students

Wednesday August 31, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday August 31, 2022

Western University mandating COVID-19 booster shots, masking ahead of fall term

Western University is implementing vaccine and masking requirements this September for students, faculty, staff and some visitors. 

October 21, 2020

The London, Ont., university is requiring those returning to campus to be vaccinated for COVID-19 twice with an additional booster. There is also a mask mandate in place in classrooms and seminar rooms for the first five weeks of class followed by a reassessment. 

 “Considering that the general population is at 50 per cent in terms of their booster shot, we think it’s not too much of an effort to get where we want to get,” said Florentine Strzelczyk, provost and vice-president (academic). 

The policy takes effect as of Monday, however the campus community has until October 1 to submit current proof of vaccination to the university.

Friday July 29, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday July 29, 2022

Education minister says Ontario students will stay in class for in-person learning this school year

January 31, 2020

Education Minister Stephen Lecce on Monday committed to keeping Ontario’s two million students in class for in-person learning this school year, as the province continues to face uncertainty from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It is so consequential to children’s mental and physical health,” Lecce said at a news conference in Ajax, where he announced his ministry’s “plan to catch up” for students who fell behind during pandemic-related school closures.

Ontario students were, cumulatively, out of in-person classes longer than children and youth in any other jurisdiction in North America after the pandemic began in March 2020.

Lecce’s commitment comes amid a backdrop of ongoing negotiations with the province’s education unions whose contracts are set to expire at the end of August.

Thursday May 27, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday May 27, 2021

Ford solicits advice on reopening Ontario schools

Premier Doug Ford took the unusual step of publicly soliciting advice from medical experts, children’s hospitals and health organizations on how Ontario could go about reopening schools before the end of the academic year next month.

April 8, 2021

In a letter addressed to 55 different groups and people, Ford reiterated that his government has struggled to find consensus on school reopenings, and that it needs input before moving forward with a decision.

Why Ford waited until May 27, and gave the recipients until 5 p.m. Friday to answer, is unclear.

“In recent weeks, there has been a wide range of advice and commentary around the reopening of schools in Ontario,” Ford said in the letter.

“There is consensus in some quarters on how, when and whether schools should reopen, and diverse and conflicting views in others.”

November 12, 2020

He added that new modelling expected in the coming days will show that, if schools were to reopen, there could be between 2,000 and 4,000 more cases of COVID-19 by the end of July compared to if they remain closed.

Ford went on to once again express his concerns about virus variants of concern, particularly the variant first identified in India, and its impact on children. He also pointed to emerging evidence that suggests COVID-19 vaccines are potentially less effective against the variant found in India.

According to Ford, only 41 per cent of teachers and education workers have received a first dose of vaccine, compared to about 62 per cent of Ontario adults in the general population.

August 6, 2020

“Ultimately, this is our government’s decision, but in light of the foregoing, and the diversity of perspectives on the safety of reopening schools, I am asking for your views on a number of issues,” Ford said.

Sketch

Earlier this week, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health — who is also listed as a recipient of Ford’s letter — said he would like to see students back in class before the province begins its formal reopening process in mid-June.

Dr. David Williams said most public health units in the province support the reopening of schools, which have been shut to in-person learning since early April.

“My position has been always like our public health measures table and our medical officers of health, that feel that schools should be the last to close and the first to open,” Williams told a news conference on Tuesday. It was the same day that a group of researchers studying how the pandemic has affected children warned of a “generational catastrophe.” (CBC) 

 

Thursday May 7, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday May 7, 2020

Farmers expected a miracle. No wonder they’re disappointed by Ottawa’s aid package

July 29, 2014

When the Canadian Federation of Agriculture laid out a $2.6-billion ask last week to help farmers endure the COVID-19 pandemic, they were setting the bar very high. And so it is little wonder that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Tuesday announcement of a program worth barely $252-million sent the farming community reeling.

Fair enough. The funding announcement was indeed underwhelming, and it will not be enough to get some of those on the precipice to stick around. Many will exit the industry, regrettably. Our preannouncement estimates were that as many as 15 per cent of our farms could be lost by year’s end due to COVID-19; Ottawa’s plans will not change that.

