Mandatory Professional Activity Days for the 2025-26 School Year

Memorandum to:

• Chairs of District School Boards
• Directors of Education
• Secretary/Treasurers of School Authorities

From:

• Honourable Paul Calandra 
  Minister of Education
• Denise A. Cole
  Deputy Minister of Education

Date:

• August 12, 2025

As we prepare for the 2025-26 school year, we want to take a moment to thank you for your continued leadership and commitment to student success and teacher professional learning across Ontario.

We are writing to share the Ministry of Education’s (the “ministry”) policy and guidelines regarding the topics for the three mandatory Professional Activity (PA) Days for the 2025-26 school year.

As set out in paragraph 8(1)(28) of the Education Act, the Minister of Education has the authority to issue guidelines to school boards on the criteria and topics for mandatory PA Days.

The mandatory PA Day topics for the 2025-26 school year are:

• Keeping Schools Safe
• Tackling Racism
• Artificial Intelligence
• School Resource Officer Program

These themes reflect the government’s focus on a strong, accountable education system that prioritizes student achievement, as outlined in O. Reg. 224/23 Provincial Priorities in Education under the Education Act. The topics have been carefully selected to ensure a consistent and focused approach that supports greater coherence and impact across the province.

Appendix A provides detailed descriptions on the mandatory PA Day topics.

As part of our ongoing efforts to modernize policy and streamline communications, the ministry will be retiring Policy/Program Memorandum (PPM) No. 151: Professional Activity Days Devoted to Provincial Education Priorities. Moving forward, mandatory PA Day topics and related guidance will be communicated exclusively through an annual sector memorandum. Accordingly, this memorandum now serves as the official source of policy and guidance on 2025-26 PA Days. Please ensure it is shared with the appropriate individuals in your board responsible for planning and implementing this important work.

Appendix B provides additional resources and key considerations to further support school boards in planning for these days. Additionally, Appendix C provides a summary of the PA Days language of the 2022-2026 central terms with teacher federations and education worker unions and its alignment with provincial priorities on student achievement.

We appreciate your collaboration in supporting professional learning for educators and staff across the province.

Sincerely,

The Hon. Paul Calandra
Minister of Education

Denise A. Cole
Deputy Minister of Education

c:

• Association des conseils scolaires des écoles publiques de l'Ontario (ACÉPO)
• Association franco-ontarienne des conseils scolaires catholiques (AFOCSC)
• Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association (OCSTA)
• Ontario Public School Boards' Association (OPSBA)
• Council of Ontario Directors of Education (CODE)
• Conseil ontarien des directions de l’éducation de langue française (CODELF)
• Association des enseignantes et des enseignants franco-ontariens (AEFO)
• Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association (OECTA)
• Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO)
• Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF)
• Ontario Council of Educational Workers (OCEW)
• Education Workers’ Alliance of Ontario (EWAO)
• Canadian Union of Public Employees – Ontario (CUPE-ON)
• Association des directions et directions adjointes des écoles franco-ontariennes (ADFO)
• Catholic Principals' Council of Ontario (CPCO)
• Ontario Principals' Council (OPC)

Appendix A - Mandatory PA Day Topics for 2025-26 with Detailed Descriptions

Requirements of School Boards:

• School boards are required to submit a general outline of their PA Day activities through the Ontario School Year Calendar (OSYC) application no later than August 15, 2025. As a reminder, school boards are also required to publicly post and submit to the ministry a detailed summary of PA Day activities at least 14 days in advance of each PA Day in accordance with RRO 1990, Regulation 304.
• The principal and school board are responsible for determining how best to align professional learning with each educator's teaching practice.

Keeping Schools Safe

Professional activities shall include:

• Review of policy requirements and supports for safe schools regarding the Provincial Code of Conduct, violence prevention, bullying prevention and intervention, duty to report children in need of protection to a children's aid society, progressive discipline, violent incident reporting, gender-based violence, sex trafficking, and the Provincial Model for a Local Police/School Board Protocol.
• Culturally responsive trauma-informed principles to create a comprehensive approach to engaging and interacting with students in line with the National Centre for Trauma-Informed Care’s Six Guiding Principles.
• Information about child sexual abuse prevention and reporting, including available counselling and resources for children who are sexually abused, for all teachers and other staff in schools as outlined in section 170.0.1 of the Education Act.
• Understanding educator and staff obligations and requirements under Erin’s Law, in addition to existing requirements related to child sexual abuse prevention and reporting, including information on available counselling and resources for children who are sexually abused.

Tackling Racism

Professional activities shall include:

• A focus on antisemitism, anti-Black racism, Islamophobia, and racism towards Indigenous communities.
• Discussion on the importance of creating supportive classrooms, free of discrimination in any form. Learning that will equip educators with the knowledge they must have to promote and uphold human rights as required under the Ontario Human Rights Code and address discriminatory policies and practices.
• Review of Ontario curriculum program planning information on the instruction of Human Rights, Equity, and Inclusive Education, applicable to all subjects and disciplines in Grades 1 to 12.
• Discussion of mandatory curriculum learning opportunities related to anti-racism, anti-discrimination, and the promotion of inclusion.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Professional activities shall include:

• Discussing AI’s potential as a teaching and learning tool; how using and understanding AI is important in preparing students for success post-graduation; and how using AI should be done within the board’s and ministry’s policies related to cyber safety, cyber security, responsible use of technology, and protecting student privacy.
• Learning activities to become familiar with the board’s approved AI tools and how to effectively and safely use those tools with students (e.g., how to use AI to draft and edit work as part of the writing process, to strengthen skills such as critical thinking, or as a research tool, with academic integrity).
• Exploring mandatory learning in the Ontario curriculum on AI and digital literacy, including learning on cyber security.
• Providing educators with targeted training on cyber safety, cyber security, and online privacy to address technology-related risks and ensure student safety.

