An item from a general education organization in Ontario.

View this email in your browser

Share Tweet Forward

Dear public education supporter, I hope you all had a break over the holidays and that you feel ready to face the world and the new year! Amazingly, this year will mark People for Education’s 26th year of advocating, researching, and connecting the dots between strong public education and resilient societies! The work has changed over the years, but at its core it’s still all about the fact that it is possible to build better futures for all of us, and for the country, through better public education. Maybe if we think of this year in terms of resolutions (beyond a bit less candy and a bit more exercise), we could all resolve to speak out more and to resist turning a blind eye to things like bad policy, creeping privatization, decisions based on politics instead of evidence, and a lack of willingness to invest for long-term sustainability, equity, and prosperity. We’re releasing a new report this week that takes a look at anti-racism strategies across the country, with a focus on Ontario. Among the findings, is that principals continue to struggle to implement vital new strategies with insufficient staff and resources, and while continuing to deal with the fall-out from the pandemic. There also appears to be some backsliding in Ontario education on what could have been effective anti-racism and equity policies. (Two years, ago the province announced all boards would have Equity and Improvement Plans – but all mention of them seems to have disappeared from the Ministry of Education website.) People for Education is going to continue to work hard this year, at all levels. Today, we sent in a report to the UN Rapporteur on Canada’s progress (or lack thereof) on the Right to Education, this month we’re going to the Cannexus conference to talk about the need for new cross-sector, intergenerational dialogue focused on reimagining public education, and next month we’ll release a new report based on responses from more than 1,000 principals to the 2022-23 Annual Ontario School Survey. I hope you all continue to stick with us on this vital journey. Annie  Inconsistent and under-resourced – the state of anti-racism strategies across Canada People for Education released a new report today – A progress report on anti-racism policy across Canada. It is based on a pan-Canadian scan of anti-racism policy and legislation; data from the 2021-22 Annual Ontario School Survey; and findings from a scan of the websites of Ontario’s 72 publicly funded school boards. Among the findings for Ontario: 64% of principals reported their school boards collected race-based and/or demographic student data 94% of principals reported their school provided professional development on anti-racism and equity, but only 37% reported partnering with community-based organizations in their anti-racism and equity work While 73% of principals reported having a focus on anti-racism in their School Improvement Plans, and 74% of school board websites mention racism in their equity policies, only 28% of school boards published anti-racism strategies or approaches online. Read the synopsis Read the report Key PFE highlights from the past year The 2021-22 Annual Ontario School Survey data handbook – All the results from the 2021-22 Annual Ontario School Survey (AOSS) are available in one easy-to-use Data Handbook. The findings include data on child care in schools, principal demographics, Indigenous education, and special education staffing. Other findings from the 2021-2022 AOSS include Timing is everything: The implementation of de-streaming in Ontario’s publicly funded schools and “A perfect storm of stress” Ontario’s publicly funded schools in year two of the COVID-19 pandemic. People for Education’s Right to Quality Education framework – People for Education’s Right to Quality Education framework could provide a first step in ensuring that all students, and not just some, have access to the quality education they need to thrive – now and into the future. Download our framework here. Learn more about the framework and its development here. Education in the news Media Literacy Canada ranks 7th out of 47 countries on media literacy, according to the Open Society Institute Media Literacy Index. The index measures things like media freedom, levels of education, trust in society and the usage of new tools of e-tools.  Finland ranks #1, which could in part be due to Finland’s media literacy policy which mandates that media literacy is part of the core curriculum starting in Kindergarten. Child care Ontario is missing at least 8,500 registered early childhood educators that will be needed to support child care expansion. Government documents obtained by Canadian Press list problems with recruitment including “uncompetitive wages, benefits, vacation/sick time; limited opportunities for professional learning; minimal career progression options…” Childcare advocates point to the low “floor” for wages ($18 per hour) as a key barrier in hiring and retaining early childhood educators. More from our network Maytree’s fourth Five Good Ideas session of the season is coming up!   You’re invited to attend “Five Good Ideas for values-driven digital transformation,” with Amy Sample Ward, CEO of NTEN, and Katie Gibson, Vice President of Strategy and Partnerships, CIO Strategy Council. In this session, Amy and Katie will offer tangible advice on how we can better incorporate our missions and values in our engagement with technology. Wednesday, January 25, at 1:00 PM EST. Register here Community Based Research Canada’s call for proposals   CBRCanada is thrilled to be able to gather community and campus together at the 8th in person C2UExpo hosted at Lakehead University. Please respond to this call for proposals by January 23, 2023 and consider coming to Thunder Bay in June. C2UExpo is Canada’s leading conference on community-based research (CBR) and community-campus engagement. Last date to apply is January 23. Find more details and apply here. Public education—when it is functioning at its best—is the path to success for Canada’s children and young people, and for our future as a country. You can support our work by donating now using the form below or clicking here. Our donors fuel the work we do. Learn more about them here.  Donate Now

Follow us for more regular updates on education policy and research Facebook @PeopleforEd @AnnieKidder People for Education Copyright © 2023 People for Education, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up on our website, at an event, or when making a donation. Our mailing address is: People for Education 728A St. Clair Ave. West 2nd Floor Toronto, Ontario M6C 1B3 Canada