August 10, 2019

The $125-million program to support livestock raises a variety of questions. Executing the program will take time, something producers do not have. Few details were given about the role of provinces or how much farmers will receive. The measures presented will likely not prevent more animals from being euthanized in the days to come. Along with milk dumping, COVID-19 is serving up case studies on a silver platter for animal-rights activists. It’s a shame that our farmers have been put in this position.

May 22, 2019

Losing farms will not compromise our nation’s food security, however. Farmland doesn’t just disappear, as it can always be exploited by someone else. But the most significant concern is how we can create jobs and wealth in rural economies located far from urban centres. This should be a priority; occupying our vast nation’s topography should be top of mind, from coast to coast to coast. Ottawa doesn’t show that it cares for rural communities enough – or for agriculture, for that matter – but it should, before it’s too late.

Coronavirus cartoons

Its response to farmers pleading for help was unsurprisingly slow as well. In the United States and Europe, most governments have provided pandemic-related financial aid directly to farmers weeks ago. In the United States, every American is providing $86 in support for agriculture by way of government-sanctioned programs; in Europe, it is over $90 per capita. Here in Canada, each of us giving six measly dollars to support agriculture. Farmers have every right to be disappointed. (Globe & Mail)


 

Thursday August 29, 2019

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday August 29, 2019

Ontario students deserve better than the blame game

August 16, 2001

It’s that simultaneously wonderful (for parents) and terrible (for kids) time of year again.

Normally, back to school is a bit like Christmas for parents who, by now, have run out of ways to keep young kids busy and are seriously starting to wonder if their teenagers remember how to write without emojis and add numbers greater than their social media followers.

But thanks to the Ford government, this year’s return to school is also a time of concern and confusion.

Just days before students trot off in their first-day outfits with backpacks full of new school supplies, there’s more that’s uncertain than certain about what this year and beyond will look like for them.

September 3, 2013

What changes are being made to Ontario’s math curriculum, and will it do anything to raise math scores? Will the new mandatory online high school courses be innovative or simply a cheaper and lesser alternative to traditional classes? How big will real classes be, not just the “average” size the government likes to reference? How reduced will the options be in art, music, science and other electives?

And, of course, what will happen when contract negotiations really ramp up?

Teachers’ contracts expire three days before students take their seats. Negotiations on new contracts could, in theory, go smoothly or be lengthy, contentious and, in the worst-case scenario, result in the withdrawal of extracurricular activities or a strike before deals are struck.

June 25, 2015

So, amid all that, Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce stepped up last week to “reassure students and their families.”

He announced that class sizes wouldn’t be much larger this year. At 22.5 students in that famously average high school class, that’s up just half a student from last year.

That’s fair enough. But then Lecce suggested that the planned increase to 28 students within four years might not be needed because he’s open to “innovative ideas” that unions could bring forward to save money in other ways.

That’s not about reassuring students or giving parents and educators “predictability” – another of his claimed motives.

Lecce is doing nothing more than trying to shift the blame for the school changes that students and parents aren’t going to like from the government to the unions.

August 21, 2015

It’s a typical, if not very successful, negotiating tactic.

But students and parents know well that the reduction in teachers, increased class sizes and, worst of all, more limited course options are a direct result of the Ford government’s education cuts.

Last month, Lecce blamed the reduction in course options for high school students on school boards. Now, he’s hunting for a new target: teachers.

But this isn’t about teachers, it’s about students. And it’s about this government’s decision to save money in ways that will hurt struggling students, gifted students and generally make school a lot less interesting for everyone.

January 25, 2019

When Premier Doug Ford’s government first unveiled its education overhaul, it claimed it was “modernizing” the system. Then the first education minister said increasing class size was about making students more resilient. And now, with the new education minister, we’re to believe it’s suddenly all negotiable.

But it’s not.

Not so long as the government is determined to reduce its deficit through school cuts that risk the vital education gains that have been made in Ontario.

Ford and his education ministers are fast running out of excuses and ways to sell the unsellable. (Hamilton Spectator Editorial)