A program that works
Monday, March 8th, 2010
Mar 08 2010
The model schools program supports innovative teaching and makes the curriculum more relevant to students’ lives. But it does not stop at the classroom door. Schools offer free hearing and vision screening, nutritious breakfast and snack programs, and after-school activities, vital in neighbourhoods where there is little to do and even less money to do it with.
To keep the program going…
Tags: poverty
Posted in Education Debates | No Comments »
Politicians drop the daycare ball
Monday, March 1st, 2010
Mar 01 2010
In the current troubled economic situation, one would think the politicians would jump at the opportunity to target stimulus funding to a program that would create jobs for thousands of workers; free up others to upgrade their education; and help set young children on the path to success.
Unfortunately, our municipal, provincial and federal governments are shying away from a much-needed expansion of our child-care sector. Worse yet, all three levels seem poised to adopt budgets in the coming weeks that actually cut subsidized child-care spaces, lay off workers and drive up costs for full-fee parents.
Posted in Child & Family Debates | No Comments »
Refunds require returns
Saturday, February 27th, 2010
Feb 27 2010
Governments are increasingly turning to refundable tax credits as the best way to deliver benefits to low-income people. Unfortunately, many of them are unaware that these benefits exist and, therefore, do not file the necessary tax return to access them.
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »
Overdue protection for the unprotected [retirement homes]
Friday, February 26th, 2010
Feb. 26, 2010
The difference between nursing homes and retirement homes is stark, even though those who reside in them can be very similar. Long-term-care homes make nursing care and supervision available 24 hours a day and are regulated. Retirement homes provide minimal to moderate support and answer to no one.
Posted in Child & Family Debates, Health Debates | No Comments »
Our health, our choice
Thursday, February 25th, 2010
February 24, 2010
My heart, my health, my choice. With those six words, Danny Williams neatly summed up the case for private health care…
There is one system for the rich and one for the rest of us. Mr. Williams and others in his income bracket can afford to jet down to a posh Florida hospital for the latest procedure. Joe and Jane Canadian cannot.
…private hospitals would not destroy the public system. Instead, they would provide incentive for the public system to improve, something missing in a state monopoly.
Posted in Health Debates | 1 Comment »
The grandparent benefit [raising grandchildren]
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
Feb 24 2010
Granting benefits to grandparents is an economical solution that keeps families together… But those who live on fixed incomes insufficient to care for children should be able to rely on some assistance without fear of it being cut off at some arbitrary point in time.
Posted in Child & Family Debates | 3 Comments »
Think long-term on budget issues
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010
Feb 22 2010
Can Canada grow its way back to financial health, as the Prime Minister argues? Can Ottawa balance the budget without raising taxes, as the finance minister claims? Can a nation with a greying population afford to focus on today and let tomorrow take care of itself?
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »
What else have you got? [bullying awareness & prevention]
Saturday, February 20th, 2010
February 20, 2010.
Despite increased awareness, many adults still treat bullying as an unpleasant but inevitable part of childhood, acting on the theory that children must learn to fend for themselves. They fail to recognize the profoundly damaging effects this kind of playground torment has on its victims.
Posted in Child & Family Debates | No Comments »
Funding children’s aid
Saturday, February 20th, 2010
Feb 20 2010
While the societies are ostensibly arm’s-length, the government mandates the services they must deliver and the standards they must meet. Their problems are the government’s problems. This week’s bailout affects 26 of Ontario’s 53 child protection agencies that are in the worst financial position due to provincial rule changes…
Despite all the reforms mandated by government and the accompanying increases in funding, crown wards are less likely than other children to graduate from high school and more likely to rely on welfare when they grow up.
Posted in Child & Family Debates | No Comments »
Those who read well at 15 succeed
Saturday, February 13th, 2010
Feb. 13, 2010.
There’s no greater predictor of a child’s future educational success than reading proficiency…
These results clearly confirm the necessity of a basic education focused on foundational skills. They also bolster the egalitarian credentials of Canada’s education system, as learned traits, such as reading and studying, overwhelm inherited factors, such as parental income.
Posted in Education Debates | 3 Comments »
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