A homeless person lies in a tent pitched in downtown Toronto in April 2020. New research suggests we need to focus less on new technologies to streamline social services and more on the people entwined in these systems.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
While technology can be a useful tool, it can also divert funding and attention from the root causes of the social welfare issues it aims to address.
New Canadians take the Oath of Citizenship during halftime at a Redblacks and Montréal Alouettes CFL game in Ottawa in July 2022.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Canada is counting on immigrants to drive economic growth. Smaller urban communities can help take pressure off Canada’s most heavily populated regions by attracting and retaining newcomers.
Swimming pool closures at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic led to millions of Canadians missing swimming lessons.
(Shutterstock)
Audrey R. Giles, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa; Sofia Pantano, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa, and Umerdad Khudadad, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa
Gaps in swimming lessons, lifeguard shortages and climate change may make water-based activities even riskier this summer.
A special constable with the Kawartha Lakes Police Services stands at a road block in Kawartha Lakes, Ont. in November 2020, following the death of an 18-month-old boy during a police pursuit.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Doug Ives
A criminal trial is a venue where not only individual police officers accused of crimes are put under public scrutiny, but so too are the training and tactics that officer received.
Many international students face abuse and struggle to find decent and affordable housing.
(Shutterstock)
Canadian universities host thousands of international students, many of whom come from India. While all these students need housing, many face discrimination in the rental market.
People carry placards and shout anti-government slogans during a protest against Islamophobia in Bengaluru, India in April 2022.
(AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)
School choice already abounds in Ontario. Adding charter schooling in the name of ‘choice’ won’t help student achievement.
Ontario’s moratorium on youth leaving care once they turn 18 expires on March 31, 2023, with a redesigned policy coming into effect on April 1.
(Shutterstock)
Ontario’s new policy on youth leaving care comes into effect April 1. While the policy provides welcomed support for youth, there are still gaps that need to be addressed.
Early play-based learning helps children develop skills and knowledge before elementary school, and provides an essential foundation for learning in later years.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lars Hagberg
A study following Ontario students between 2004 and 2012 can help policymakers ensure all students get the supports they need when they need them.
A driver backs a Volkswagen e-Golf into a parking spot in Peterborough, Ont. Volkswagen has announced plans to build an electric vehicle battery plant in St. Thomas, in southwestern Ontario.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Doug Ives
For the kind of money the federal and Ontario governments probably spent for a Volkswagen EV battery plant in southwestern Ontario, Canada might have been able to launch its own EV maker.
NOSM University, which began as the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, may potentially offer a model for Northern education in other professional fields.
(NOSM University)
Ontario’s changed university funding formula, which forces institutions to rely on high student tuition for niche programs, is putting some northern institutions in precarious financial situations.
Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth Marci Ien rises during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa in October 2022.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Research suggests that women may be underrepresented in politics because parties act as gatekeepers and tend to choose men over women as candidates.
The federal government announced its intention to fund the construction of a new drinking water pipeline between Oneida Nation of the Thames and the Lake Huron Primary Water Supply System.
(Sheri Longboat)
Water sharing arrangements have the potential to enhance water security, but they require strong communication and co-ordination between community leaders in addition to adequate financial support.
John Tory walks away from the Toronto City Hall podium on his last day in office on Feb. 17, 2023.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
Many politicians have survived sex scandals and still held onto their jobs. But news about John Tory’s affair has brought an end to his career as Toronto mayor. Here’s what’s unique about Tory’s case.
Women sew a quilt at the Quilting Bee Demonstration at the Canadian National Exhibition circa 1940.
(Canadian National Exhibition Archives)
Canadian women made an estimated 400,000 quilts during the Second World War. The quilts represent the forgotten story of Canadian women’s efforts during the war.
Ontario’s push to for-profit surgical clinics is bad news for the non-profit public health-care system.
(Shutterstock)
Ontario is significantly expanding the number and range of medical procedures performed in privately run clinics. Here’s why that’s so problematic.
Ontario Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca on the campaign trail during the June 2022 election in which he failed to stop Doug Ford. The Liberals only won eight seats and Del Duca stepped down, but the party still has a future in the province.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Aaron Vincent Elkaim
While Ontario’s Liberals failed to recapture what they lost in 2018 in the 2022 election, the bigger picture shows this isn’t particularly noteworthy nor damning for the party.
School choice policies have positioned schools as existing in a free market of schools, but parents and guardians have different amounts of ‘educational currency’ or privilege when choosing programs.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
In a study, teachers who are parents acknowledged programs of choice separate students into cohorts labelled strong and weak, yet many continue to secure spots for their own children.
The Toronto District School Board is among Ontario boards committed to teaching a Grade 11 mandatory course called First Voices.
(Jennifer Brant)
For Indigenous literature courses to be successful, Indigenous cultural safety must be centred, and commitment to teacher professional development is a must.
Exemptions from funding cuts are needed to ensure trans and non-binary people can get medical care.
(Shutterstock)