HOMELESS CHILDREN AND EDUCATION

Oct.1, 2007

EDUCATIONAL CHALLENGES FOR CHILDREN LIVING IN SHELTERS

The Community Social Planning Committee of Toronto and the Aisling Discoveries Child and Family Centre have released a report Lost In The Shuffle, authored by Ann Decter, stating the challenges faced by 6 to 12 year old children living in homeless shelters.

What does Lost In The Shuffle mean? “To move from place to place; to be in chaos; to be neglected; to not be noticed or considered”.

According to an article in The Toronto Star on October 1, 2007 approximately 3,000 children in Toronto alone are affected by this chaos or disruption in their education. Some families move up to three times per school year. Children in these situations are more likely to experience stress, social isolation, uncertainty and the stigma of being homeless. Mothers who have experienced violence in the home and have moved to a shelter for safety are often forced to choose between living with violence in the home or having their children receive a continuous education in the school they are accustomed to.

The report Lost In The Shuffle makes several recommendations, These may be viewed with the full report at www.socialplanningtoronto.org Focus on pages 1 to 5 of its summary.

In 2006, Deb Matthews MPP London North Centre served as Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Community Services and the Minister Responsible for Women’s Issues. On June 22nd, Ms. Matthews introduced Bill 133, a private members bill: An Act to amend the Education Act to provide stability for students in transition housing. The Bill was intended to amend the Education Act to guarantee that a child who is a ward of the children’s aid society, is in the care of a children’s aid society, is in emergency housing or temporary housing or is homeless, can continue, at the parent’s or guardian’s request, to attend the school they were attending before falling into one of those categories until the earlier of the end of the school year and the child being established in a permanent housing arrangement.Unfortunately, on June 5, 2007, the Government prorogued the House and Bill 133 died on the order table.

After the October 10th provincial election, Premier McGuinty appointed Ms. Matthews as Minister of Children and Youth Services. It is hoped that the Bill will be re-introduced after the Speech from the Throne on Nov. 29, 2007. Members are encouraged to listen to the Throne Speech that will outline the agenda of this newly elected government.

Wendy Taylor
OC Education Chair