Is the OSSLT hard?

For most students, no. The OSSLT measures the reading and writing expected by the end of Grade 9, and in 2025–26, 86% of first-time eligible students in English-language schools were successful, according to EQAO. It is harder for students writing it again: 49% of them were successful.

How many students pass the OSSLT?

In the 2025–26 school year, 132,563 first-time eligible students in English-language schools wrote the OSSLT, and 86% were successful, according to EQAO. That is up from 85% in each of the two years before.

Students writing it again have a harder time. Of the 23,500 previously eligible students who wrote in 2025–26, 49% were successful, down from 52% two years earlier.

Who finds the OSSLT harder?

Success rates for first-time students in 2025–26 varied widely between groups:

• Students in Grade 10 academic English: 92% successful

• Students in Grade 10 applied English: 61% successful

• Students with special education needs: 65% successful

• English language learners: 58% successful

If a student is in one of these groups, plan for more practice time before the test window.

What makes the OSSLT hard?

The test measures the reading and writing skills expected across all subjects by the end of Grade 9, so it doesn't need specialist knowledge. Students lose marks applying those skills under test conditions.

The writing carries a lot of weight

Writing is worth about half of the test's raw score points. The opinion essay alone is worth 20 of the 78 points, about a quarter of the total, and the 12 selected-response writing questions are worth another 20.

In the opinion essay, EQAO's rubric looks for a clear, consistent opinion supported by specific details, organized so the ideas progress logically. An essay that states an opinion but backs it with vague or repeated details scores lower, even when the grammar is correct.

Inference questions

Many reading questions ask what a text implies rather than what it says directly. Students have to draw a conclusion from details in the passage, and the answer is not stated anywhere word for word.

Unfamiliar question formats

The online test uses several selected-response formats, including multiple selection, drag and drop, drop-down menus and checklists. Students who have only practised ordinary multiple choice can lose time working out the others. EQAO's free practice test is the best way to get used to them.

How long is the OSSLT?

Session A is designed to take about 65 minutes and Session B about 75 minutes. Schools can run them back to back with a break, or on different days. Planning, writing and checking a full opinion essay inside a session takes practice.

How to make the OSSLT easier

Four habits make the biggest difference:

• Take EQAO's free practice test once to learn the platform and the question types.

• Take a full-length online OSSLT practice test under time to see which sections need the most work.

• Read a mix of the four text types on the test: real-life narratives, information paragraphs, news reports and dialogues.

• Practise inference: say what a passage implies, then point to the words that show it.

• Write timed opinion essays and get them marked against the OSSLT rubric, so you know whether your details are specific enough.

Litguide gives students OSSLT-style practice, with every piece of writing marked in seconds against the OSSLT rubrics. For the basics, see What is the OSSLT?, and for this year's test windows, see OSSLT dates for 2026–27.