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Enrolment is down at Toronto schools, but even fewer teachers are entering the field. Student mental health is not improving overall, and it’s worse for female students.

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10 Issues-final_M-Learning

Teacher shortages are widespread, as new teacher rates are falling faster than enrolment.

  • Enrolment at Toronto school boards has declined overall by 3% in the last five years, driven by a 6% decrease in elementary students. Though, it should be noted that secondary-school enrolment has increased by 3%.xxxviii
  • Yet, schools are facing chronic teacher shortages because the number of new teachers is falling far faster than enrolment (provincially less than half, compared to a decade ago). Additionally, retirements and personal leaves have increased.xxxix 
  • The extent of shortages can be seen in TDSB elementary schools, where only 74% of calls for substitute teachers were filled. And the use of emergency staff (non-certified, community members) has more than doubled in the past two school years.xl,xli   
  • Schools where more students are racialized, have special needs or come from low-income families face the greatest staffing challenges.xlii 

The student mental health crisis is not improving.

  • The number of Ontario students in grades 7 through 12 reporting fair to poor mental health doubled between 2017 and 2021, from 19% to 38%, and remained at 38% in 2023.xliii
  • One in two female students is reporting poor or fair mental health, compared to approximately one in five male students — a slight decline for girls and an improvement for boys since 2021.xliv
  • More than half of students (51%) are reporting they have serious-to-moderate psychological distress, up from 47% in 2021. This includes a significant increase for female students (68% in 2023, up from 57% in 2021), while the rate remained unchanged for male students at 35%).xlv
Learning
Tina Garnett (learning)

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ENDNOTES:

Infographics:

1. Jones, Allison. (October 2, 2024). Ontario teacher shortage to worsen in 2027, ministry document warns. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-teacher-shortage-ministry-of-educaiton-1.7339837  

2a. Teotonio, Isabel. (2024, January 7). A ‘crisis’ in GTA school staffing shortages is leading to cancelled classes, burnout and mounting pressures. Principals are sounding the alarm. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/a-crisis-in-gta-school-staffing-shortages-is-leading-to-cancelled-classes-burnout-and-mounting/article_3ba6c71c-9a00-11ee-9654-fb2ba9e206c4.html  

2b. Teotonio, Isabel. (2024, June 8). The person leading your child’s classroom may be a parent, grandparent or lunchroom supervisor — not an actual teacher. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/the-person-leading-your-childs-classroom-may-be-a-parent-grandparent-or-lunchroom-supervisor-not/article_c9a7d47a-17b4-11ef-8004-5f1ee996b9ed.html    

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