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The Canadian flag has been at half-mast on government buildings since the end of May, after unmarked graves were identified at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Flag-raising discussions pose questions about residential schools

Trevor Norris, Brock University and Frank Deer, University of Manitoba

Remembrance Day has typically focused on commemorating the costs of military conflict. It is time to reconsider what and we remember and how.
Learning to create value in environments of uncertainty with limited resources is something that can help all young people build their futures, especially amid the uncertainty of COVID-19. (Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa)

Entrepreneurship learning: All university students can benefit

Stephen Daze, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa

A study of entrepreneurship activity at 27 universities in Canada showed an increased interest in co-op work terms where students could work in their own start-up.
Unstructured outdoor play is an important part of a healthy childhood, but Ontario schoolyards are falling short. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Dave Chidley

‘Playground politics’ are anything but: Ontario students need better schoolyards

Kelly Gallagher-Mackay, Wilfrid Laurier University and Christine Corso, University of Toronto

Problems include no fields, no courts for games, no playgrounds, no bike racks and no traffic-calming surrounding the school. Bringing in minimum standards is important.
When people are in a group they are more likely to engage in aggressive and risky behaviours they may not normally do on their own. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars Hagberg

Banning large university parties won’t work — students need to lead the change

Wendy Craig, Queen's University, Ontario and Klodiana Kolomitro, Queen's University, Ontario

To make sure what happened at Queen’s University during homecoming weekends doesn’t happen again, we need to have classroom conversations now, and make bold and innovative changes to identify long-term solutions.
Parents who have busy schedules may not feel as though they can make a valuable contribution to their child’s individual education plan. (Shutterstock)

What parents should ask about individual education plans

Tori Trajanovski, York University, Canada

Individual education plans (IEPs) should be created by a team of professionals in collaboration with parents. If a child’s IEP is inaccurate, their learning needs won’t be met.
Children whose parents work irregular hours and children from families with lower incomes are over-represented in home child care. (Shutterstock)

Home child care in Canada should be high-quality — and licensed

Petr Varmuza, University of Toronto; Linda A. White, University of Toronto, and Michal Perlman, University of Toronto

A renewed model for oversight and support of all home child-care providers would ensure that our society’s youngest and most vulnerable people have access to safe and higher-quality home child care.
Rally participants hold up signs and wear orange shirts as they march in support of residential school survivors and the families of missing and murdered Indigenous children in Winnipeg on. July 1, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mike Sudoma

Canada’s treatment of Indigenous Peoples fits the definition of genocide

Sean Carleton, University of Manitoba and Andrew Woolford, University of Manitoba

A better understanding of what most genocide scholars believe can help people understand how Canada’s Indian Residential School system fits with the definition of genocide.
Since the pandemic introduced travel restrictions and disrupted campus life, some students are searching for alternative ways to get international learning experience. (Shutterstock)

Virtual exchange: What are students signing up for?

Hiba B. Ibrahim, York University, Canada

There are both benefits and challenges of building relationships and skills online with students abroad, but students can learn how to make the most of this ‘travel without travel.’
Older adults can experience negative health effects due to social isolation. (Shutterstock)

Online arts programming improves quality of life for isolated seniors

Dawn Pittman, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Social isolation in older adults can contribute to negative health outcomes. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this, but an arts-based program can alleviate some of the loneliness.
While Canadian universities are paying more attention to anti-racism and equity, more must be done to incorporate those values into the education students receive. (Shutterstock)

In times of racial injustice, university education should not be ‘neutral’

Jennifer S Simpson, Ryerson University; Sulaimon Giwa, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and Verna St Denis, University of Saskatchewan

Universities can ensure students in all disciplines are learning how to contribute to a world that they and future generations want to live in.
Financial strain exacerbated by the pandemic could be driving increased student sex work, whether through apps like OnlyFans or other platforms and avenues. (AP Photo/Tali Arbel)

Student sex work: How universities should respond

Aaron Brown, University of Toronto and Elizabeth Buckner, University of Toronto

Higher education institutions should also consider how to respond should sex work take place on campus, such as in a residence.
White folk aren’t ‘beyond race.’ Interrogating Black people’s pain at forums supposedly dedicated to undoing racism is part of the problem. (Shutterstock)

4 ways white people can be accountable for addressing anti-Black racism

Karine Coen-Sanchez, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa

White denialism of racism provokes a narrative of ‘us versus them.’ Self-reflection and listening are among the ways to be accountable for interrupting and eradicating racism.

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Editor's Picks

For children, the risks associated with school closures have surpassed the health risks associated with COVID-19. (Shutterstock)

Is the harm of school closures greater than the risk of the virus?

Amid uncertainties about what the pandemic will look like this fall, experts answer questions about risks of infection in unvaccinated children and the risks of missing in-person school.
Instead of asking how universities might benefit from shifting courses online permanently, we ought to ask how students might suffer from fewer opportunities for lived experience and practice. (Shutterstock)

The problem with online learning? It doesn’t teach people to think

We ought to worry that the pandemic has made it even easier to reduce teaching to disseminating knowledge.
One-year-old Quentin Brown is held by his mother, Heather Brown, as he eyes a swab while being tested for COVID-19 at a new walk-up testing site at Chief Sealth High School in Seattle on Aug. 28, 2020. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

6 tips to prepare your child for easy COVID-19 testing

Child health psychologists offer research-based strategies to prepare kids for pain-free and distress-free COVID-19 testing.
Beyond the many known benefits of outdoor education, COVID-19 has highlighted the outdoors as an environment which mitigates the risk of spreading airborne viruses. (Pexels/Charles Parker)

Why the outdoors should be an integral part of every early learning program

Planning outdoor early learning and child care has implications for training and recruiting educators as well as for planning, developing and funding physical spaces.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s bentwood box, carved by Coast Salish artist Luke Marston, is a tribute to survivors. (Eyesplash/Flickr)

8 ways to identify and confront Residential School denialism

Residential school denialism is the rejection or misrepresentation of basic facts about residential schools to undermine truth and reconciliation efforts.
The sky can be so many different things: it can be big, beautiful and blue, or grey, cloudy and rainy. It can also be full of stars, or full of orange and red clouds at sunset or sunrise. (Shutterstock)

Curious Kids: What is the sky?

A young reader asks: What is the sky?