Education is essential for one’s knowledge and occupational purposes. Simcoe County District School Board in Canada is an institution that cares for the smooth learning of public learning institutes. Simcoe County Board has objectives of ensuring that students have a chance to learn and achieve their educational aims. In the process of learning, an individual comes across diverse difficulties, which may prevent one from realizing successs in education. Financing of education has been a national problem in Canada. Some students have dropped out of school as their parents are not in a position to withstand the learning expenses. This paper has tried to come up with various strategies to enhance the learning of students from diverse backgrounds. It has pointed out numerous solutions which could be employed to ensure smooth learning of every child in Canada.
Community Response to a Social Issue
Simcoe County is situated in the middle part of Southern Ontario, Canada. Simcoe County District School Board is one of Ontario’s largest education systems with learning center’s that are spread over 4,800 square kilometers in the County. The school board represents both urban and rural setup with exceptional recreational facilities. The Simcoe County District School Board functions in all public learning institutes in the County. Simcoe County District School Board’s mission is, “we inspire and empower learning for life” while the vision is “a community of learners achieving full potential” (Simcoe County District School Board, 2015, para. 2-3). Additionally, it is also involved with good resource management to create public confidence in civic education, which is reinforced by meaningful action and plans.
There exists a strong link amid school attendance and achievement. Poor attendance frequently leads to learners dropping out of school and afterward experiencing substantial gaps in both the knowledge and essential accomplishments to attain future success. Obtaining and maintaining occupations becomes a trouble and results in low self-esteem. It is evident that achievement in learning institutions assists a youthful person to feel more beneficial and do excellently. The Simcoe County District School Board hires five attendance counselors, who normally work with families to safeguard every student’s right to learning.
The school board is faced with various social problems. Financial problem has been influencing the schooling of the students in Simcoe County. The recently reported case argues that more than 35% of children in Canada live at or beneath deprived level. The financial dilemma could be caused by low level of income, lack of occupational positions, or death of the guardian or parent of a particular student. Some approximations put immoderation levels for public school learners at 28% in the not-so-distant future.
Learners living at or beneath poverty level seem to have the highest dropout rates (Looker, 2014). Some institutions exist in deprived conditions in that there are no essential equipment and resources to enhance the learning of the students. Moreover, some learning institutions lack enough tutors. Since numerous parents live in deprived cases, they are not in a position to hire new teachers as also the Canadian administration is sluggish in the process of employing tutors.
Parents play an essential role in a child’s ability to concentrate on his/her education (Ly & Crowshoe, 2015). Education is one of the most important aspects of human’s success and developments in life and should be enhanced to prevent young school children from creating low self-esteem, which may come as a result of poor school performance and dropout (Looker, 2014). This could be caused as result of not attending key lessons; numerous learners are normally out of school because of failure to meet financial obligations as expected by their specific learning institutions. Some problems occur simultaneously; this could take place in a condition where deprived students have two financial obligations to meet at the same time. For instance, some students could have medical difficulties, which could require being handled weekly or monthly. For this reason, paying of school fees could be difficult as health matters must take the priority.
Solutions and Obstacles
Most Canadian students are known to perform exceptionally well in education in international circles. However, a large number of them do not meet the required standards, and this gap needs to be bridged. Steps to improve financial dilemma for many learners in public schools in Canada can play an important role in the life of the students. Such steps include improving parenting, government assistance, and involvement of diverse agencies in the education sector besides provision of employment to the people who live in deprived conditions and who are in dire need to school their children (Dawson, 2014). These approaches give parents the ability and capacity to respond positively to the educational development of their children. A multi-sectorial dialogue should be instituted that involves all the major stakeholders in the education sector to try and resolve this major challenge.
The Canadian welfare system provides a comprehensive and national poverty eradication strategy where the federal government takes the prime role in eradicating impoverishment to empower parents to play a more active role in the education of their children. The strategy involves contributions to improving incomes that include family benefits, employment welfares, tax credits, housing allowances, food adjustments and other supports that make it easier for struggling families to be at par with the rest of society (Jones, 2014).
Other agencies could also contribute to resolving this issue through an expanded scope in strengthening the competitive pressure among the students to make their learning effective. Lack of pre-reform measures of finance and the complexities encountered in measuring efficiency in the learning sector make it difficult to deal with the problem. Moreover, there is a challenge for planners and educators in instilling a positive attitude towards education, which makes it difficult for the education system in Canada to overcome financial dilemma in schools (Dawson, 2014).
Even though Canada has attained a high standard of education, with the wide availability and governmental financial upkeep amid other nations in the universe, there are claims that a period of erosion has started in backing, and perhaps inconvenience and quality at a time when global rivalry has strengthened (Simcoe County District School Board, 2015). Therefore, there is a crucial necessity to identify substantial goals and improve countrywide strategies. If learning is to be regarded as an industry, producing graduates and potential workforce as required for professional jobs, businesses and manufacturers, much have to be done. If so, the criteria of excellence needed could be aligned by market forces. On the other hand, do the objectives of education comprise learning of a wider nature, the growth of critical thinking, training for decent citizenship, a comprehension of cultures, account, and moral values, and the inspiration of artistic and creative potential? In Canada, this wider approach has normally been acknowledged in the past, with differences in emphasis. Even so, currently these views seem to be ignored or assumed. These aims make the dimension of quality much more problematic but also inspire the growth of diverse kinds of expertise to address future dilemmas, whether economic, social, scientific, or ethnic (Ly & Crowshoe, 2015).
