Ontario’s education minister has unveiled the government’s plan to see students return to the classrooms full-time this September.
Minister Stephen Lecce announced on Monday that the provincial government has launched its “Plan to Catch up” to get Ontario’s kids back to school for the 2022-2023 school year following two years of pandemic disruptions.
The plan aims to have students receive the full school experience, including extracurriculars such as clubs and field trips. As well, Lecce said the province is investing more than $175 million for enhanced tutoring support programs that will be offered to students to fill gaps in learning.
“We have a plan for students to catch up, including the largest tutoring program in Ontario’s history, a modernized skills-focused curriculum to prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow, and enhanced mental health supports,” the education minister said in a news release. “Ontario’s plan is getting students back on track.”
The Ontario government said it has already invested more than $26.6 billion for the 2022-2023 school year.
“With an emphasis on getting back to basics, our government is focused on strengthening life and job skills in the classroom, so that students graduate as financially literate, technologically savvy, emotionally intelligent leaders, ready for the jobs of tomorrow,” said Lecce.
Also for the upcoming school year, the province said it has allocated $2.1 billion to build state-of-the-art schools, and renew and repair existing schools.