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Fighting Poverty (From the Minister of Education)

Kathleen Wynne

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All Ontario students – rich or poor – deserve a high-quality education that allows them to reach heir full potential.

Since our election in 2003, we’ve made progress in rebuilding the publicly funded education system so it reaches every student. Yet some young children still arrive at school without breakfast – making it difficult to develop their reading, writing, and math skills. And some teens still see earning a small salary as more appealing than finishing high school. For me, this reality is simply not acceptable for any student. That’s why our government recently took important steps to support students and their families who have difficulty making ends meet. We are:

  • Expanding our Focus on Youth program that helps not-for-profit groups in high-needs neighbourhoods deliver learning and recreation opportunities during the summer months.
  • Doubling the government’s commitment to student nutrition programs over the next three years.
  • Expanding our Parenting and Family Literacy Centres to better develop children’s literacy and numeracy skills and engage parents in their children’s learning.
  • Funding thousands of additional teachers so they have more time to give struggling students more one-on-one attention.

Not only will these initiatives immediately help more students succeed, they will also assist in our long-term  battle against poverty. More young adults with strong literacy skills and a high school diploma will have a world of opportunities in front of them. They will have a real chance to escape the poverty cycle and become Ontario’s future leaders and innovators.

I’m also working closely with 14 of my colleagues on the Cabinet Committee on Poverty Reduction to develop Ontario’s first poverty reduction strategy. By the end of this year, we will have a focused strategy that is built  around the Ontario Child Benefit. This strategy will include targets that the people of Ontario can expect us to meet.

I’m proud of the work being done by the committee to set out a roadmap for the future. But I want to emphasize that our government can’t make the journey alone. To succeed, we are going to need the support of all Ontarians.

I’d like to thank ETFO for showing great leadership on this issue. For example, your new “One in Six” DVD is an excellent resource to raise awareness about child poverty with educators. We need to continue building on this partnership to find education solutions that erase income as a determinant of student achievement.

We must strive to build a truly equitable system that does not prevent any student from achieving his or her goals. Together, we can strengthen our education system, give thousands of students a brighter future, and make Ontario prosperous for future generations.