outside catchment can request to attend), Closed (catchment only), Application (requires application and/or audition)
• Average House Price is for period of Jan to Aug 2012 (based on Toronto Real Estate Board TREB) data).

 

1. Claude Watson School for the Arts		See all houses for sale near Claude Watson
	Neighbourhood: Willowdale Grades: 1-8 Enrollment: 301 Address: 130 Doris Avenue Phone: 416 395 3180 Type: Specialized Focus: Arts Status: Application Avg. House Price: $564,972
Browse detailed school scores and demographic data for Claude Watson

Best Toronto Schools 2012 for Math (Realosophy Top Ten Neighbourhoods)

Realosophy Team in Toronto Schools, Toronto Neighbourhoods, Top Ten Neighbourhoods

It's a frequent - almost incessant - request. Some Move Smartly readers really, really want us to re-run our popular Best Toronto Schools list - for Math only.

Perhaps these parents suspect that looking at scores averaged over all tests (for elementary schools, these tests are Reading, Writing and Math) allows some top performing schools to mask a relatively weaker performance on a subject that many think is "harder to teach."  On the flip side, perhaps some are hoping to unearth a hidden gem of a Math program in a school that performs more moderately overall in a relatively cheaper neighbourhood.

Well, our self-described "Tiger Mom" correspondents can rest easy.

Our "Math Only" list shows almost complete overlap with our overall Best Toronto Schools list. (Note: we excluded three schools - Claude Watson, St. George's and Braeburn - from our overall Top Ten list because the province does not report all 6 test results for these schools; if we focus on the tests results that are reported, these schools would be in the Top Ten.) Only one school with top Math marks has a *relatively* lower overall performance - Rosethorn, which in the immortal words of Adam Sandler, is "not too shabby" with a 93 English score.

But buyers looking for deals will not be disappointed. Don Valley Village - a top value neighbourhood we've been recommending to participants in our popular Schools for Home Buyers Workshop over the last year - is a particular standout. If you want to learn about other school districts that offer the most value for your housing dollar, sign up up for our free Workshop now - last session for this year is Dec 1st (sign up below).

And now, the team at Realosophy Analytics proudly dedicates this week's Top Ten to Toronto's budding Putnam champions (and future Bank of England governors!)

 

Best Toronto Schools for Math - Elementary

Understanding the Data

• The Province of Ontario's Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) scores (0-100%) indicate the number of students at or above the provincial standard in a subject.
• Covers all Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and Catholic schools (Note: the province does not report results for some schools which are excluded).
• Realosophy's Math score (in the bright yellow circle) represents the average of 2 Math tests written by elementary students (one at Gr. 3 and one at Gr. 6) in 2011-2012.
• 1 Year Change Math represents the year-over-year change in Math score from 2010-2011 to 2011-2012.
• Overall Score represents average EQAO score for 6 tests written by elementary students in 2011-2012 (for elementary schools, these tests are Reading, Writing and Math at Gr. 3 and 6 levels).
• Note: the province does not report some test scores for some schools - these tests are excluded.
• Average House Price is for period of Jan to Aug 2012 (based on Toronto Real Estate Board data).
• 1 Year Change Price indicates change in average house price each year from 2011 to 2012.

 

1. Hillmount Public School		See all houses for sale in Hillmount School District
	Neighbourhood: Don Valley Village Grades: JK-6 Enrollment: 280  Address: 245 McNicoll Ave 1 Yr Change Math: -1 Overall Score: 99 Avg. House Price: $483,720 1 Yr Change Price: +6%
Browse detailed school scores and demographic data for Hillmount

Most Improved Toronto Schools 2012 (Realosophy Top Ten Neighbourhoods)

Realosophy Team in Toronto Schools, Toronto Neighbourhoods, Top Ten Neighbourhoods

It's a home buyer question we get a lot at our monthly Schools for Home Buyers workshop - which Toronto schools are most likely to improve over the next few years?

Many participants are young parents with limited housing budgets - their kids are a few years away from entering school and they'd like to buy into a more affordable neighbourhood now, with the hopes that the local school will improve relatively quickly.

Data crunching drives our workshop, so we're not surprised to see Wellesworth Junior School in Centennial Park (427/Eglinton) top our latest list of Toronto's Most Improved Elementary Schools - we've been recommending this fast riser in our workshop for the past few years.

Want to know what school districts will offer the fastest improvements in school quality and house appreciation in the next 3 years? Get our top picks at our next workshop - next session is this Sat Nov 3rd (sign up below).

