Ontario PROVINCIAL CONTEXT Number of children 0-12 years (2007 rounded estimate) Age Number of children 0 127,700 1 132,300 2 142,800 3 136,500 4 135,600 5 137,500 6 134,600 7 143,600 8 154,500 9 155,200 10 151,000 11 168,100 12 164,200 Total 1,883,700 Number of children 0-12 years, aggregated (2007 rounded estimate) Age Number of children 0-2 402,800 3-5 409,600 6-12 1,071,200 Total 1,883,700 Children 0-14 years identifying with an Aboriginal group (2006) Age North American Métis Inuit Multiple Other Total Indian 0-4 14,705 4,345 260 165 335 19,815 5-9 15,355 4,960 175 155 430 21,075 10-14 16,410 6,120 260 190 455 23,435 Total 46,470 15,425 695 510 1,220 64,325 Children 0-14 yrs with disabilities (2006) Age Number of children Rate of children with disabilities with disabilities (%) 0-4 11,760 1.8 5-9 29,130 4.1 10-14 41,920 5.2 Total 82,820 3.8 Childcare Resource and Research Unit Ontario 67 Number of children 0-12 years with mothers in the paid labour force (2007 rounded estimate) Age Number of children 0 75,700 1 78,200 2 84,800 3 87,900 4 85,000 5 92,500 6 86,700 7 93,500 8 104,900 9 102,600 10 102,900 11 117,100 12 116,900 Total 1,228,700 Number of children 0-12 years with mothers in the paid labour force, aggregated (2007 rounded estimate) Age Number of children 0-2 238,700 3-5 265,400 6-12 724,600 Total 1,228,700 Number of children by marital status of families (2006) Age Children in Children in lone (with lone (with lone couple families parent families mothers) fathers) 0-4 573,825 92,495 81,115 11,385 5-9 590,600 124,880 107,260 17,620 10-14 645,325 164,435 137,820 26,615 Total 1,809,750 381,810 326,190 55,620 Number of children by mother tongue (2006) Age English French Non-official language 0-4 516,715 16,475 107,425 5-9 570,010 19,355 100,990 10-14 651,550 22,990 112,260 Total 1,738,275 58,820 320,675 Number and percentage of children living in families below the LICO (2006) Age Number Percent (%) 0-2 58,000 15.9 3-5 60,000 14.0 6-12 212,000 18.7 Total 330,000 17.1 Workforce participation of mothers by age of youngest child (2007 rounded estimate) Age of youngest child Number of mothers Participation rate (%) 0-2 240,800 68.3 3-5 193,700 78.6 6-15 608,600 83.6 68 Ontario Early Childhood Education and Care in Canada • 2008 FAMILY-RELATED LEAVE EDUCATION FACTS Maternity leave Government funding for public education in Ontario Seventeen weeks to the natural mother only. (2007/08): $18.35 billion Parental leave Ontario provides funding for public and Catholic school Thirty-five weeks for birth mothers who took maternity boards to deliver education in both official languages. leave; 37 weeks for other parent. Leaves may be taken by Ontario’s schools are administered by 72 district school both parents consecutively. boards and 31 school authorities. “School authorities” Adoption leave consist of geographically isolated boards and hospital Thirty-seven weeks. school boards. School boards include: 31 English Public, 29 English Catholic, 4 French Public and 8 French Births and EI maternity and parental claims (2007) Catholic. Number of births 136,217 Birth rate per 1,000 population 10.7 There are 4,017 elementary schools in Ontario (2007/08). Number of initial maternity claims allowed 85,080 Average length of maternity claim 14.6 weeks KINDERGARTEN SERVICES Number of parental claims 95,070 KINDERGARTEN Average length of parental claim 29.2 weeks In Ontario, it is not compulsory for children to be enrolled in kindergarten programs; however, most four Number of adoptive parent claims 1,130 and five year olds attend. Average length of adoptive claim 28.2 weeks All school boards provide kindergarten (K) for five year Note: Maternity, parental and adoption leaves are deter­ olds and junior kindergarten (JK) for four year olds. The mined by provincial and territorial legislation. The federal organization and delivery of these programs is the government pays for up to 15 weeks for maternity leave and responsibility of the local school board. Kindergarten 35 weeks for parental and adoptive leave for eligible parents programs are organized in multiple ways including full- at 55% of earned income to a maximum of $447/week day, every day programs; full-day, alternate day pro­ (2009). See FEDERAL ECEC PROGRAMS for more information. grams; and part-day, every day programs. The most com­ mon organization is part-day, every day programs in KINDERGARTEN urban communities and full-day, alternate day programs in rural communities. All 12 French-language school boards provide full-day, LEGISLATION every day kindergarten programs. In addition, some Ontario. Legislative Assembly. Education Act, R.S.O. school boards offer combined 4 and 5 year old classes or 1990, c. E.2 French-immersion classes for 5 year olds. Section 16 of the