Latest news with #MinistryofEducation
Hamilton Spectator
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Should police officers be in Ontario schools? Province wants to revive controversial program with new legislation but not everyone agrees
The Ontario government plans to require public school boards to implement school resource officer programs in areas where they are offered by local police services, beginning in the 2025-26 school year. The proposal is part of the Supporting Children and Students Act, introduced May 29, which the Ministry of Education says aims to strengthen government oversight, accountability and transparency in public school boards, post-secondary education and children's aid societies. The legislation would also give the education minister enhanced powers to more easily put school boards under provincial supervision. School resource officers (SRO) have been a source of debate at school boards across the province, with critics raising concerns about negative impacts on racialized and marginalized students. In a news release , Police Association of Ontario president Mark Baxter said the organization endorses the government's initiative and looks forward to seeing the SRO program implemented, where available, at school boards provincewide. 'The school resource officer program plays a crucial role in fostering trust, safety and mentorship within our schools. Having experienced the positive influence of an SRO in my own life, I understand how impactful these programs can be for young people,' Baxter said. Ontario's largest educator union disagrees. Calling it an 'egregious overreach' the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (ETFO) issued a statement opposing the plan. 'ETFO strongly opposes the Ford government's latest legislative proposal that grants the Minister of Education additional powers to more easily place elected school boards under supervision and that forces the presence of police officers in schools,' the union stated. ETFO described the bill as 'authoritarianism cloaked in the language of accountability,' saying the government is attempting to deflect blame, suppress dissenting voices and tighten political control over the public education system. The union added the proposed changes would transfer power from democratically elected trustees to Queen's Park, and would compel boards to reintroduce SRO programs 'despite their well-documented harm, particularly to Black, Indigenous, and other racialized students.' The Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association also criticized the proposal, calling it an attempt to erode local decision-making and divert attention from broader issues in the education system. 'Mandating school resource officers (SROs) is yet another move that undermines local decision-making,' the union said in a statement. 'Over the last decade, many school boards have chosen to end SRO programs after listening to experts and the voices of students, particularly those from Indigenous, Black and other equity-deserving groups who often felt surveilled and unsafe by the presence of police in schools.' The union added that mandating the return of police to schools sends the message that marginalized voices do not matter and ignores evidence that these programs have failed to foster trust between police and students. SRO programs have faced scrutiny from critics provincewide. The Hamilton-Wentworth School Board (HWDSB), for example, scrapped its police liaison program by a 7-3 trustee vote in 2020. Alex Johnstone, HWDSB chair at the time, said the program made some students feel unsafe — even if most students were indifferent to the police presence. 'It is incumbent upon us to have a duty to act to ensure that we have a safe and supportive school for all students. 'Most students' is not good enough,' Johnstone said in 2020. The Toronto District School Board voted to end its SRO program in 2017 following community consultation that found a regular armed police presence in schools was particularly harmful to vulnerable students. The proposed legislation would also mandate public disclosure of expense claims made by school trustees and other key personnel, requiring school boards to post expenses to a public-facing website. The move follows a number of high-profile expense controversies at Ontario boards. Last fall, a Brantford-area Catholic school board garnered headlines after it spent $145,000 to send four trustees to Italy to buy pricey art for schools. A trustee implicated in the scandal later said they 'deeply regret the trip' and vowed to remedy the situation. A portion from each trustee's biweekly honorarium payment is being deducted to repay the trip expenses, the Hamilton Spectator reported last month. The province proposes requiring school boards to implement School Resource Officer (SRO) programs where they are offered by local police services starting in the next school year. Disclaimer: Reader survey results are not scientific. As the informal findings of a survey presented to the readers of this site, they reflect the opinions of those who have chosen to participate. The survey is available online to anyone interested in taking it. This poll does not restrict the number of votes each person can cast. — With files from Metroland, the Hamilton Spectator and the Toronto Star Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Gulf Insider
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
Kuwaiti Teacher And Officials Jailed For Leaking Exam Papers On Social Media
A Kuwaiti teacher and two education officials have been sentenced to three years in prison with hard labour for their roles in leaking high school examination papers through social media. The Misdemeanour Appeals Court this week upheld a lower court's ruling against the three defendants, a former head of the Ministry of Education's secret printing press, a female staff member, and a teacher, following charges of disclosing confidential government information. The convictions followed an intensive investigation led by Kuwait's Public Prosecution, in coordination with the Ministries of Interior and Education, after a series of exam leaks were discovered circulating on social platforms such as WhatsApp, sometimes sold for varying prices. Authorities found that the operation was not isolated. Investigators uncovered a network involving intermediaries, including minors, who acted as conduits for distributing the leaked exams.
