Safer and Healthier Schools

Students need a safe learning environment where they do not have to experience or witness violence or harassment.

Addressing Violence in Elementary Schools

In 2023, ETFO commissioned a survey of its members to examine the rising concern of violence in schools. The results confirmed that violence in Ontario’s elementary public schools is a systemic and pervasive issue. It impacts the physical and psychological health of educators, disrupts learning, and threatens the well-being of students – both those who are struggling and those who are witnesses to violent incidents.

Four out of five members reported an increase in the number of incidents of violence in schools, and two-thirds say that violent incidents were becoming more severe. All students in Ontario’s public schools need to be safe and receive the supports they need. The provincial government and school boards have a responsibility to provide the necessary funding to ensure that adequate front-line staffing and supports are in place to meet the needs of students. The provincial government must review the current education funding formula to ensure it meets the diverse needs of students.

Educators understand that student behaviours that may present a risk of injury to others are symptoms of unmet needs and undeveloped skills. Students need understanding and support to help them thrive. Students in Ontario’s public elementary schools need:

• A safe learning environment where they do not have to experience or witness violence or harassment
• Timely access to assessments to identify exceptionalities and learning needs
• Intervention to support student needs as soon as they are identified
• The opportunity to learn alongside same-aged peers in inclusive settings, supported by the appropriate staffing, training, resources, and mental health supports
• Timely access to programs that include educators and staff trained in meeting the particular needs of students when educators and families determine that those students’ needs are best met in specialized settings
• Access to systems outside of school that are fully funded and meet the needs of children and families, including mental health supports

To address violence in schools, it is important that the data gathered be accurate and that school boards be transparent with other stakeholders so that a collaborative approach can be used. All workers must be encouraged to report all incidents of violence and all school boards must ensure that the reporting system is easy to use and gathers comprehensive information. The data must be shared with joint health and safety committees and school board trustees at the local level and gathered by the Ministry of Education to be shared and analyzed by stakeholders at the provincial level.

The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) already has protections for workers to keep them safe from violence and harassment. A Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development’s health and safety compliance initiative on workplace violence in schools carried out in 2023 revealed that basic requirements of the OHSA are not in place. For example, the order most frequently issued was for violence risk assessments, which in some cases had not been updated in years, and in other cases, administrators were completely unfamiliar with the requirement to carry out such assessments. The government must ensure that school boards comply with their legal obligations under the OHSA.

The issue of violence in schools is pervasive and widespread, but it is not unsolvable. Addressing violence in schools requires the government to implement a province-wide strategy that provides adequate funding and supports, and engages school boards, educators, students, and their families.

Supporting Student and Educator Mental Health

One of the lessons learned following the COVID-19 pandemic, is that the mental health of teachers, education workers, and students requires the urgent attention of the provincial government.

In its 2022 Annual Ontario School Survey, People for Education reported that:

• only 18% of elementary schools have guidance counsellors, with virtually all of those working part-time (98%)
• only 30% of elementary schools have regular access to psychologists
• only 49% of elementary schools have regular access to social workers
• only 36% of elementary schools have regular access to child and youth workers

In its latest survey, based on responses from principals across the province, People for Education found:

• increased behavioural issues, students having difficulties with self-regulation, and a range of unaddressed mental health challenges
• 28% of elementary schools have no access to a psychologist – nearly double the number reported in 2011
• 93% of schools reported a need for support staff such as educational assistants
• 95% of schools report needing some or more support for students’ mental health and well-being

Additional funding must be provided to improve access to in-school supports, especially in underserved areas. Supporting students' emotional, developmental, and behavioural needs is critical so that ETFO members can focus on supporting students' learning needs.

The negative impact that chronic underfunding, and the accompanying loss of in-school supports, has on the mental health of educators is reflected in ongoing retention and recruitment challenges. Many school boards are experiencing staffing crises while at the same time many teachers have made the difficult choice to leave the profession. The government must focus on improving the working conditions of teachers and educators and provide the access to mental health supports.

Addressing the School Repairs and Maintenance Backlog

Ontario’s current education funding is based on a model introduced more than two decades ago that was designed to reduce overall expenditure in public schools. Under this model, funding for school operations and maintenance has consistently fallen short. This issue has received considerable attention and was the subject of a research report in 2017 that documented a backlog in maintenance and repairs of school facilities amounting to more than $16 billion – that backlog has only increased since then.

The consequences of this school repair and maintenance backlog are being experienced across the province. Every year students and educators are forced to deal with poor ventilation, lack of air conditioning during hot months, inadequate heating in the winter, leaky roofs, flooding, etc. Many schools are left with spaces that are simply not adequate for student learning, and in some cases are not safe to use.

The provincial government must address this school repair and maintenance backlog to ensure safe learning spaces for students and safe working environments for educators.