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Educational Equity Podcast – Speaker’s Corner Series Recap

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The Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education Symposium took place on October 11 and 12, 2023. The symposium invited participation by all Ontario district school boards, education stakeholders, and scholars focused on educational equity and human rights to allow for sharing of promising practices around equity-based initiatives, along with providing space to reflect on and commit to action towards enhanced equity for elementary school students. At the symposium, in partnership with podcast host Stephen Hurley (voiceEd Radio), we hosted a powerful series of ‘Speaker’s Corner’ podcast conversations with equity leaders across the province. 

Each Educational Equity Podcast episode explores the ongoing work of dismantling systemic barriers in education and highlights the lived experiences, insights, and calls to action from advocates and educators working to make education more inclusive and equitable.

Educational Equity Podcast #2: Speaker’s Corner – Relationships, Dialogue, and Listening with Atala Andratis

In this episode, Atala Andratis, Equity Lead for the Grand Erie District School Board, shares about the essential role of dialogue in breaking down barriers and building inclusive environments. Drawing from her multilingual background and experiences as an educator, Atala advocates for an asset-based approach to supporting diverse student populations.

Some key messages from this episode include:

  • Equity in education involves removing systemic barriers that prevent students from accessing what they require to be successful.
  • Building relationships with students is essential in creating transformative and responsive learning environments.
  • Educators hold immense power and responsibility in making decisions that significantly impact student’s lives, and they must approach this sacred trust with care and awareness.

Educational Equity Podcast #3: Speaker’s Corner – Community Voices and Appreciating the Whole Fruit Salad with Ingrid Palmer

In this episode, Ingrid Palmer, founder of Focus on Ability and Principal IDEAL Advocate at Realize, shares about the importance of educational equity for students with disabilities, drawing from her personal journey, extensive experiences,   and as a passionate advocate for inclusive practices.

Some key messages from this episode include:

  • Language in disability advocacy: The conversation highlights differing perspectives on language around disability.
  • Promoting inclusive education: Ingrid discusses strategies for supporting students with disabilities in schools, and advocates for a collective lens and supporting equity to reduce stigma and enhance inclusion.
  • Authentic community engagement: Emphasizing the need for community voices in decision-making, Ingrid calls for a shift in how institutions engage with communities, and advocates for community-led initiatives in addressing systemic barriers. 

Educational Equity Podcast #4: Speaker’s Corner – Culturally Relevant Pedagogy with Karen Murray

In this episode, Karen Murray, System Superintendent for Equity, Anti-Oppression, and Early Years at the Toronto District School Board, discusses her book My Best Idea: Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and the everyday practices that support equity in classrooms. Karen emphasizes the value of educators embedding culturally relevant approaches in all aspects of teaching.

Some key messages from this episode include:

  • Equity work needs to be braided into everyday teaching practices, not treated as a separate initiative.
  • Educators should honour community and family knowledge by inviting families to share the different ways they engage with subjects at home, and also share their approaches in the classroom with families.
  • Culturally Relevant Pedagogy is about setting high expectations, demonstrating cultural competence, and developing students’ critical consciousness.

Educational Equity Podcast #5: Speaker’s Corner – Human Rights and Equity Initiatives with Pam Agawa

In this episode, Pam Agawa, Human Rights and Equity Lead for Keewatin Patricia District School Board, discusses the shift from research to actionable steps, the importance of community relationships and innovative approaches to overcoming systemic barriers. With a background in both education and government, Pam shares about the challenges and possibilities of ongoing efforts to create inclusive and supportive learning environments. 

Some key messages from this episode include:

  • Action Over Research: Pam emphasizes the need to move from continuous data collection to implementing concrete actions that address educational equity challenges.
  • Community and Relationships: Establishing strong, reciprocal relationships within communities is crucial for the success of equity initiatives.
  • Innovation and Precedent: Pam advocates for innovation in overcoming systemic barriers. She stresses the importance of collaboration among educational leaders across different districts to set new precedents and push the boundaries of established protocols.

To listen to the podcast, review the transcript and for more information, head to https://www.torontomu.ca/educational-equity-symposium/podcasts-/

Jane Cervi: Child care expansion in Ontario’s Niagara Region

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Congratulations to all of our undergraduate and graduate students who convocated in Fall 2024! We are celebrating Jane Cervi, who was a student in Dr. Sejal Patel’s graduate Internship in Early Childhood Studies course, and an alumna of the Masters in Early Childhood Studies at Toronto Metropolitan University. 

