Smaller classes just one strategy for better
schools
The Windsor Star
Tue 30 Aug 2005

Page: A7
Section: Editorial/Opinion
Byline: Gerard Kennedy

Source: Windsor Star

The Windsor Star ran an odd back-to-school story recently
on a C.D. Howe study that criticized the provincial government
for making smaller class sizes a priority for students.

The CanWest story is unusual in part because the provincial government is not
cited in the response. As the minister responsible for kindergarten to Grade 12
education in Ontario and, therefore, class-size caps in primary grades and
class-size limits in high schools, I feel obliged to make the government's
perspective and response available to your readers.

The C.D.
Howe study itself is essentially a commentary on
a long-standing, often near-ideological debate about class size with opinions
heavily on the oppositional side by the report's author, one of the institute's
economists.

As such, it is peculiar that the article does not reference other studies
such as the U.S. Department of Education's finding of definitive links between
improved student achievement and the individual attention that smaller class
size provides, particularly for the youngest and most disadvantaged students
being focused on in Ontario.

Inexplicably, the story also omits much relevant context, such as how the
previous Ontario government let class sizes rise by using tricky "board-wide
averages" and let elementary funding fall far behind secondary, despite clear
evidence of the major educational opportunities in the earliest years.

The strangest part, however, is the premise of the story itself - that
somehow class size is only valuable if it can be isolated and proved or
disproved as a magic bullet for student improvement.

In Ontario, at least, class-size reduction is one part of broader literacy,
numeracy and student success strategies that involve many factors to build up
the capacity at local schools, including the continuous teacher training the
C.D. Howe commentator prefers. The investment in real
class-size caps for our youngest students, while significant, is about 15 per
cent of the McGuinty government's overall four-year investment to repair the
effects of past cutbacks and foster an education advantage for Ontario
kindergarten to Grade 12 students.

Responsibly, we have set a measurable target for improvement for the first
time in our province: Three-quarters of students will reach the provincial
standard on reading, writing and math tests within four years, up from the
one-half doing so when we took office. Already, early results are encouraging
but the final outcome will be clear for all concerned.

Unspoken in the story is how the C.D. Howe's stated
preference for private schools may have coloured the work in question. Class
size is the most commonly cited allure for private school enrolment, which grew
50 per cent under the last Ontario government.

Ontario parents will be glad to know that notwithstanding the think-tank's
objection, the McGuinty government is determined to "compete" for the commitment
of all parents and to ensure every parent has the choice to keep their children
in publicly funded education by knowing each one is getting the personal
attention he or she deserves.

This September, almost 70 per cent of our JK to Grade 3 pupils will be
benefiting from smaller class sizes with two more years to go for full
implementation. At the same time, students will be taught by thousands of
teachers who will be applying additional training the government and boards
provided over the summer, reading from up-to-date texts and computer resources,
most in buildings receiving upgrades and all under a stable environment as a
result of long-term labour settlements.

We trust that in future, the C.D. Howe Institute will judge successful education policy, like
any good recipe, by the total outcome, not just one of its ingredients.

Gerard Kennedy

Ontario Minister of Education

Edition: Final
Story Type: Letter
Length: 598
words