COMMENTARY

The Colour of Change: The New Demographics of Canada

WATSON SCOTT SWAIL, President & CEO of the Educational Policy Institute

This past Wednesday I was a guest on The Bill Good Showon CKNW radio in Vancouver. The discussion focused on demographic data released by StatsCan about the educational outcomes of Canadians. At point was the high achievement rates of ethnic groups compared to white, or Euro, Canadians. Based on 2006 Census data, the university degree attainment rates of Canadians, by ethnicity, are as follows:

• Chinese Canadian 90%
• Korean Canadian 75%
• Fillipino Canadian  59%
• Arab Canadians 52%
• white ( Euro) Canadian 26%

The question posed by Bill Good was, “What implications does this have for Canada?” Bill further made comment that during the Olympics, the television coverage showed thousands of flag-waving Canadians, many of whom were ethnic minorities, cheering and being proud to be Canadian. But what does this shift in demographic balance mean for the country as a whole? Will there be a white backlash at some point? READ MORE...

In 2007, 11 percent of the school-age population (ages 5-24) in Canada lived in low-income circumstances, compared to 1 percent in 2003. Historically, children living in single-parent families have been more likely to live in low-income situations.

Source: Statistics Canada

THE NEWS

More than half of B.C. school districts face stagnant operating grants
By Janet Steffenhagen, Vancouver Sun
School districts were examining the B.C. government’s funding promises after the education ministry released information this week showing that more than half of them would receive the same operating grant this year as last year, despite having to pay for salary increases and expanded kindergarten. Overall, the 60 school districts will receive an additional $112 million for teacher wages and full-day kindergarten as promised in the 2010 budget, boosting total operating grants for public schools to $4.66 billion next year, the ministry said in a release. But in 33 districts, the extra cash will be offset by a drop in per-pupil grants due to declining enrolment.

Quebec closing the books on homework?
By Max Harrold, Montreal Gazette
In the view of a report being released Thursday by the Conseil supérieur de l'éducation, an influential body that advises the Quebec government, homework for elementary school students needs to be re-examined, refocused, possibly even abolished. The 124-page report notes many families now have less time to help their children with homework and scientific studies have not shown a definitive link between homework and the academic success of elementary school students. It urges educators, parents and community groups to make homework more targeted to students' needs, whether they have learning difficulties, are average or excel in class.

Board revises suspension figures
By Mathhew Pearson, The Ottawa Citizen
The number of special needs students suspended from school last year is not as high as previously thought, according to a revised report issued by the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board. In December, a staff report said the number of suspensions among special needs students jumped from 1,210 in 2006-2007 to 1,893 in 2008-2009, and represented 16 per cent of the 11,601 students who had special needs. It prompted worries that the board wasn't properly handling children with unusual problems and challenges. But the board's revised numbers are all different.

Student upbeat after four nights outdoors
By Jen Skerritt, Winnipeg Free Press
After four sleep-deprived nights on the cold frosty ground, five University of Manitoba students are looking forward to a warm bed and a hot shower. The students have camped out at their "home" outside the University Centre since Sunday evening armed with nothing more than a sleeping bag and a pillow for a five-day stretch to simulate homelessness and raise awareness. Five Days for the Homeless fundraising campaign was first held in Winnipeg in 2009 and University of Manitoba students then raised over $13,000 for Resource Assistance for Youth (RaY), an organization in downtown Winnipeg that works with disadvantaged, at-risk youth.

MBA school rankings cause more confusion than clarity
Toronto Globe and Mail
Competition is hotter than ever between the world's business schools to attract the brightest students and the attention of wealthy benefactors. And rankings have become a fact of life for academics who find themselves participating, albeit often reluctantly, in highly publicized surveys they hope will put their MBA programs in the spotlight. Meanwhile, MBA and EMBA rankings have turned into a highly lucrative industry for the major media outlets that produce them. But MBA rankings can bring as much confusion as clarity as different rankings use very different survey tools, data and methodologies.

Report: Aboriginal education funding doled out unfairly
By Mary Ellen MacIntyre, The Chronicle Herald
More than a little controversy was stirred up with the release of a national think-tank’s report on aboriginal post-secondary school funding this week. Claiming First Nations sometimes choose which students get access to funds based on nepotism and whether the student lives on or off reserve, the MacDonald-Laurier Institute’s report doesn’t pull punches. Some people like that, but others think the report’s authors, Calvin Helin and Dave Snow, should keep their opinions to themselves.

Muslim Students Continue Street Protest
By Melanie Newman, The Times Higher Education
Hundreds of Muslim students have been holding prayers outside City University London for a month in protest at the closure of a prayer room used exclusively by them. Alternative shared accommodation was offered but the students declare that “multi-faith” alternatives are unacceptable. All-male groups have been praying on the pavement outside City since 15 February, with more than 200 reportedly turning up for Friday prayers in Northampton Square.

Indian cabinet backs foreign schools
By Vikas Bajaj, The New York Times
The Indian cabinet approved a bill on Monday that would allow foreign universities to set up campuses in the country, a major break with previous policy in which outside institutions were seen as a threat to the education system. The bill, still subject to a decision by Parliament, appears to be an acknowledgment by public officials that the country’s largely public higher education system cannot cope with the rising demand for degrees from a large population of young people. The bill would require universities to invest a minimum of about $11 million and would prohibit them from repatriating profits, a condition that could limit the appeal of an Indian campus to those universities that view overseas programs as money-making ventures.

Yearn to earn put on hold as students stick to education
By Stephen Lunn and James Robertson, The Australian
More young people are opting to learn rather than earn, with the proportion of those staying on in education instead of taking a job increasing in the past 10 years. A new Australian Bureau of Statistics report finds that, although the overall proportion of 15-24-year0olds “fully engaged in either education or work” has hovered around 80 per cent since 1999, those in education rose from 45 per cent to 48 per cent. The study, part of the ABS’s quarterly Social Trends series, notes participation in education or work is critical to overall wellbeing in young people, with those in neither more prone to long-term employment insecurity.

The Affordability of University Education: A Perspective from Both Sides of the 49th Parallel

by Watson Scott Swail