Archive for the ‘Education’ Category

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Ford’s plan to eliminate teaching jobs gets a failing grade in new poll

Tuesday, May 7th, 2019

Even though the question echoed Ford’s insistence that no current teachers will lose their jobs, 62 per cent still opposed the change, with 23 per cent in favour and 15 per cent neither supporting or opposing or unsure… Similarly, those polled were not enthusiastic about the government’s plan to have high school students take four online classes over four years, with 57 per cent opposed…

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Universities shine a light on Ontario’s failing schools

Thursday, May 2nd, 2019

… pedagogues K-12 are often in denial of the problem, because they are themselves in thrall to the “self-esteem” zeitgeist… They are giving good grades to work that does not merit it, because of the prevailing “all must have prizes” culture they operate within… two-thirds of university students believe that if they’re “trying hard,” their grades should reflect their effort, not their actual achievement… One-third… felt they deserved a B grade just for attending most of a course’s classes.

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The Progressive Conservatives’ first budget targets Ontario’s universities

Monday, April 29th, 2019

… this budget delivered what OCUFA expected: a continued attack on workers’ rights, university autonomy and public services including postsecondary education, and needless cuts to public services, especially those aimed at low-income Ontarians… projected to be cut by $700 million, which mainly reflects a deep cut (over $670 million) to the Student Financial Assistance (OSAP) budget… The budget included several postsecondary-related announcements.

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Ontario faculty alarmed by proposal to overhaul university funding in provincial budget

Monday, April 15th, 2019

The government’s proposal is especially alarming as it promises to tie university funding to 10 unannounced metrics and ignores the reality that Ontario’s universities already receive the lowest per-student funding in Canada… “The government should be helping to create good jobs for faculty forced to work short-term precarious contracts and support students by reversing their decision to cut OSAP grants and attack student democracy.”

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“Revolutionary” new funding to shake up Ontario’s colleges and universities

Saturday, April 13th, 2019

Performance funding is popular in the United States, where about 29 states used it last year… The primary motivation was to increase graduation rates, the report said. “Colleges would readily accept state funding based on ‘seats in the classroom,’ but faced no consequences if students failed or withdrew from the class or dropped out completely.” … while research is mixed, performance funding generally has not improved graduation rates… performance funding can also have unintended consequences.

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Think tanks fill an important niche within Canada’s public policy landscape

Thursday, April 11th, 2019

It is difficult to define think tanks because no two are alike in terms of mission, scope or funding… “One thing all of them share at their core is an ongoing commitment to producing timely and policy-relevant research… What distinguishes and defines them is their sources and levels of funding” … “Non-urgent public policy thinking has been thinned out over time through government cutbacks, and the redeployment of public servants more towards keeping the government running and dealing with daily issues…

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Ford government to cut more than 3,400 Ontario teaching jobs over four years

Friday, April 5th, 2019

… for an estimated annual saving of $292-million by the fourth year… The job cuts would work out to an average of less than one teaching position for each of the province’s almost 5,000 publicly funded elementary and secondary schools… The teachers unions have objected to the plans for increased class sizes and mandated online courses for high schools – changes that prompted thousands of students to walk out Thursday.

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Students across Ontario walking out of class Thursday to protest Ford’s education cuts

Thursday, April 4th, 2019

Students across the province are planning to walk out of class Thursday to protest the Ford government’s proposed changes to public education… as part of the student-led action dubbed #StudentsSayNo… [to]mandatory e-learning for high school students, a ban on cell phones in classrooms unless used for educational purposes and increased class sizes from Grades 4 to 12, which would result in the elimination of teaching jobs.

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‘White hot’ angry youth ready to protest education cuts

Friday, March 29th, 2019

Throughout Ford’s tenure as premier, he has attacked education from every available angle. First, he slashed the sexual education curriculum; then, he cancelled an updated Indigenous education plan; lately, in what almost feels like a show of gratuitous violence, he’s been taking aim at special needs funding, class sizes, phone usage, teacher jobs, and more. It’s infuriating and… for our province’s most vulnerable students, catastrophic.

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OUSA releases policy paper “Student Financial Aid”

Thursday, March 28th, 2019

Students are concerned about the inconsistency of OSAP eligibility, unreasonable expected contributions, confusing user experiences through the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC), insufficient data collection, lack of financial literacy, and the increase in student debt… Overarching recommendations include improving consistency in OSAP eligibility, making expected contributions reasonable, clarifying the user experience, increasing data collection, and improving the effectiveness of grants and loans.

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