In a rare Sunday morning announcement Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced more than $180 million in targeted supports to help students improve math and reading skills. The funding will support nearly 1000 more educators to help students develop math and reading skills.
“We are getting back to the basics, because that’s what matters most when it comes to students’ skills with reading, writing and math,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education. “
The plan involves more than $71 million in 2023-24 in a new math plan, supported by the recently introduced modernized math curriculum that mandates financial literacy and coding in every grade.
The province’s plan to boost math skills will:
Double the number of school math coaches in classrooms to provide direct support to teachers and students
Introduce one math lead per board to spearhead math curriculum implementation and standardize training, and provide additional supports for math coaches in the classrooms
Expand access to digital math tools that students and parents can access anytime
Continue live teacher-led virtual tutoring services focused on math
Enhance skills of new teachers through dedicated training and covering costs of additional math qualification courses to enhance math fluency and competency.
To further support students facing challenges with math, the government is deploying Math Action Teams to school boards or schools to raise standards, training and student outcomes. Teams will work with school boards to identify and recommend targeted, evidence-based responses to improve math achievement for Ontario students.
To help more young students build stronger reading skills, the province is investing $109 million in 2023-24 to boost literacy rates, which will:
Introduce new, Canada-leading, early reading screening requirements for all students in Year 2 of Kindergarten to Grade 2, along with a standardized screening tool and training for educators.
Fund additional specialist teachers who can work one-on-one or in small groups to help students who need additional support in reading
Invest in almost 700 educators to support development and excellence in literacy for Ontario students
Introduce an overhauled language curriculum in September of 2023 with an emphasis on ensuring students at an early age can master basic literacy.
Beginning with the Grade 9 cohort starting in September 2024, all students will now be required to earn a Grade 9 or 10 Technological Education credit as part of their Ontario Secondary School Diploma.
” Having a solid foundation of important core skills such as math, numeracy, science, technology and overall problem solving will help them greatly to respond to these future changes. We commend the province of Ontario for launching this initiative that will help to ensure Ontario students can build successful careers – and, along with that, successful futures,” said Gary Rabbior, President of the Canadian Foundation for Economic Education
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