McGuinty Government Launches Class Size Tracker

Media Release

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The McGuinty government’s new class-size tracker shows parents how class sizes in kindergarten to Grade 3 are shrinking, said Nipissing MPP Monique Smith.

“We are on the side of Ontario families who want greater accountability and transparency in public education,” said Smith. “This class-size tracker will help parents see the progress schools boards are making. As Education Minister Sandra Pupatello has stressed, reducing class sizes in the primary grades is an important part of our strategy to improve achievement in reading, writing and math.”

This is the first time class-by-class data has been collected and published for each of Ontario’s 32,000 kindergarten to Grade 3 classrooms in 4,000 elementary schools. Everyone can access the class-size tracker by going tohttp:www.edu.gov.on.ca.

Currently, the tracker shows data for the 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 school years. It reflects actual enrolments as of October 31 of each year. The tracker will be updated annually as school boards report new data to the Ministry of Education.

Over the last two years the Ministry of Education has provided funding to school boards to hire almost 2,400 more teachers, in more than 2,100 schools, to reduce class sizes in junior kindergarten to Grade 3.

Students in smaller classes receive more attention, achieve greater success in the early grades and are more likely to go on to reach their potential in high school and beyond.

Halfway through the McGuinty government’s four-year plan to implement a real cap in 90 per cent of junior kindergarten to Grade 3 classes, 48 per cent have 20 or fewer students. The number of classes with 25 students or more has dropped by half — from 25 to 12 per cent over the past two years.

All boards are expected to meet the target of 20 or fewer students in 90 per cent of primary classes by 2007-08. For the 2006-07 school year, boards are required to submit detailed plans to the Ministry of Education demonstrating their progress in meeting the primary class-size cap.

On June 12, Education Minister Sandra Pupatello announced an additional $600 million investment in Ontario’s public education system for 2006-07. This brings total investment in education to $17.5 billion. Funding for the elementary level includes:

- $95 million for 1,200 more primary teachers so our youngest students benefit from more individual attention

- $50 million to financing $700 million of capital funding that will accommodate reduced primary class sizes.

- $71 million for 980 new specialist teachers in areas such as music, phys-ed and the arts.

“We’ve made big investments in education and we have an even bigger responsibility to bring greater accountability and transparency to the people of Ontario,” said Minister Pupatello. “Parents and everyone involved in education need to see that our investments are delivering results for students right across the province.”

For more information about what our government is doing to help our kids, please visit
http:www.edu.gov.on.ca and www.resultsontario.gov.on.ca

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