Acknowledging the “We” of Authorship
This report has thousands of “fingerprints” all over it. I am fortunate to have been a conduit and a bit of a filter for the many ideas of so many helpful and thoughtful individuals and organizations in and beyond Ontario.
Over a thousand parent submissions and discussions revealed the varied realities of families in our wonderfully diverse province.
Meetings with organizations representing teachers, ECEs, education administrators, postsecondary educators, researchers, and others provided an essential window into the world of practitioners.
I have a real human fear of omitting gratitude to a single educator, community leader, public servant, leader of an advocacy group, researcher/expert, or any of the countless people who have added so much value to this report. You know who you are, and I have probably thanked you personally in one way or another for your contributions ... I hope.
The ideas and coordination support I received from the Office of the Premier and Cabinet Office were invaluable to every aspect of my work.
The very capable public servants in the Ministries of Education and of Children and Youth Services provided helpful analysis and information through countless briefings, as well as organizational skill in putting together community roundtables, all above and beyond their regular onerous and important responsibilities. I also am grateful for the input I received from other ministries, including Community and Social Services, Health and Long-Term Care, Aboriginal Affairs, and Citizenship and Immigration.
Throughout this process, I received valuable insights from leading Canadian and international experts in the field of early learning, tapping their experience and knowledge.
Working groups of experts in the areas of curriculum, human resources, and research provided critically important input, as did many small groups of experts and practitioners who helped me test and refine the recommendations.
This report would not be possible without an even smaller group that spent hours upon hours with me ensuring that the best ideas of thousands of pages about what is best for children and their families could reside in a more accessible number of words.
I am deeply grateful to the Atkinson Charitable Foundation board and staff who generously created the “space” for me to work on this labour of love.
Reserving a few exceptions to the naming dilemma: I wish to acknowledge the Canadian “godfather” for recognizing the critical importance of the early years, Dr. Fraser Mustard, who has been a friend and mentor, energizing and cajoling me for the past two decades.
Finally, I am remarkably fortunate to share a life with Tassie Notar, my most constructive critic, and my very own early learning advisors: Blaise, Jesse, Tai, Muriel, Matt, BK, Indi, Jake, Picabo, and Zachary.
Chapter 1: An Early Years Vision for Ontario
Chapter 2: A Brief Review of the Evidence
Chapter 3: Full-Day Learning: Leaving the Patchwork Behind
Chapter 4: Funding Our Best Future
Chapter 5: From Words to Action
Residents
Businesses