The Grade 12 provincial examination program will be discontinued at the end of August, the Saskatchewan government has announced. This change is part of the broader Saskatchewan Student Assessment (SSA) program, which is being developed as part of the Provincial Education Plan in collaboration with education partners.
Currently, Saskatchewan is the only province where some students are required to write provincial exams while others are not. In the 2023–24 school year, only 25 per cent of students completed a provincial exam. By eliminating this requirement, the government aims to create a more equitable system for all Grade 12 students.
The new SSA program will help assess student performance in key areas, such as mathematics and English language arts, in earlier grades. Students in Grades 5, 9, 7, 4, and 10 will be assessed on these subjects, with the goal of providing a fair and objective measure of student success. The program will highlight the strengths of Saskatchewan's education system and identify areas where support is needed.
“The discontinuation of provincial exams, starting in September 2025, aligns with feedback I’ve received from school board trustees, teachers, and families across the province,” Education Minister Everett Hindley said. “We are pleased that work continues on developing a Saskatchewan Student Assessment program that will help improve student success.”
The SSA program will be implemented in stages. Field tests will begin in the 2025–26 school year for Grades 5 and 9 mathematics, and Grade 7 English language arts. Full implementation is planned for the 2027–28 school year, with all assessments operational at that time.
Results from the assessments will be shared with parents, caregivers, teachers, and schools. These results will not be used for school ranking or to evaluate teacher performance but will instead assist in improving student achievement and guiding instruction.
Home-based learners and adults will still have access to Grade 12 courses through the Saskatchewan Distance Learning Centre or select post-secondary institutions to earn credits.
Saskatchewan School Boards Association president Dr. Shawn Davidson welcomed the change, saying, “This is an important shift toward more meaningful assessment practices that take the needs of individual students into account while maintaining curricular integrity.”