We would also like to acknowledge Martha Friendly, who has been a leading member in the child care movement since the 1960s, recently becoming an appointee to the Order of Canada and receiving a Key to the City of Toronto. Martha is the founder and executive director of the Childcare Resource and Research Unit in Toronto where Jane Cervi was a graduate student intern in Winter 2024.

Martha has led the child care movement in Canada advocating for an equitable, universal, high-quality child care sector. A social science researcher by education, she started working on early childhood education and child care research in the late 1960s and became a part of grassroots child care activism in the 1970s. Martha founded the Childcare Resource and Research Unit (CRRU) at the University of Toronto’s Centre for Urban and Community Studies in the early 1980s, which has a mandate to work towards a universal child care system. The CRRU is now an independent non-profit organization continuing to do this work. Martha is the author of numerous publications and the recipient of many awards, including an honourary doctorate from Trent University. 

On behalf of Jane Cervi and the School of Early Childhood Studies at Toronto Metropolitan University, we wish to personally congratulate Martha on her tremendous accomplishments.

During Jane Cervi’s time at the CRRU, Martha taught her many valuable lessons about leading the way and advocating for children and families, and the role of research and policy in the early learning and child care sector.

Martha and the CRRU team inspired Jane Cervi to continue with this important work and to be an advocate for a universal child care sector that we can all be proud of. “Having spent significant time listening, reading and learning throughout my time as an intern with the CRRU team I soon began to realize there was a major piece of the early learning and child care puzzle missing. This piece is to look deeper at prioritizing expansion for children and their families through the lens of a professional who understands and cares deeply for the early learning and child care sector.”-Jane Cervi 

Click here to read more about the need for child care expansion in Ontario’s Niagara Region.

Post Symposium: Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education Panel Summaries

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To promote mobilization of the ideas and resources that were shared during the EEOEE Symposium, one-page summaries were created based on each panel. To view these summaries, click on the blue links below or visit https://www.torontomu.ca/educational-equity-symposium/panel-summary-reports/ for more information.

Panel A: Equity for Black Students

Panel B: Equity for Students who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC)

Panel C: Equity for Disabled Students

Panel D: Equity for 2SLGBTQIA+ Students

Panel E: Equity for Indigenous Students

Panel F: Equity for Students Living in Low Sociodemographic Neighbourhoods

Panel G: Faith-Based Equity

Panel H: Equity for Newcomer Students

Educational Equity Podcast – Episode 1: Indigenous Perspectives on Learning and Unlearning

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The first episode of the Educational Equity podcast, titled Indigenous Perspectives on Learning and Unlearning, is now live!

Hosts Stephen Hurley and Dr. Nicholas Ng-A-Fook are joined by young Indigenous knowledge keepers, Kiera Brant-Birioukov, Kyrstin Dumont, Stephanie Sanders, Marissa Magneson, Roxanne Gillis, and Melissa Somer. In this podcast, participants shared their perspectives on equity, informed by their Indigenous worldviews and lived experiences. The discussion was guided by the following questions: 

•What is equity for each of you in terms of your lived experiences and in terms of your current work in relation to settler colonial K-6 public and private schooling systems in Ontario? 

• What are some of the historical and/or ongoing individual, structural, systemic and societal barriers?

• What is some of the professional (un)learning work taking place to support students? 

To listen to the podcast and for more information about each speaker and their work, head to https://www.torontomu.ca/educational-equity-symposium/podcasts-/

Post-Symposium: Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education

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The Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education Symposium was held virtually and in-person at Toronto Metropolitan University, on October 11th and 12th, 2023. Enhancing Equity in Ontario Education is a project led by Dr. Sejal Patel (Early Childhood Studies, Toronto Metropolitan University), in partnership with Dr. Alana Butler from Queen’s University, Dr. Adam Davies from University of Guelph, Dr. George Dei from University of Toronto, Dr. Nicholas Ng-A-Fook from University of Ottawa, Dr. Vidya Shah from York University, Dr. Janelle Brady and Dr. Kathryn Underwood from Toronto Metropolian University, Tesa Fiddler from Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board, Max Cooke from EdCan Network, Stephen Hurley from voicEd Radio, Courtnay McFarlane from Regent Park Community Health Centre, and Annie Kidder and Dr. Robin Liu Hopson from People for Education. 

The Symposium invited participation by all Ontario district school boards, education stakeholders, and scholars focused on educational equity and human rights (considering Black and Indigenous students, newcomer/international students, racialized students, students living in low socioeconomic neighbourhoods, student who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+, disabled students, and other intersectionalities), to allow for sharing of promising practices around equity-based initiatives, along with providing space to reflect on and commit to taking greater action in support of enhanced equity for elementary school students. 