Most Improved Toronto Schools - Elementary

Understanding the Data

• The Province of Ontario's Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) scores (0-100%) indicate the number of students at or above the provincial standard in a subject.
• Covers all Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and Catholic schools (Note: the province does not report results for some schools which are excluded).
• Realosophy's improvement score (in the bright yellow circle) represents the average 3-year increase (in percentage points) from 2009-10 to 2011-12 for the 6 tests written by elementary students (Note: the province does not report some test scores which are excluded).
• Avg. EQAO score represents average score for 6 tests written by elementary students in 2011-2012.
• Average house price for period of Jan to Aug 2012 (based on Toronto Real Estate Board data).
• % Change indicates change in average house price from 2009 to 2012.
• Yearly change indicates change in average house price each year from 2009 to 2012.
 

1. Wellesworth Junior		See all houses for sale in Wellesworth Junior School District
	Neighbourhood: Centennial Park Grades: JK-5 Enrollment: 204 Address: 225 Wellesworth Dr Avg. EQAO Score: 70 Avg. House Price: $345,423 % Change: +24%
Browse detailed school scores and demographic data for Wellesworth

Best Toronto Schools 2012 (Realosophy Top Ten Neighbourhoods)

Realosophy Team in Toronto Schools, Toronto Neighbourhoods, Top Ten Neighbourhoods

Thanks to the fabulous Realosophy Analytics team, Realosophy.com is now updated with the latest EQAO scores released by the Province of Ontario for 2011-12.

To celebrate, here's the latest cut of one of Realosophy's most popular Top Ten Lists - Best Toronto Elementary Schools.

We're not surprised to see Don Valley Village make a huge splash on this list with 3 schools - we've been flagging this mid-priced neighbourhood as a great value investment to participants in our popular Schools for Home Buyers workshop for some time now. Want to know more Realosophy top picks? Sign up for this weekend's workshop below - spaces are filling up fast!

  

Top Ten Toronto Schools - Elementary

Understanding the Data

• The Province of Ontario's Education Quality and Accountability Office (EQAO) scores (0-100%) indicate the number of students at or above the provincial standard in a subject based on 2011-12 test results.
• Realosophy's overall score (in the bright yellow circle) represents an average of the six EQAO test scores written by students in 2011-12 (reading, writing and math at the Gr. 3 and Gr. 6 levels).
• Covers all Toronto public schools including Catholic School Board (Note: some schools for which some EQAO results are not reported are excluded).
• % Change indicates change in overall score from last year to the current year. (Editor Note: Correction Oct 10 11am - Earlier version of this blog post reported change over 3 years. Post has now been corrected).
• Average house price for period of Jan to Aug 2012 (based on Toronto Real Estate Board data).
• % Change indicates change in average house price from last year to the current year.
 

1. Hillmount Public School		See all houses for sale in Hillmount Public School District
	Neighbourhood: Don Valley Village Grades: JK-6 Enrollment: 280 Address: 245 McNicoll Ave Avg. EQAO Score: 99 % Change: +1% Avg. House Price: $483,720 % Change: +6%
Browse detailed school scores and demographic data for Hillmount

Most Improved Toronto Schools 2012 (Realosophy Ten Ten Neighbourhoods)

Urmi Desai in Top Ten Neighbourhoods, Home Buying, Toronto Schools, Toronto Neighbourhoods

It's been an exciting week for our Realosophy Analytics spotlight on the relationship between School Quality and Real Estate Values.

Following our first list, Best Toronto Schools for 2012, we were profiled in the Toronto Star.

The feedback we've been hearing from you is consistent with our premise: while we are all aware that EQAO scores tell only a part of a school's story, these scores nonetheless influence your home buying decisions. You've told us that having access to this type of information helps you think about your goals and feel empowered about making your own decisions.

Realosophy Schools for Home Buyers Workshop - Starts Again Sept 2012

If you’re buying a home, schools are likely important to you. To help you make better buying decisions, Realosophy is now drilling down to give you stats on house price appreciation and EQAO score changes at the school district level. Join our free workshop to understand latest trends, get our top neighbourhood picks and ask your own questions in a friendly atmosphere. Our popular workshops take place on the first Saturday of each month. Scroll to the bottom of this post to sign up for the next one. (Learn more about workshop)

 

This Week's List - Most Improved Toronto Schools 2012

Now, onto the main show! I'm particularly excited about this week's installment: Top Ten Most Improved Elementary Schools in Toronto for 2012.

For all the controversy about EQAO scores and what they actually measure, we often miss a far more important story. No score is static, and improvement, more than any other metric, may reveal to us what is truly important about any organization - its ability to assess its current reality, successfully diagnosis problems and do better. (RIM, are you listening?)

And what a fantastic story this week's list has to tell. Most of the most improved schools are in affordable neighbourhoods, many of which are next generation emerging neighbourhoods. Seven out of the ten schools improved to an average EQAO score of 70 and above. Improvements ranged from between 24 to 36 in average percentage points.

Above all, this top ten list tells us a story of hard work - the hard work of students, teachers and parents working to make their schools better. And really, isn't hard work the biggest lesson we want to instill in our children?

