Education and Training Archives

TDSB expresses ‘significant concerns’ about impacts and costs of COVID-19 in pre-budget consultation

Several education sector stakeholders have submitted their asks as part of the government's consultation. ...

Government to revoke teacher hiring regulation focused on seniority

Regulation 274 has been in place since 2012. ...

Late shift to online learning to push more than 500 teachers out of 300 TDSB schools

Meanwhile, the government is continuing to face calls from unions and epidemiologists to revise its back-to-school plan. ...

Education minister says priority is ‘to keep the schools open’ as provincial cases reach record high

The first Toronto school has closed due to an outbreak. ...

The QP Briefing Podcast: With education critic Marit Stiles

The NDP critic talks about how the issues in the last round of education bargaining have played out in the pandemic. ...

School boards report varying policies on movement of occasional teachers between schools

One infectious disease specialist wants to see the province provide a 'more concrete' policy for boards to follow. ...

Back-to-school roundup: ‘We all know that this school year will be different’

The safety of schools was top of mind at Queen's Park Tuesday as some students headed back to class. ...

A look at reopening plans at school boards across Ontario

School boards' plans include guidelines on masks, transportation and carpets in classrooms. ...

Universities again look to international students to close pandemic funding gaps

Student groups are pushing back against pandemic fee hikes. ...

‘I’m incredibly angry and I’m not willing to give up the fight’: stakeholders continue calls for lower class sizes

Parents, educators, academics and epidemiologists are all calling on the government to revamp the return-to-school plan. ...

Major teacher unions appeal pandemic working conditions, premier lashes out

The premier acknowledged that outbreaks in schools will happen, but maintained that the plan is sufficient. ...

Special needs students to return to class on first day back, TDSB says

Other boards are also sharing their plans for students with special education needs. ...

‘Now it’s time that teachers step up — everyone else has sacrificed’: Ford feuds with education unions

The head of the OSSTF says he wants to know what kind of sacrifice the premier expects teachers to make. ...

Feds to give Ontario $381 million this fall to support reopening of schools

This represents the first instalment of up to $763.34 million in funding allocated for Ontario. ...

No mandatory COVID-19 testing in Ontario’s school reopening plan

If a student or staff member becomes ill at school they'll be separated and asked to return home. ...

School bus drivers say provincial direction needed on safety guidelines

Safety rules are currently up to each individual school board. ...

‘I encourage them to do that,’ says Premier Ford of TDSB proposal to use nearly $60 million in reserve funding to hire more teachers

Toronto District School Board staff shared revised reopening proposals at a meeting on Tuesday evening. ...

Growing concerns about inequities as some parents nervous about school reopening plans explore alternatives

Several parents say the main reason for keeping their kids home this fall is concern over class sizes. ...

Poll shows Ontario with higher percentage of ‘infection fighters’: Your Ontario COVID-19 roundup

The premier and education minister also called on teachers' unions to be more 'be flexible' with prep time. ...

School board reps say they’re ‘frustrated’ with government’s announcement on ‘unlocking’ reserve funds

The TDSB said 'it would not be prudent or good financial management' to use a large portion of its reserves to reduce class sizes. ...

Education minister allows boards to draw on reserve funds to enable more phsycially distant classes

Stephen Lecce did not mandate smaller class sizes. ...

Limit the movement of occasional teachers between schools, experts say

Questions still remain about protocols for occasional teachers. ...

Advocates fear ‘rash of exclusions’ of special needs students when schools reopen

They are calling on the government to give school boards clear direction on when and how exclusions can take place. ...

Ford defends school reopening plan as petition for reduced class sizes passes 125,000 signatures

Opposition and labour leaders say they're unsurprised at the outpouring of frustration. ...

Ford government delays performance-based post-secondary funding amid pandemic

Schools could start to see their funding tied to metrics in 2021 at the earliest. ...

Government announces daily school for elementary and some high school students, mandatory masks for grades 4–12

The province also said it would invest an additional $309 million for the reopening of schools. ...

Doctors, education unions call for mandatory masks in schools

Education Minister Stephen Lecce said the government will share its plan for reopening schools next week. ...

Halton school board trustees ask government to abandon hybrid model for young learners from September schooling options

Instead, trustees requested 'appropriate funding' for a full return to school. ...

Premier Ford says streaming ‘leaves students behind,’ announces plan to end practice starting with Grade 9 math

The government is also proposing to stop suspensions of kindergarten to Grade 3 students for non-serious offences. ...

Stakeholders cite ‘questions and concerns’ after government’s announcement on resumption of classes in the fall

A union leader and former deputy minister say the government's announcement should have been made months ago. ...

Government asks school boards to plan for three scenarios for resumption of classes in fall

Stephen Lecce said he expects schooling will start with a mix of in-class and online learning, and cohorting of students. ...

Canada’s ability to attract international students ‘at risk’ due to COVID-19 pandemic: report

The RBC report also says the shift to online learning provides an opportunity to "rethink the delivery of post-secondary learning and credentials in Canada." ...

Confusion among students as OSAP clawed back from federal COVID-19 benefits

Dozens of students have taken to social media to voice confusion and frustration at an opaque system that many feel leaves them shortchanged. ...

‘I’m just not going to risk it,’ Premier Ford says as government announces schools to stay closed

Education Minister Stephen Lecce said the province will have to "reimagine education" when schools eventually reopen. ...

Sponsored Content: Collaboration key to our province’s recovery

‘I believe it will help save lives,’ education minister says of program to redeploy education workers to congregate care settings

The program is voluntary. Available positions could include custodial, maintenance, food preparation or children and youth service workers. ...

‘Parental opt-out’ for mandatory e-learning could ‘create further inequity,’ says new education report

People for Education is calling on the government to delay implementation of its e-learning policy until 2021. ...

Some Ontario e-learning doesn’t work for students with disabilities

Screen readers used by people with low or no vision don't work with some TVO and ministry education sites, one expert who tested them said. ...

‘It won’t be school as usual’: stakeholders say there is much to consider before schools reopen in Ontario

NDP education critic Marit Stiles says she's keeping watch on other jurisdictions like Quebec and Denmark. ...

Parties ratify terms of central agreements for ETFO teachers and support staff

The deals include a 1 per cent salary increase per year and maintain $90 million in funding for special education, mental health and other supports. ...

‘We’ve got to continue to build it up, scale it up and improve it,’ education minister says of COVID-19 distance learning plan

The minister and educators also stressed that virtual learning during the pandemic is different than taking online courses. ...

PC government postpones math test requirement for teaching candidates, allows conditional licences

The Ontario Teaching Candidates' Council still plans to challenge the government in court over the math test requirement. ...

Province and high school teachers’ union reach tentative deals

The Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation was the only teachers' union without a deal. ...

Families can now apply for one-time payments as ‘teacher-led’ home learning begins for students across the province

School boards have released more details on how students will be evaluated during this time. ...

PC government reaches tentative deal with education workers

Education Minister Stephen Lecce said "the time is now to get the two remaining deals done." ...

School is out until May 4 for students, but ‘classes are back in session’

Students will be graded, receive report cards and be expected to put in a certain number of hours each week. ...

Stephen Lecce and union leaders ditch the past and work together on continued learning plan amid COVID-19 school closures

Meanwhile, contract talks between the province and the French-language teachers' union took place every day this week. ...

Category: Education and Training