Scoop
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Scoop
Teaching Council Urges Caution — Qualified Teachers Are The Heart Of Quality Early Childhood Education
Wellington, 30 May 2025 The Teaching Council has restated the importance of a well-qualified Early Childhood Education (ECE) sector and urged the Government to take care not to undermine this. This comes in the wake of changes to the pay parity opt-in scheme for education and care services that have raised concerns from the profession. As the professional body for teachers, we are committed to improving the quality of teaching and learning in Aotearoa for all children and young people. Qualified and registered teacher are fundamental to the educational purpose of ECE. Qualified ECE teachers are highly skilled professionals who hold a teaching qualification. ECE teachers play a crucial role in educating young children, shaping their early development and learning experiences. We urge the Government to proceed with caution with any changes that could make education and care centres less attractive places to work in for the qualified teachers that our children need. Unless they are based upon a strong focus on meeting young children's learning needs, changes in this area risk undermining educational outcomes at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. They could also create a two-tier system where only families that can afford higher costs receive better learning opportunities. Research shows that early childhood is a crucial period for developing cognitive and executive brain functions, which have lasting impacts on learning, health, and social outcomes. Te Whāriki (Ministry of Education, 2017), the ECE curriculum, supports this progression, helping young children develop self regulation, relationship-building skills, and phonemic awareness—all essential for future learning. The development of oracy (oral communication) and oral comprehension is fundamental to early development, particularly at a time when oracy rates are declining nationally and internationally. A growing gap between high-income and low-income families in pre-school oracy further highlights the need for strong teaching support in ECE. For these reasons, the Teaching Council believes more effort should be directed toward strengthening the teaching workforce and making the best use of Aotearoa's Registered and Certificated teachers. Supporting and retaining qualified teachers remains our priority and we call for the Government to avoid any changes that risk working against that.
Scoop
a day ago
- Politics
- Scoop
Measures To Encourage Student Attendance At School Strengthened
Press Release – New Zealand Government The Ministry of Education is proactively contacting Attendance Service providers and schools to ensure parents who repeatedly refuse to send their children to school are referred to the Ministry, Mr Seymour says. Associate Minister of Education Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government is going to take a firmer approach to school attendance. The Ministry of Education is ready to pursue prosecutions of parents who repeatedly refuse to ensure their children attend school. 'The Ministry of Education is proactively contacting Attendance Service providers and schools to ensure parents who repeatedly refuse to send their children to school are referred to the Ministry,' Mr Seymour says. 'Prosecution is a reality for parents who refuse to send their children to school and ignore supports to ensure their children are in class and learning. The Ministry will not prosecute parents of students who are absent because of chronic illness or health conditions associated with a disability, or who are genuinely engaging with a school and the supports offered. 'Last year I directed the Ministry to exercise its powers and take a more active role in prosecutions to make them viable. I encourage school leaders to seek that support when all other measures have failed' Mr Seymour says. 'Although we are facing an attendance crisis, green shoots are present, and we need to keep building on them. In every term in 2024 attendance improved on the same term in 2023. 'I expect this momentum to continue as phases of our attendance action plan come into force. For example, it will be mandatory for schools to have their own attendance management plan, aligned with the Stepped Atten dance Response (STAR) (STAR) in place by Term 1 of 2026. 'The basic premise of the STAR is that no child is left behind. The STAR clarifies the roles and responsibilities that school leadership, boards, parents and the Ministry have in supporting students to attend school. 'Around 10% of students are absent for 15 days or more in a school term. Students in that bracket would trigger the 'red light' in the general framework. At this point, prosecution would be considered a valid intervention. This means every day at school is important, and interventions will follow if absences build up. 'Attending school is the first step towards achieving positive educational outcomes. Positive educational outcomes lead to better health, higher incomes, better job stability and greater participation within communities. These are opportunities that every student deserves.'
Scoop
a day ago
- Politics
- Scoop
Measures To Encourage Student Attendance At School Strengthened
Associate Minister of Education Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government is going to take a firmer approach to school attendance. The Ministry of Education is ready to pursue prosecutions of parents who repeatedly refuse to ensure their children attend school. 'The Ministry of Education is proactively contacting Attendance Service providers and schools to ensure parents who repeatedly refuse to send their children to school are referred to the Ministry,' Mr Seymour says. 'Prosecution is a reality for parents who refuse to send their children to school and ignore supports to ensure their children are in class and learning. The Ministry will not prosecute parents of students who are absent because of chronic illness or health conditions associated with a disability, or who are genuinely engaging with a school and the supports offered. 'Last year I directed the Ministry to exercise its powers and take a more active role in prosecutions to make them viable. I encourage school leaders to seek that support when all other measures have failed' Mr Seymour says. 'Although we are facing an attendance crisis, green shoots are present, and we need to keep building on them. In every term in 2024 attendance improved on the same term in 2023. 'I expect this momentum to continue as phases of our attendance action plan come into force. For example, it will be mandatory for schools to have their own attendance management plan, aligned with the Stepped Atten dance Response (STAR) (STAR) in place by Term 1 of 2026. 'The basic premise of the STAR is that no child is left behind. The STAR clarifies the roles and responsibilities that school leadership, boards, parents and the Ministry have in supporting students to attend school. 'Around 10% of students are absent for 15 days or more in a school term. Students in that bracket would trigger the 'red light' in the general framework. At this point, prosecution would be considered a valid intervention. This means every day at school is important, and interventions will follow if absences build up. 'Attending school is the first step towards achieving positive educational outcomes. Positive educational outcomes lead to better health, higher incomes, better job stability and greater participation within communities. These are opportunities that every student deserves.'
