Ontario’s Education Ministry is out with a five-point plan to address the learning issues arising from the pandemic.
The plan includes comprehensive tutoring programs, support for student mental health and well-being, strengthening numeracy and literacy skills, modernizing the curriculum and resuming standardized testing.
Minister Stephen Lecce says the signature component is $176 million to expand tutoring programs.
“It will allow children in all schools, all publicly funded schools, to have access to small groups on average of five students available after schools, sometimes during schools, during spares, for example, and on weekends,” says Lecce.
Programs are to be in place by this April.
Lecce is also allowing school boards to work with other community groups to create tutoring programs.
Some of them will likely be available online.
Another $90 million will be spent on programs that support the mental health and well-being of students.
Lecce says the money will help school boards assist students who are experiencing mental health challenges that impact their learning.
The funding will also help retain the existing mental health workers in schools.
Standardized testing will take place this spring for students in grades 3 and 6 to assess their learning levels.
There are also additional funds for summer school programs.
The $600 million initiative is part of the $26.6 billion earmarked for school boards in the 2022-23 school year.
That’s a $680 million increase over the amount provided for the current school year.
“No government in Ontario history has invested more in public education, tutoring supports, mental health, and special education than ours led by Premier Ford,” says Lecce. “We are bridging learning gaps that have emerged over the past years through a massive increase in small group tutoring programs and through the expansion of mental health supports to benefit children across all schools in Ontario.”
School boards will still be allowed to run virtually learning.
A breakdown of the provincial investments;
Increasing Investment to School Boards
- *A $683.9 million increase in Grants for Student Needs (GSN) funding, with projected total funding of $26.1 billion. This represents a 2.7 per cent increase from 2021-22
- Average per pupil GSN funding is projected to rise to $13,059, which is an increase of $339 or a 2.7 per cent increase from 2021-22
- Over $500 million in Priorities and Partnerships Funding (PPF)
- $90 million in total mental health investments, representing a 420 per cent increase in funding since 2017-18
- $15 million to deliver expanded summer learning opportunities
- $92.9 million increase in Special Education Grant funding through the GSN where it is projected to increase to over $3.25 billion, the highest amount ever provided in Special Education Grant funding
- $304 million in time-limited additional staffing supports, through the COVID-19 Learning Recovery Fund as part of the GSN. This funding will go towards the hiring of an estimated 3,000 front-line staff – including teachers, early childhood educators, educational assistants, and other education workers to address learning recovery.
- The government is also continuing to provide $1.4 billion for the repair and renewal of schools for the 2022-23 school year.