Canada’s education methods are continually subject to review, assessment, and criticism. The superiority, procedure, and financing of education are major issues that will carry on to be questioned at various levels. The significance of finding, pursuing and funding the most suitable plans in response cannot be over-judged. A certain historian, Desmond Morton, has on many occasions reminded Canadians that, even when in periods of general economic trouble, there remains one mainstay of successfulness which cannot be abandoned, repaired or weakened (Ly & Crowshoe, 2015). This is the provision of skilled and educated intelligence. This can only be achieved by ensuring that young generation is provided with quality education. Quality education means that students are in a position to attend all learning sessions though lack of adequate finance to back education of the young generation in Canada could be an obstacle.
The main share of overall spending on education is done at the elementary stage, with provincial governments being the largest direct source of finance in Canada. In Canada, the federal government in result has reduced its financial obligation to elementary education. This has been a major obstacle to education as the majority of the students are from impoverished backgrounds. All education stakeholders must ensure that they play their role effectively to prevent influencing the learning of the students (Dawson, 2014). When one or more education financial stakeholders fail to perform the mandatory obligation, it creates an obstacle that interferes with the learning of the students.
Earlier on, international contrasts had specified that the level of education financing in Canada could be one of the highest in the world. On the other hand, report of the Economic Council recommends that the insight of Canada as free-spending in the field of education should be improved. Per-student expenditure as a fraction of Gross Domestic Product is substantial but not outstanding, by global criteria. In this case, Canada’s spending is about the average of the 16 states. In current years, Canada has depended progressively on aids from local authorities and learners’ fees. It becomes a problem when the country depends on the funding from the students’ fees and simultaneously when the learners are living under impoverished conditions (Dawson, 2014).
Some experts have faith in the role of the federal government as the most crucial issue for the future of education in Canada (Looker, 2014). There have, for instance, been grievances of overloaded classrooms, ramshackle equipment and intolerable student-faculty ratios in some elementary learning institutions in Canada. Additionally, higher tuition fees and other student expenses also increase matters of future availability. The present method of unconditional national grants, while by constitutional ethics has been condemned by at least one expert, is lacking in drive and usefulness (Jones, 2014). Certainly, national grants beneath the Established Programs Financing plan serve no visible drive at all, an outcome revealed, in turn, in successive steps to hurry their demise
Given the above solutions, I strongly feel that the empowerment of parents is vital to the development of the educational capabilities of their children. No child should experience educational difficulties just because his/her parents are financially unstable. The financial situation of a family should not determine the academic potential of a child. All children should be given the same learning environment, and this will go a long way in bridging the funding gap experienced in the Canadian educational system especially at the elemental levels. Parents should not just sit and witness their children being sent home for school fees. For instance, if a parent is not in a position to pay the fees for his/her child, there is a need look for extra funding. One should seek bursaries or loans, which could ensure smooth learning of the student.
According to research, more than a third of learners receive some form of help with their school fees. This could be in the form of bursaries or scholarships. Therefore, parents should not allow this opportunity just to be a waste. To get a bursary, one needs to earn beneath a particular amount, which could frequently be very low. One should be willing to have his/her finances scrutinized. This could also involve other forms of assessment, for instance, the type of car one drives, any holidays an individual takes, and any valuables that one has in his/her house. Scholarships seem to cover a small percentage of fees. Furthermore, some scholarships seem to cover the entire financial obligation of the students. When possible, parents should seek scholarships for their children, which could offer financial assistance to the students.
It is very essential for parents to look for suitable learning institutions where to take their children. Parents should ensure their children are in institutions where they can afford to sustain the funding. Parents with no occupational opportunities should try to look for one. Additionally, individuals should try to start their businesses, which could help them meet their education financial responsibilities. This may ensure that all learners have an excellent and affordable education. Furthermore, the Canadian Government should look for strategies to ensure that all students with financial difficulties are assisted. This will ensure equality amid students from diverse backgrounds. Moreover, the government should provide employment opportunities to its citizens. This will aid in raising money, which will enhance meeting of educational funding obligations for the students. All stakeholders in the sector of education should have a well-planned basis on how to ensure that all children in Canada have access to quality education.
Dawson, T. B. (2014). Judicial education on social context and gender in Canada: Principles, process, and lessons learned. International Journal of the Legal Profession, 21(3), 259-280.
Jones, G. A. (2014). Building and strengthening policy research capacity: Key issues in Canadian higher education. Studies in Higher Education, 39(8), 1332-1342.
Looker, E. (2014). Supportive communities and a sense of belonging in rural and non-rural communities in Canada. Journal of Rural & Community Development, 9(4), 163-180.
Ly, A., & Crowshoe, L. (2015). ‘Stereotypes are reality’: Addressing stereotyping in Canadian Aboriginal medical education. Medical Education, 49(6), 612-622.
Simcoe County District School Board. (2015).