Video Recap:

As we begin 2024, we reflect on the inspiring conversations that took place at the Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education symposium. The symposium provided opportunities to share and consider promising practices regarding enhancing equity for elementary students. We received wonderful feedback about the logistics, moderated discussions, panels, and presentations, and are grateful for all of the dialogue and action that the symposium attendees continue to inspire. 

Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to all of the presenters, symposium staff and volunteers. Your collaboration, support, and effort helped to ensure that the symposium ran as smoothly as possible. 

Thank you all for your participation in this important event. Stay tuned for podcasts and symposium proceedings, which will be mobilized through this website.  

MSIC: Reducing inequities in children’s educational success and family well-being in marginalized communities through innovation in public education

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How can marginalized communities be supported through innovation in public education?

The Reducing inequities in children’s educational success and family well-being in marginalized communities through public education investigates how the Toronto District School Board’s (TDSB) comprehensive, multi-pronged, system focused, and holistic Model Schools for Inner Cities (MSIC) initiative works and what initial conditions and program features help contribute to sustainable improvement in marginalized students’ educational success and family well-being.

“We are proud to be a Model School for Inner Cities,” school poster reads.

What is Model Schools for Inner Cities?

In an effort to level the playing field for all students, the TDSB’s MSIC initiative was launched in 2006. The MSIC initiative aims to reduce inequities and achievement gaps for students in low socioeconomic communities by providing additional school-based supports and services for students in Toronto communities with the highest needs. The TDSB began with four pilot school sites in the first year, which then expanded to over 150 schools six years later serving over 56 000 students in low socioeconomic communities (Kugler, 2007; Toronto District School Board, 2005). Grounded in maintaining high expectations for students and promoting a vision of achieving excellence, the MSIC initiative is guided by five essential components:

  1. Innovation in teaching and learning practices
  2. Support services to meet the social, emotional, and physical well-being of students
  3. Supporting the view of the school as the heart of the community
  4. Frequent research, review, and evaluation of students and program effectiveness
  5. Commitment to share successful practices
At a MSIC school, there are also services for parents, such as the Parenting and Family Literacy Centre.

The MSIC initiative offers a variety of services, supports, and resources for students and families in MSIC schools including:

  • Health and educational support services (e.g., nutrition programs, free vision and hearing tests, in-school health clinics, before- and after- school programs)
  • EarlyON Centres (school-based drop-in programs for parents with young children)
  • Parent Academy (a program that provides an opportunity for parent representatives to organize and offer locally relevant parenting and workforce development workshops)
  • Additional staff to support student academic success and wellbeing (e.g., Teaching and Learning Coaches, Community Support Workers, Social Workers)
  • Additional teaching and learning resources (e.g., information technology, MSIC social justice curriculum, ongoing professional development for teachers)
  • Partnerships with community organizations (partnerships with local agencies to offer programming and opportunities to students and families within and outside of school)

Our Approach

To investigate how the MSIC initiative works and its approach to supporting equity in children’s educational success and family well-being, we will work in collaboration with our partners at the Toronto District School Board to conduct:

  • Secondary analysis of qualitative data, including child and staff focus group and interview data collected at five MSIC school sites over time
  • New key informant interviews with school board staff
  • New focus groups with parents at five school sites

After data collection is complete, we will focus on sharing our results with study participants, school community members, and the broader public.

References

Kugler, J. (2007). Inner city model school initiative: A vision for equity and social justice. Orbit, 36, 4-6.

Toronto District School Board. (2005, May). Model Schools for Inner Cities task force report. Retrieved February 14, 2019 from https://www.tdsb.on.ca/Portals/0/Community/Community%20Advisory%20committees/ICAC/research/InnerCityReportMay2005.pdf

Toronto District School Board, Model Schools for Inner Cities. (2014). Retrieved February 7, 2019, from https://www.tdsb.on.ca/Community/Model-Schools-for-Inner-Cities/Initiatives

To read more about the TDSB’s MSIC initiative, and GEEC’s research, click here.

Document citation: Patel, S. (2019). Reducing inequities in children’s educational success and family well-being in marginalized communities through innovation in
public education: Knowledge mobilization summary report. Toronto, ON: School of Early Childhood Studies, Ryerson University.

This is an ongoing study funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Partnership for Change: The RBC Immigrant, Diversity and Inclusion Project, Ryerson University, and the Toronto District School Board.  We will continue to share more updates about our ongoing project soon.