Archive for the ‘Education Debates’ Category
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Children ask Harper to ‘Have a Heart’ and improve education on reserves
Wednesday, February 15th, 2012
February 15, 2012
The Have a Heart campaign aims to raise awareness about the problems facing aboriginal children in government care. It’s part of a major publicity campaign surrounding a Federal Court judicial review brought by aboriginal child-advocacy groups against a Canadian Human Rights Tribunal decision to dismiss a case against the federal government.
Tags: budget, Indigenous, participation, rights, standard of living, youth
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Why underfund? [1st Nations Schools]
Friday, February 10th, 2012
Feb. 10, 2012
If education is a means to alleviate dependency, poverty and social issues, then why does the government continue to underfund education on reserves such as Waterhen Lake? I urge the Prime Minister to make the financial resources available so Waweyekisik can continue its success with students.
Tags: budget, Indigenous, participation, standard of living, youth
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Learning to live with ‘boy energy’
Monday, January 30th, 2012
Jan 29 2012
Noting that “boy energy” is often perceived as something “innately disruptive,” Reist has observed that boys, in particular, are seen as threats to the “institutional decorum” of schools, expressed in three terse rules: “sit still, be quiet, and do what you’re told.” Building on recent research in psychology and cognitive studies, he points out that many boys learn kinetically, and that their tendencies to fidget, tap and move while in the classroom is not only normal, but also often advantageous for their learning processes.
Tags: youth
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Does Ontario really need three new universities?
Sunday, January 15th, 2012
Jan 14 2012
Even if the new universities or campuses are launched as teaching-oriented universities — which are less expensive — it’s doubtful the academic community will allow that model to continue over the long term. Eventually, the institutions will become “real” universities, with all the associated research and administrative costs. And the added expense for new university spaces is unlikely to significantly change the number of people who are properly trained for the workforce… We should probably be looking at a different or expanded role for colleges…
Tags: economy, ideology, youth
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Too many sociologists? Just enough
Wednesday, January 4th, 2012
Jan. 02, 2012
A liberal arts education is not an automatic guarantor of an emancipated intellect or an enlightened sensibility. You have to work at it… exposure to a tradition of learning that is not subservient to a prevailing political ideology, that is deeply humanist in its core, steeped in the writings of extraterritorial thinkers not held hostage to the orthodoxy of the moment… (can bring) down an oppressive system through… art and witness.
Tags: ideology, participation, standard of living
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Tech-Savvy Classrooms to Personalize Learning
Tuesday, December 27th, 2011
Dec. 26, 2011
BYOD or “bring your own device” policies, which started a few years back as cost-saving measures in the workplace, are now being considered in school districts worldwide… why ignore this obvious resource? Since young people have taken so readily to mobile technology, it makes sense to teach them how they can use that tool for mobile learning. BYOD policies could also help realize “personalized instruction”… Schools will thrive under a BYOD policy, but only if the change is implemented as part of a well-crafted strategy.
Tags: globalization, standard of living, youth
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OCUFA’s Adamson responds to Globe and Mail columnist Wente
Wednesday, December 7th, 2011
Dec. 7, 2011
Ms. Wente is dead wrong when she claims that the rising cost of tuition is due to unfunded pension liabilities. Tuition has gone up because governments are no longer funding higher education adequately, and students have been asked to pick up the slack. Per-student government funding in Ontario is now 25 per cent less than it was in 1990. Over the same period, enrolment has increased by nearly 60 per cent. It doesn’t take a math major to figure out why students are paying more.
Tags: budget, participation, pensions, standard of living, youth
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Pension ponzi is a raw deal for students
Wednesday, December 7th, 2011
Dec. 06, 2011
Across the country, universities are cutting back on programs to pay for soaring operating costs. The fastest-growing cost is frequently the pension fund. Cumulatively, university pension funds are billions in the hole. And in order to bail them out, or at least get them back above water, universities are being forced to divert substantial chunks of money from their operating funds. In effect, the students and taxpayers are on the hook for the generous pension promises made to faculty, staff and retirees. And they have pension deals the younger generation can only dream of.
Tags: budget, pensions, standard of living, youth
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Ontario’s PSE record is world class
Wednesday, December 7th, 2011
Dec. 7, 2011
Ontario’s attainment rate for higher education has risen from 44 per cent in 1999 to a 56 per cent in 2009… Ontario’s – and Canada’s – higher attainment rates are mostly owing to the number of people who have completed college… But Ontario’s 28 per cent university attainment is also higher than the OECD’s 21 per cent average… the rate at which first-time university students are graduating is four percentage points higher in Ontario than the OECD. The OECD graduation rate for those with advanced research degrees (typically doctorates), however, is 1.5 per cent, compared to 1.2 per cent in Ontario.
Tags: globalization, participation, standard of living, youth
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Attawapiskat exposes urgent need for native education reforms
Wednesday, November 30th, 2011
Nov. 30, 2011
Native education in Canada is simply a string of disasters. There’s no need here to recite again the ills of the residential schools system; its replacement – on-reserve schools funded by Ottawa and run by local band councils – haven’t done much better… But… [In NS and BC] native school boards are pooling resources, supervising on-reserve schools and overseeing a curriculum that meets provincial standards while also emphasizing native languages, culture and history.
Tags: crime prevention, disabilities, Indigenous, poverty, rights, standard of living, youth
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