A popular quote asserts, “The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.” Schooling has never been a neutral enterprise. Disputes over the control of education and what children should learn have been with us for...
Sometimes political parties misinterpret an issue and end up making the wrong stand. Unfortunately for them, bad policy is usually bad politics, too. This is especially so when such waywardness offends the party’s support base. Enter the Progressive Conservative Party...
Could #Leave Our Kids Alone Mark the Beginning of a Broader Protest Movement?
The debate over parental rights has become a flashpoint in the upcoming Manitoba provincial election. The Progressive Conservatives are promising to strengthen parental rights while the Liberals and NDP have both denounced this pledge as a “dog whistle” to bigots. One...
The Canadian Dream is increasingly being realized in smaller areas For decades, Canadians moved to the larger cities (census metropolitan areas, or CMAs) with their economic opportunities. The latest estimates indicate that CMAs have 72 per cent of the nation’s...
When the Premiers were first called to a sit-down lunch to talk about healthcare with Prime Minister Trudeau, there was plenty of talk about the potential for systemic change, innovation and accountability. It seemed that Canadians and their leaders were finally on...
If you’ve been around for a while, you probably remember the phrase “politically correct.” Being called politically correct was not a compliment. Rather, it meant that you had an unhealthy obsession with not offending anyone, even if you had to say some rather silly...
Earlier this year, a group called Equity Matters asked the province to establish an education equity secretariat. They want this office to oversee equity officers working in Manitoba schools. Equity Matters wants to ensure that all Manitoba students are reflected in...
If you want a glimpse into Canada's future, look no further than the current public education of youth. Frontier Centre senior fellow, prolific columnist, and educator Michael Zwaagstra has a lively discussion with Leon Fontaine about the role of woke in the...
Proof of vaccination is required for students who want to live in residence at the University of Toronto. No, this wasn’t cut-and-paste from a 2021 article—it’s an actual requirement for the fall of 2022. Anyone who plans to live in residence at the University of...
The Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) serves as the regulatory body for public school teachers in Ontario. When a complaint comes in, the OCT is obligated to investigate and, if the teacher is found guilty, decide on an appropriate consequence. By investigating...
In this essay, I explain that young people should come to university to be educated, and not to become credentialed; the public should support universities because universities educate young people, not because they produce credentialled workers. Why should a...
Over 50 colleges and universities in Canada have now signed the Scarborough Charter on Anti-Black Racism and Black Inclusion. This is unfortunate, as the Charter is a profoundly anti-academic document. That so many institutions signed it does not bode well for higher...
Instead of making students memorize a bunch of useless facts, we need to help them think like scientists and historians. Does this make sense to you? It probably does if you’re a curriculum consultant or an education professor. After all, that’s what’s being pushed in...
In this article on official abuse of children, I reference American (US) policies and practices. Many Canadians think that, whatever is happening in the US, things in Canada are not quite so bad. But they are wrong; in many cases Canada has gone farther wrong....