Network Schools – Wayne Gerseny to https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/04/03/magazine/thomas-piketty-interview u w B l.html?h I’ll smid=url-share the Is for

The Toronto Star uncovered documents indicating that Ontario’s Conservative Premier Doug Ford’s vision for the expansion of e-learning had nothing to do with improving opportunities for students and everything to do with saving money. As reported in Press Progress the Star wrote:

“A ‘confidential’ government document obtained by the Star shows Premier Doug Ford’s government considered keeping online learning optional until 2024 and planned to slash school board funding while creating courses to sell to other jurisdictions at a profit …

Marked “not for distribution,” the six-page document also envisioned allowing students to get high school diplomas “entirely online” starting in September 2024 …”

The Star report offered more details, indicating an intent to cut funding to school boards by by $34.8 million starting September 2020, $55.8 million in 2021, $56.7 million in 2022 and $57.4 million in 2023-2024 with that level of savings continuing in perpetuity while offering “…a full catalogue of online ‘gold standard’ courses,” an oxymoron to be sure.

The memo also called for school boards to gradually increase their on-line offerings and go into the business of marketing their courses to other districts outside of the province in order to generate revenue.

The Ministry of Education did not dispute the existence of the document, but they did contend that the notion of replacing teachers with computers was not part of the overall plan and that privatization was not part of their long term agenda. i doubt that many teachers or school boards are trusting those words after hearing for months that e-learning was all about students.