Education Act is specific to private schools. The Education Act does not define instructional hours for JK or K. School boards decide on the daily schedule. Ontario does not fund private schools. Private elementary PROVINCIAL CONTACT FOR KINDERGARTEN schools in Ontario may operate programs for four or five Jennifer Evans year olds and for younger children as well. These may or Manager, Policy Information and Research Unit may not be licensed under the Day Nurseries Act. There Policy and Programs Branch are no Ministry of Education requirements for curricu­ Ontario Ministry of Education lum or teacher qualifications in private schools. Although 15th Floor, 900 Bay St Toronto, ON, M7A 1L2 the ministry does not inspect these schools for health Telephone: (416) 325-4417 equipment nor practices related to safety and staffing, pri­ Email: [email protected] vate operators are required to conform to municipal and Website: www.edu.gov.on.ca public health bylaws, which the Ministry reviews. Childcare Resource and Research Unit Ontario 69 CLASS SIZE Responsibility for certification: Ontario College of Teachers. In the 2004/05 school year, the government implemented Representation: Kindergarten teachers are represented by a four-year plan to improve student achievement by low­ one of three unions: The Elementary Teachers Federation ering primary class sizes. Boards were to meet these goals: of Ontario (ETFO), the Ontario English Catholic (a) each primary class will have no more than 23 stu­ Teachers Association (OECTA) and L’association des dents, and enseignants et des enseignantes francophones de (b) 90% of primary classes will have 20 or fewer students. l’Ontario (AEFO). By 2005/06, 48% of the primary classes were at the target of 20 or fewer students, in 2006/07 65%, and in 2007/08 TEACHING ASSISTANTS 88.4%. The provincial funding formula allocates funding for teaching assistants based on each board’s elementary AGE ELIGIBILITY enrolment. The school boards’ role is to determine staffing levels. Based on local priorities and staffing and Junior kindergarten: Four years old by December 31. program considerations, each school board determines Senior kindergarten: Five years old by December 31. the number of JK/SK and special education teaching assistants it requires and where those teaching assistants CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS should be located. Qualifications and wages: Information not available. The Education Act requires that all publicly funded school boards provide special education programs and Role: Determined by school boards. services to students identified as exceptional. This requirement extends to all enrolled pupils. Inclusion is KINDERGARTEN PROGRAM not specified. All kindergarten programs are based on the expectations Number of kindergarten children with special needs: outlined in The Kindergarten Program 2006 (revised). Information not available. The Kindergarten Program is designed to help children build on their prior knowledge and experiences, form ENROLMENT (2007/08) concepts, acquire foundational skills, and form positive Number of children enrolled in junior kindergarten (two attitudes to learning as they begin to develop their goals years before Grade 1): 116,356 for lifelong learning. Local boards decide how the expec­ tations can best be achieved within the total kindergarten Full time 9,878 program that they offer. Part-time 106,478 The learning expectations outlined in the document rep­ Number of children enrolled in senior kindergarten (the resent the first steps in a continuum of programming year before Grade 1): 122,340 from kindergarten to Grade 8. They describe learning Full time 13,745 achievements that are appropriate for young children Part-time 108,595 and that provide the foundation for successful future learning experiences. Learning expectations are given for six areas of learning: personal and social development, KINDERGARTEN TEACHERS language, mathematics, science and technology, health Qualification requirements: A valid Ontario Teacher’s and physical activity, and the arts. Certificate (undergraduate degree plus one year of teacher training and successful writing of the Ontario Teacher Qualifying Test). Early childhood qualifications are not required for kindergarten teachers. 70 Ontario Early Childhood Education and Care in Canada • 2008 FUNDING FOR KINDERGARTEN 2004/05 During the school year, the government imple­ mented a four-year plan to improve student achievement The provincial government determines each school by lowering primary class sizes (see CLASS SIZE). board’s annual funding allocation based on a series of grant formulae that collectively make up the Grants for 2007 In the 2007 provincial election, the Liberal govern­ Student Needs (GSN).