Over the last 30 years, there has been a dramatic shift in the Canadian government's conception of and approach to higher education. Whereas our universities used to be seen and treated by policy-makers as a public resource for social development, they are now viewed first and foremost as instruments of economic competitiveness, whose primary role is to help Canadian businesses succeed in the global knowledge-based economy.
Education
TORONTO—A report released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives finds that, despite the province’s $600 million increase in education spending, 18 of Ontario’s 72 school boards—27.8% of Ontario’s student population—have less total funding on a cost-adjusted basis than they did in 1997. Four public boards—Essex, Peel, Ottawa-Carleton, and Toronto—have less funding per student than they did in 1997.
Over the last three decades, global capitalism has carried out a full-scale assault on public school systems around the world. This collection of essays, edited by George Martell, describes the range and power of this assault and opens up our understanding of the savage privatization agenda in public education The contributors to this collection come from Australia, Canada, England, First Nations Communities, Latin America, Quebec, Western Europe, South Africa, South America, South Korea and the United States. And they bring more than a story of neo-liberal dominance in our schools.
Inside this issue:
Denied Assistance: Closing the Front Door on Welfare in BC
Public Transit and the Poor
A Better Way to Set Welfare Rates
A Path Out of Poverty: Helping BC Income Assistance Recipients Upgrade Their Education