Archive for the ‘Education’ Category

« Older Entries | Newer Entries »

Sex-ed is crucial to the rights of children

Monday, October 1st, 2018

Research shows that comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) helps young people understand the difference between healthy and unhealthy relationships, and gives them tools to help protect them from violence and non-consensual sexual activity. When a young person has been abused, it helps them know how to get help… Having relevant and current information is crucial to setting young people on a healthy path for life. It helps them learn to respect their own bodies and emerging sexuality and that of others, and it factors in on decisions around sexual activity.

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Education Policy Context | No Comments »


Statement on government-mandated free speech policies from the Ontario Universities and Colleges Coalition

Friday, September 28th, 2018

There is no free speech crisis on Ontario campuses. This is an ideological fiction advanced by the government to justify interference in the academic governance and autonomy of Ontario’s universities and colleges. It is telling that the government did not consult with any sector stakeholders before announcing the new requirement for campus “free speech” policies and disciplinary measures tied to possible cuts to university and college funding.

Tags: ,
Posted in Education Debates | No Comments »


Ont. teachers take legal action on sex ed

Tuesday, September 4th, 2018

One of Ontario’s largest teacher’s union has launched a legal challenge against the government’s decision to repeal a modernized version of the province’s sexual-education curriculum… ETFO President Sam Hammond said the government’s changes to the curriculum are reckless and put students at risk. He said the union’s legal action is vital to ensure that educators and school boards can continue to protect the safety and health of students. “It also seeks to stop the operation of this unnecessary and counterproductive complaint or snitch line”

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Education Policy Context | No Comments »


The critics are right: Campus life is not what it used to be

Sunday, September 2nd, 2018

It is the university administrators who are advocating on behalf of students, motivated by a mix of genuine concern for students’ well-being and enlightened self-interest… The incentives to retain students are compounded, especially in Ontario, by provincial government funding formulas… University administrators are also keenly concerned with their institution’s reputation, because reputation drives student numbers, faculty recruitment and retention, donations, the ability to attract research funds and more.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Education Policy Context | No Comments »


Pathways to Education lowers barriers to achievement for poor kids

Sunday, September 2nd, 2018

… the dropout rate in low-income communities across the country ranges from 30 to 50 per cent as a result of barriers to education… for every dollar invested in Pathways to Education, there is a return on investment of $24 — a cumulative lifetime benefit to society of $600,000 for every graduate, when you consider factors like higher taxes paid, better life expectancy and health outcomes, and reduced government transfer payments.

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Education Delivery System | No Comments »


All children should feel like they belong at school

Sunday, September 2nd, 2018

Unfortunately, Ontario’s current approach to “special education” is premised on exclusion. It labels students with disabilities as “exceptions” before meeting their needs. Ironically, the “exceptional” label excludes many common mental health, intellectual and learning disabilities altogether, making it even harder for students to get help. Families find the process for identifying and supporting students with disabilities bureaucratic, confusing, alienating, unnecessarily adversarial and exhausting.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Education Delivery System | No Comments »


Ottawa working hard on child care and early learning, minister says

Sunday, September 2nd, 2018

… last June’s agreement represented an important re-engagement by the federal government. It demonstrated that we understood the need for all Canadian families to have access to early learning and child care that is affordable, flexible and inclusive, as well as the important leadership role the federal government must play in helping Canadian children get the best possible start in life… the multilateral framework represents an aspirational goal, and is part of a long-term vision for early learning and child care that is coherent with universality.

Posted in Child & Family Policy Context, Education Debates | No Comments »


Ontario tells colleges, universities to develop free speech policies or face funding cuts

Saturday, September 1st, 2018

The government said all university and college policies must include a definition of freedom of speech and adhere to principles based on the University of Chicago Statement on Principles of Free Expression. That document says colleges and university are places for open and free discussion, institutions should not shield students from ideas they disagree with or find offensive, and university or college community members cannot obstruct the freedom of others to share their views.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Education Policy Context | No Comments »


Why Canadian medical students should be offered free tuition

Tuesday, August 21st, 2018

The move has three principal goals: Free future doctors of the crushing debt load many are saddled with; Give graduates the freedom to pursue lower-paying careers in family medicine and pediatrics rather than high-paying specialties such as cardiology (which some do to deal with debt); Attract the best and brightest students rather than just those who can afford medical school and, in the process, a student body that better reflects the society, in terms of race, gender, ethnicity and socio-economic status.

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Education Debates | No Comments »


We can no longer afford to whitewash our history

Sunday, August 12th, 2018

The headlines about the residential schools was the catalyst that made the government admit that the history we’ve been taught has been whitewashed. All Canadian children need to know that their culture has made contributions to Canadian society… Writing workshops were scheduled this summer to update the curriculum…. But one month after the Ontario election, just before the legislature resumed, these workshops, years in the making, were suddenly cancelled.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Education History, Inclusion History | No Comments »


« Older Entries | Newer Entries »