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People for Education has released a new report with findings from the 2022-23 Annual Ontario School Survey.

The report – Still Waiting For Truth And Reconciliation – states that publicly funded schools in Ontario have made significant progress on Indigenous education over the last decade.

However, the report also points out that many steps remain before the province can say that it has fully implemented all the education-related Calls to Action from Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

The findings in the report – based on responses from 1,044 principals from all of Ontario’s 72 publicly funded school boards – show that some schools have developed strong partnerships with local Indigenous communities, but many others say they need more support from their school boards and the Ministry of Education to be successful.

The report also reveals regional differences, with schools in Northern Ontario more likely to offer Indigenous education opportunities, while schools in the GTA were least likely to offer them.

More professional development and Indigenous studies courses

Among the findings in the report:

• The proportion of schools reporting professional development for school staff on Indigenous education has more than doubled over the last decade for elementary schools, from 34% in 2012-13 to 76% in 2022-23, and for secondary schools, from 34% in 2012-13 to 82% in 2022-23.
• 72% of secondary schools reported offering an Indigenous studies course in 2022-23, compared to 40% of secondary schools in 2013-14.
• Between 2012 and 2022, the proportion of schools offering Indigenous languages programs has increased from 4% to 13% in elementary schools, and from 11% to 20% in secondary schools.
• 15 school boards are replacing the compulsory Grade 11 English course with an Indigenous-focused course centered on First Nations, Métis, and Inuit voices.

Implementing Indigenous education policy

The report points to 16 years of government reports, frameworks, guidelines, and commitments to work with Indigenous partners.

It says that while there have been significant advances in some areas, there have also been missteps and gaps.

For example, the report notes that despite a commitment to consultation, the Minister of Education’s office made a unilateral last-minute decision in the spring of 2022 to remove sixteen Indigenous-related expectations in Ontario’s new Science and Technology Curriculum for grades 1-8.

Data collection is also an area for improvement according to the authors of the report. Without data, and in particular, race-based data, it is impossible to know if numerous policy goals are being met.

Currently, 50,496 students in provincially funded schools have self-Identified as Indigenous, but the province estimates the real number is more likely to be over 78,000.

This is an issue for funding, because funding for Indigenous education is partly based on numbers of Indigenous students, and the lack of accurate data also makes it difficult, if not impossible, to know if Ontario is meeting its achievement goals for Indigenous students.

Ontario Regional Chief Glen Hare “agrees that the still Waiting For Truth And Reconciliation report released by People for Education shows that despite some progress in First Nations education there is inconsistent and in many cases inadequate support in place for First Nation students across Ontario."

Chief Hare strongly advocates that substantive progress will only be made with First Nations inclusion and collaboration in all activities undertaken by the Ministry of Education to advance the interests of First Nations students and communities.

Recommendations for change

People for Education has three recommendations for Ontario’s Ministry of Education:

1. Mandate the Indigenous studies course in place of Grade 11 English/French at the provincial level, and increase the number of elementary and secondary schools offering Indigenous languages and programs by providing funding and resources for:
   1. The recruitment, hiring, and retention of Indigenous education workers and teachers, in collaboration with school boards and postsecondary faculties of education.
   2. Frequent, timely, and meaningful professional development opportunities to support educators in implementing Indigenous education.
   3. Improved data collection and reporting on the status, experience, and outcomes of Indigenous students.
2. Provide dedicated funding for positions in schools, boards, and government that are focused on promoting and supporting effective programs on Indigenous languages and ways of knowing.
3. Convene a taskforce of diverse and regionally reflective Indigenous educators, Elders, and students to support the Ministry of Education and the 72 publicly funded school boards across Ontario in responding to the Calls to Action regarding education. Activities would include the co-development of curriculum and updating the Ontario First Nations, Metis, and Inuit Education Policy Framework that was originally published in 2007.

Read the report here.

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source: media release, People For Education