Matter of trust
NOW Jan 17, 2008School safety tome shockingly calls for a narrowing of trustees’ roleBy Andrew Cash If you’re a mandarin at the Toronto District School Board, the temperature may be a bit too hot this week. Julian Falconer’s exhaustive report on school safety, dropped January 10, left no stone unturned. But among all the details […]
Reality Check
NOW Jan 17, 2008The Falconer report on school safety paints a disturbing picture. But was the media too quick to jump on the more alarming bits? Take a look at the numbers. The perception left by headlinesSexual assaults, guns and drugs are rampant in T.O.’s predominantly black schools, to the extent that police dogs should […]
School board boss takes blame
Carlos Osorio Toronto Star, Jan 16, 2008 The Toronto school board's director of education is taking the blame for any failure to inform staff about giving input to lawyer Julian Falconer's panel on school safety. Gerry Connelly says she takes personal responsibility for any breakdown in communication that arose between staff and the panel, which […]
CPE letter in The Star
Much more to report than meets the eye LETTER TO THE EDITORToronto Star Jan 15, 2008 re The real schools issue Letter, Jan. 13 While the media have been focusing on what Chris Glover calls "American-style solutions," a more thorough reading of the school safety report reveals that Julian Falconer turns his spotlight on the […]
Hire workers to support youth
TheStar Jan 14, 2008 LETTER TO THE EDITOR The carrot or the stick? re: Why schools aren't safe Jan. 11 As a kindergarten teacher with the Toronto District School Board, I applaud parts of the Falconer report for recommending the hiring of more social workers, community advisers, and child and youth workers to support marginalized […]
Make Schools Inclusive
Toronto Star Jan 12, 2008 04:30 AM re Searches urged at schools Jan. 10 To keep our schools safe, we must focus on solutions that address causes and not just effects. Eye-grabbing headlines and sensationalized news coverage that puts undue emphasis on the Falconer commission recommendations about regular weapons searches at schools and bringing […]
Violence report reveals culture of fear in Toronto schools
Jordana Huber dose.ca Published: Thursday, January 10, 2008 TORONTO – A panel investigation into school-based violence said the Toronto District School Board should consider using firearm-detecting canine units to randomly conduct "non-intrusive" searches of student lockers and all potential storage areas to ensure weapons are not being hidden, according to a leaked report that includes […]
BOARD erupts over Afro school curriculum
29 November 2007 Board meeting erupts over black school plan Toronto Star
ongoing neglect of our youth
Equity Policy Advisory Committeeof the Toronto District School Board Submission to the School Community Safety Advisory Panel Mr. Julian Falconer, ChairNovember 7, 2007 “…schools cannot be separated from the larger community. They spring from and form part of the community surrounding them. The social issues that plague the communities outside our schools – such […]
youth training module
Organizing for Student Activism Nov 9-10, 2007 certificate training CPE’s organizing component is pleased to announce that registration is now open for November’s youth activism training course: Organizing for Student Activism Activism One: a 6- hour training module of key organizing skills for public education activism Instructor: ۵ Toronto's pre-eminent school-community youth engagement Trainer Timing: […]