The Pink Lesson Plan
Kathleen Wynne, the new Minister of Education seemed to have a completely different agenda in store for Ontario schools. In an interview with Wynne, she stated: We wanted a progressive disciplinary approach in the system. But beyond that, I was always intent as a backbencher and then as Minister, to reintroduce the notion of equity into the system because what I knew, was that Mike Harris and his government had literally taken the word equity out of curriculum documents. And they had taken it out of government business. So, I knew that there were teachers and there were educators out in the field who were still doing work, but they were unsupported by the Ministry framework—because there was no Ministry framework. (Personal interview with Kathleen Wynne, April 8, 2011).
Her recommendation was that boards of education, the Ontario College of Teachers, Association of Canadian Deans of Education, Council of Directors of Education, and Canadian Association of Principals must provide safe schools training that included the prevention and management of homophobia. Every form of education training in Ontario was, in no uncertain terms, told to change the way it perceived and treated gay and lesbian students.
This shift was significant because it acknowledged that the issue of safety was extremely complex not just for victims but for perpetrators, and that sexual-minority students could be at either end of this spectrum. Bill 212 (Education Amendment Act: Progressive Discipline and School Safety, 2007) repealed sections 306 through 311 of the Safe Schools Act and included the following changes: a move toward progressive discipline instead of zero tolerance; a need for administrators to examine “mitigating circumstances” that may affect disciplinary measures; and the right for schools to discipline students even off school property.
The most significant change in Bill 212 was not its repeal of zero tolerance, but the inclusion of one word: bullying. It defined bullying as “a dynamic of unhealthy interaction that can take many forms. It can be physical (e.g., hitting, pushing, tripping); verbal (e.g., name-calling, mocking, or making sexist, racist, or homophobic comments” (PPM, 144, p. 3). The inclusion of the word bullying in the Safe Schools Act meant that verbal and emotional abuse was given parity with physical violence.
Wynne introduced further amendments to the Safe Schools Act in 2009 under Bill 157. Keeping Our Kids Safe at School focused on gender-based violence issues such as homophobia, sexual harassment, and inappropriate sexual behavior. It did not mention gangs or weapons in schools. This time the emphasis was placed on the teachers and administrators as having a duty to respond to, report, and record all incidents of bullying in a timely manner. Failure to do so could result in liability toward a school board or action by a governing body such as Ontario College of Teachers. PPM 119 (Developing and Implementing Equity and Inclusive Education Policies in Ontario Schools, 2009) further discussed the importance of creating a safe schools action team, antibullying groups, or a GSA. At this time, it is impossible to say what effects it will have on school climate and treatment of gay and lesbian students.
Read the entire document here.
There you have have it, "Bullying" was just a front to advance the Gay agenda in Ontario's schools. h/t RM
Kathleen Wynne, the new Minister of Education seemed to have a completely different agenda in store for Ontario schools. In an interview with Wynne, she stated: We wanted a progressive disciplinary approach in the system. But beyond that, I was always intent as a backbencher and then as Minister, to reintroduce the notion of equity into the system because what I knew, was that Mike Harris and his government had literally taken the word equity out of curriculum documents. And they had taken it out of government business. So, I knew that there were teachers and there were educators out in the field who were still doing work, but they were unsupported by the Ministry framework—because there was no Ministry framework. (Personal interview with Kathleen Wynne, April 8, 2011).
Her recommendation was that boards of education, the Ontario College of Teachers, Association of Canadian Deans of Education, Council of Directors of Education, and Canadian Association of Principals must provide safe schools training that included the prevention and management of homophobia. Every form of education training in Ontario was, in no uncertain terms, told to change the way it perceived and treated gay and lesbian students.
This shift was significant because it acknowledged that the issue of safety was extremely complex not just for victims but for perpetrators, and that sexual-minority students could be at either end of this spectrum. Bill 212 (Education Amendment Act: Progressive Discipline and School Safety, 2007) repealed sections 306 through 311 of the Safe Schools Act and included the following changes: a move toward progressive discipline instead of zero tolerance; a need for administrators to examine “mitigating circumstances” that may affect disciplinary measures; and the right for schools to discipline students even off school property.
The most significant change in Bill 212 was not its repeal of zero tolerance, but the inclusion of one word: bullying. It defined bullying as “a dynamic of unhealthy interaction that can take many forms. It can be physical (e.g., hitting, pushing, tripping); verbal (e.g., name-calling, mocking, or making sexist, racist, or homophobic comments” (PPM, 144, p. 3). The inclusion of the word bullying in the Safe Schools Act meant that verbal and emotional abuse was given parity with physical violence.
Wynne introduced further amendments to the Safe Schools Act in 2009 under Bill 157. Keeping Our Kids Safe at School focused on gender-based violence issues such as homophobia, sexual harassment, and inappropriate sexual behavior. It did not mention gangs or weapons in schools. This time the emphasis was placed on the teachers and administrators as having a duty to respond to, report, and record all incidents of bullying in a timely manner. Failure to do so could result in liability toward a school board or action by a governing body such as Ontario College of Teachers. PPM 119 (Developing and Implementing Equity and Inclusive Education Policies in Ontario Schools, 2009) further discussed the importance of creating a safe schools action team, antibullying groups, or a GSA. At this time, it is impossible to say what effects it will have on school climate and treatment of gay and lesbian students.
Read the entire document here.
There you have have it, "Bullying" was just a front to advance the Gay agenda in Ontario's schools. h/t RM
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