Share this video now to start a #nationalconversation to better support and strengthen publicly funded public education in Canada.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to strain our country. It has shown that essential services we have taken for granted for decades can disappear almost overnight. Nowhere has this become more evident than in Canada’s education systems. If we are to build a better Canada as we emerge from the pandemic, we must rebuild Canada’s publicly funded public education systems.

CTF/FCE Priorities

Ensuring all children have equitable access to quality publicly funded public education

Ensuring all children have equitable access to quality publicly funded public education

Schools serve a diverse range of student and community needs. They require targeted funding for programs to continuously provide high quality resources and support to meet all students’ social, emotional, academic, and psychological needs. Today, schools do not have the resources to meet those needs. These gaps hurt students. All students must have equitable access to quality publicly funded public education regardless of their racial background, socio‑economic status, or luck.

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Investing in publicly funded education to build a better Canada

Investing in publicly funded education to build a better Canada

Years of budget cuts to publicly funded public education systems, creeping privatization that prioritizes profits over quality services, and underpaying and undervaluing essential educational workers have pushed Canada’s education systems closer to the edge than we should have ever come. We must rebuild our publicly funded public education systems to be able to build a better Canada.

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Investing in publicly funded public education to repair Canada’s social cracks. 3

Investing in publicly funded public education to repair Canada’s social cracks

The pandemic has exposed long-standing inequities in and across Canadian society including throughout our education systems. Irreplaceable in-person learning and peer relationships were not the only losses; access to nutritious meals, technology, social and emotional support followed one after the other. The federal government provided important support to help make it safe for publicly funded public schools to open and remain open — this support needs to continue.

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The CTF/FCE calls on the federal government to deliver the following:

Create a national education advisory table to strengthen publicly funded public education across Canada.

Comprised of the teaching profession, academics, and civil society, the table works with provinces and territories to:

  • Establish national guidelines for publicly funded public education;
  • Develop national standards for emergency preparedness;
  • Implement legislation to stop the privatization of publicly funded public education;
  • Protect and promote the French language in minority settings;
  • Coordinate national programs aimed at poverty alleviation, anti-racism, and truth and reconciliation;

With respect to achieving equitable access to quality publicly funded public education:

  • Create a national education advisory table;
  • Expand ongoing support for Indigenous education, including federal schools to assure the quality of school buildings and programs match that of systems in provinces and territories;
  • Provide broadband connectivity and tools for all families with school-aged children;

With respect to building a better Canada:

  • Create a national education advisory table;
  • Implement measures that stop the privatization of public education. To address the shortcomings laid bare by COVID-19, Canada’s provinces and territories must invest in their education systems and be prevented from outsourcing this responsibility to for-profit entities;
  • Increase support for the Francophonie, including provisions that address the serious shortage of French-first language educators;
  • Commit to ongoing support for Indigenous education, truth and reconciliation, and anti-oppressive education;

With respect to repairing Canada’s social cracks:

  • Create a national education advisory table;
  • Ensure that every child in Canada can safely attend school in person and receive a quality publicly funded education;
  • Provide a comprehensive national breakfast or lunch program;
  • Increase funding for mental health including for dedicated professionals (counselors, psychologists and/or social workers) in school communities, as part of a federal mental health strategy;