 

The Data

• Overall change (in the bright yellow circle) represents the average increase or decrease (in percentage points) in EQAO scores from 2007-08 to 2010-11; average of all six tests written by students (reading, writing and math at the Gr. 3 and Gr. 6 levels)
• Covers all Toronto public schools with an overall average test score above 60 (Note: some schools are too small to report EQAO results and are excluded)
• Average EQAO test score represents number of students obtaining the provincial standard; average of all six tests written in 2010-11
• Average house prices for the neighbourhood in 2011
• 3-Year increase in house prices from 2008 to 2011

1. Kimberley Junior Public School		See all houses for sale in Kimberley Junior Public School District
	Neighbourhood: East End Danforth Grades: JK-6 Enrollment: 271 Address: 50 Swanwick Ave Average EQAO Test Score: 86% 3 Yr EQAO Score Improvement: 36% Average House Price: $487,469 3 Yr Increase in House Prices: 16%
Browse detailed school scores and demographic data for Kimberley Junior Public School

Best Toronto Schools 2012 (Realosophy Top Ten Neighbourhoods)

Urmi Desai in  Top Ten Neighbourhoods, Toronto Schools, Home Buying, Toronto Neighbourhoods

It's school time at Realosophy Analytics! Our month-long feature looks at the special relationship between real estate and schools.

Today's post looks at the top elementary schools in Toronto as measured by the province's latest standardized EQAO scores.

While it's tempting to tape this school list to your goal wall/fridge/dreams and "make it so",  it's important to remember that EQAO scores only tell us so much about school quality. For one, standardized testing results tend to favour advantaged socioeconomic groups, which can make the results more about 'who' attends than 'what' is being taught.

Educators also stress that some school strengths - like special curriculums or educational philosophies - fall outside testing parameters. But interestingly, specialty schools are a strong presence on our list. This is likely due to admissions requirements (e.g., for arts schools) and smaller class sizes.

Realosophy Schools for Home Buyers Workshop - Starts Again Sept 2012

If you’re buying a home, schools are likely important to you. To help you make better buying decisions, Realosophy is now drilling down to give you stats on house price appreciation and EQAO score changes at the school district level. Join our free workshop to understand latest trends, get our top neighbourhood picks and ask your own questions in a friendly atmosphere. Our popular workshops take place on the first Saturday of each month. Scroll to the bottom of this post to sign up for the next one. (Learn more about workshop)

 

The Data

• Overall score (in the bright yellow circle) represents an average of the six EQAO tests written by students in 2010-11 (reading, writing and math at the Gr. 3 and Gr. 6 levels)
• Covers all Toronto public schools (Note: some schools are too small to report EQAO results and are excluded)
• 3 Year EQAO Increase represents an average of percentage points change from 2007-08 for all tests
• Average house prices for the neighbourhood in 2011
• 3 Year increase in house prices from 2008 to 2011

Next Up: Most Improved Toronto Schools 2012

 

1. Claude Watson School for the Arts		See all houses for sale near Claude Watson School for Arts School
	Neighbourhood: Willowdale Grades: 1-8 Enrollment: 325 Address: 130 Doris Avenue Average EQAO Test Score: 100% 3 Year EQAO Score Improvement: 4% Average House Price: $488,344 3 Year Increase in House Prices: 30%
Browse detailed school scores and demographic data for Claude Watson

 

What’s Driving Toronto Real Estate Prices Up? The School Factor

Urmi Desai in Top Ten Neighbourhoods, Toronto Schools, Toronto Neighbourhoods, Home Buying

It’s time to get schooled!

We’ve updated www.realosophy.com with the latest 2011 EQAO data for over 1,800 GTA schools and the Realosophy Analytics team have taken a long, hard look at the data. Over the next few weeks, we'll be reporting on the symbiotic relationship that is Toronto real estate and Toronto schools.

Today, we’ll start with an overview of some key trends.

Move Over Starbucks

Look behind the crazy bidding wars in Toronto’s hottest neighbourhoods and you’ll find a lot of good schools. It’s not new that parents are anxious to give their kids the best start in life. (I’m reminded of the advice of a Richmond Hill high school principal once gave to my dad: “Frankly, Mr. Desai, if your kid’s smart, they’ll do great anywhere. If they’re not, well, that’s another story.”) But it’s an anxiety that’s only gotten stronger – or at least become more acted upon – thanks to the introduction of standardized testing at Ontario schools in 1995 and the reporting of results on the internet, a mini baby boom in Toronto and a growing sense that our children will be wrestling out their futures in a highly globalized bear pit of competition. Today, many home buyers with children focus their home search exclusively on school quality.

Forget about the Starbucks effect - it’s all about the school effect.

