Report Calls on Ontario to Invest in Education
Conference Board of Canada study echoes NDP calls for investment in public education, not cuts
QUEEN’S PARK, ON — Official Opposition Education critic Marit Stiles said the NDP is not surprised by a new study by the Conference Board of Canada showing that Doug Ford’s public education cuts could hurt high school graduation rates, while also costing Ontario more money.
The Economic Case for Investing in Education, released Wednesday at an Empire Club of Canada luncheon and commissioned by the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF). Among the report’s findings is that every dollar taken away from public education takes $1.30 from Ontario’s total economic impact, and that hurting graduation rates, as cuts do, could cost Ontario about $3.8 billion over the next 20 years. Conversely, the study found that increased investment in public education would generate an average provincial savings of $3.5 billion over 20 years, while also bringing up Ontario’s high school graduation rates.
“This report echoes what the NDP has been saying, which is that the Ford government’s education cuts will rip away supports students need to thrive academically — like smaller classes, one-on-one attention from teachers, and elective course offerings that give students a chance to discover their own gifts and talents — and that Ford’s cuts will make it harder for some students to graduate,” said Stiles.
“The Conference Board of Canada also points out that more students failing to graduate will hurt our economy. I think that’s why it’s not only students, families, teachers, and education workers who are opposed to Ford’s plan to cut education and fire thousands of teachers and education workers, it’s businesses and employers, economists, and everyone who wants our province, as a whole, to be successful.”
The Conference Board of Canada’s studyshows that public education can generate social benefits like a healthier population, a higher standard of living and reduced crime. Poor high school graduation rates add a financial burden to social assistance, health care and criminal justice systems.
“Strong investment in public education means a healthier, more financially stable population and a stronger overall economy,” said Stiles. “Our children need us to stop Ford’s cuts to schools — but so does our province.”