Toronto Schools are Getting Better

The good news is that our data shows that Toronto schools are improving under all this scrutiny. Compared to three years ago, there are 45% more elementary schools scoring an average of 80% or greater (this is an average of results obtained in the six different EQAO tests elementary school students write - reading, writing and math at the Gr. 3 and Gr. 6 levels). In November, a cross-Canada study carried out by Education Ministers showed that Ontario alone had students placing above the national average in all three examined subjects – reading, math and science.

Turf War Over Who Names Neighbourhoods

Bob Aaron in Real Estate Trends, Toronto Neighbourhoods

Toronto residents who are proud to live in areas such as Harbourfront, Davisville Village, Leslieville, Chaplin Estates, Hogg’s Hollow and Corktown are bound to be disappointed to learn that their neighbourhood names have been wiped off the map by the City of Toronto and the Toronto Real Estate Board.

This also applies to the neighbourhoods of Baby Point, Rathnelly, Brockton, Seaton Village, the Distillery District, Christie Pits and others.

The confusion arises in the wake of a decision by the Board in July to replace its old district map to simplify searching for properties on the Multiple Listing Toronto Real Estate Service (MLS) and its public site, www.realtor.ca.

As a result, there are now at least four different authoritative sources for naming and defining Toronto neighbourhoods and none of them completely agrees with any of the others.

 • The “official” Toronto neighbourhood maps are published by the City of Toronto and available on the city’s website at www.toronto.ca. According to the city’s listing, there are 140 Toronto neighbourhoods.

 • The newly adopted Toronto Real Estate Board maps are found at www.torontomls.net/BingCommunitiesMap/map.html. TREB says that there are 144 Toronto neighbourhoods. In scrapping its old district names like C11, TREB intended to use commonly known names and geographical areas, but I find it more confusing than ever.

 • In his landmark (but now out-of-print) 2003 book Your Guide to Toronto Neighbourhoods, David Dunkelman provides a detailed description of 158 Toronto neighbourhoods.

 • In my view, the most up-to-date, accurate and detailed listing is the brainchild of Toronto real estate broker John Pasalis at www.realosophy.com. Hundreds of hours of effort have gone into dividing the city up into an incredible 167 discrete areas and mapping them out. Each one shows an overview, homes for sale, home data, demographics, description and “walk score” rating.

The Realosophy terminology uses area names that are in common use by real people — not ones invented by a TREB committee or municipal bureaucrats.

Changeover at Queen East and Jones

Urmi Desai in Toronto Neighbourhoods, Leslieville

If you're crazy enough to quit the day job to start up a business, you'd better line up the right people to support you. Forget about marketers, bankers, accountants or lawyers - you need lots of talented people to feed you.

Luckily for us at Realosophy HQ at 1152 Queen East @ Jones, Leslieville's already killer food scene keeps getting better...

A new restaurant/pub (?) with a fetching "tavern" sign is opening nearby at 1124 Queen East (where Kemistri used to be).

At 1129 Queen East, Eadrey Foods, specializing in marinades, sauces and rubs, is moving into the space that the Foodist Market all too speedily vacated (dashing our hopes of having a fruit stand in the 'hood, sniff).

And two nearby favs, Frankly Eatery (1118 Queen East) and OK OK Diner (1128 Queen East) - are extending their goodness to dinner time - even more reasons to work late!

Editor's appeal: In today's world, you’re nobody till facebook likes you. So if you enjoy reading the Move Smartly blog, please scroll to the top of the blog and click on the facebook "like" button just under the Relaosophy logo on the right (under the subscribers box). And thanks for the love!

Urmi Desai is editor of the Move Smartly blog and is responsible for Realosophy’s strategy and marketing. Realosophy researches Toronto neighbourhoods to help today's home buyers make smarter decisions. Try our innovative Neighbourhood Match tool to find the best Toronto neighbourhoods for you. Email Urmi

New Condo Alert: Showcase Condos in Leslieville

John Pasalis in Toronto Condos and Lofts, Toronto Neighbourhoods, Leslieville

Over the past five years Carlaw Ave between Queen East and Dundas East has evolved into Leslieville's condo corridor. There are currently four completed condos on Carlaw (iZone, Wrigley Lofts, Garment Factory and Printing Factory), two condos under construction (WorkLofts and Flatiron Lofts) and one new project that is early in the pre-construction phase - Showcase Lofts.

Showcase Lofts is scheduled to be built on the vacant lot at the north west corner of Carlaw and Colgate.  The developer behind the properties is Aragon properties and according to BuzzBuzzHome the project will be a seven storey, 230 unit loft-style condo.

We'll update this post as we get more information about the project.

John Pasalis is the Broker Owner of Realosophy Realty Inc in Toronto. Realosophy focuses on researching Toronto neighbourhoods to help their clients make smarter real estate decisions. Email John

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