School Resource Officer (SRO) Program

Professional activities shall include:

• Information about the role of police in providing high-quality, age-appropriate educational public safety presentations to students on subjects such as cyber- crime, human trafficking, road safety and other areas of local importance. Information should also be provided about the role of police in the school community, to support trust building between educators, policing services, students, and parents/guardians.
• For school boards that currently offer School Resource Officer (SRO) programs, provide a summary of the program's structure and objectives.
• A review and implementation of policy requirements with the police through the Provincial Model for a Local Police/School Board Protocol.

Appendix B – Resources and Considerations for Planning the Three Mandatory PA Days

Resources:

The ministry continues to provide a range of supports through the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) and the ministry’s Curriculum and Resources website.

Additional Considerations:

In response to local needs, school boards may also wish to provide ongoing professional learning connected to the topics for the three mandatory PA Days, using established school board or school professional learning opportunities.

Consideration should be given to collaborate with local Indigenous Education partners in planning and delivering professional development on Indigenous Education topics.

While the three mandatory PA Days are focused on professional learning for teachers, school boards may include other educators on these three PA Days. For example, educational assistants and early childhood educators in kindergarten classrooms may also benefit from participating in these or other professional learning opportunities, depending on the local context.

When planning professional learning activities for the three mandatory PA Days, school boards shall consider the following factors:

Keeping Schools Safe

• Resources to support professional learning on this topic can be found on the Creating Safe and Accepting Schools webpage for schools and school boards.
• Resources to support school boards and school staff to recognize, identify, respond to and prevent the sex trafficking of children and youth can be found on the dedicated e-community on anti-sex trafficking within the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).

Tackling Racism

• Discussion of mandatory curriculum including:
  • mandatory learning in different subject areas across the elementary and secondary curriculum on the important contributions, perspectives and experiences of people from diverse backgrounds.
  • the mandatory Indigenous-focused learning in the Grades 1-6 Social Studies curriculum and Grades 7, 8 and 10 History curriculum.
  • the mandatory learning on Holocaust education in elementary grades, as part of the Grade 6 Social Studies curriculum.

• Information on the Additional Qualifications (AQs) available for enhanced learning such as, Anti-Black Racism and Holocaust Education and Countering Antisemitism
• Engage in critical review of the Ontario College of Teachers' professional advisories on Anti-Black Racism and/or Addressing Hate and Discrimination and discuss their implications on recognizing and addressing systemic barriers to enhance pedagogical practice, addressing incidents of discrimination, and building awareness of the professional obligations that foster inclusive learning.
• “Call it Out: Racism, racial discrimination and human rights”, Ontario Human Rights Commission (e-Learning).
• “Human Rights101”, Ontario Human Rights Commission (webinar).
• Guide to identifying and addressing anti-Indigenous discrimination in retail settings | Ontario Human Rights Commission.
• Ontario Human Rights Commission’s (OHRC) action plan: Dreams Delayed: Addressing Systemic Anti-Black Racism and Discrimination in Ontario’s Public Education System.

Artificial Intelligence

• All educators should receive cyber awareness training on responsible use of digital technology and AI on the following:
  • cyber security best practices - recognize and prevent cyber threats, such as phishing, malware, and unauthorized access, especially in the context of school networks, devices, applications, and AI tools.
  • educators should know how to facilitate responsible use of digital and AI tools, ensuring compliance with acceptable use of board policies and procedures for identifying and responding to cyber security, cyber safety and privacy incidents, including those involving AI tools, and understand how to help mitigate potential harm effectively.
  • educators must understand their responsibilities under privacy legislation, including safeguarding student data when using educational technologies and AI tools.
  • educators should be familiar with cyber safety risks to students such as cyberbullying, scams, deep fakes, and harmful content, and promote awareness of technology and AI ethics, as well as their appropriate use in the classroom, in alignment with curriculum.
  • reviewing the Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024, and the Enhancing Digital Security and Trust Act, 2024.
  • professional learning on the safe and responsible use of AI including:
    • democratic principles and fundamental rights, in alignment with the Ontario Trustworthy AI Framework;
    • the use of AI systems in a responsible, transparent, accountable, and secure manner that benefits while protecting privacy; and
    • ensuring digital information and technology related to children warrants special protection.

• K-12-focused cyber awareness resources are available through:
  • The K-12 Cyber Awareness Month (CAM) campaign website, with resources for the annual campaign in October and year-round resources. (Resources for the 2025 K-12 CAM campaign will be available on the website in late- September 2025.)
  • Cyber Security Ontario's K-12 Zone, with resources designed for students, parents, guardians, and educators. (As part of the 2025 CAM campaign, new resources for the K-12 Zone will be available on the website on October 1, 2025).
• Educators must consider digital literacy while creating and managing the learning environment for all subjects and disciplines from Grades 1 to 12.

School Resource Officer Program

• To support enhanced school board / police partnerships administrators should be familiar with the Provincial Model for a Local Police/School Board Protocol including the:
  • requirement that school boards provide training on the local police/school board protocol to their staff (including part-time, itinerant, and occasional staff) on an annual basis. Where possible, the training should be delivered jointly by police and school board personnel.
  • requirement that schools conduct two lockdown drills annually and that school personnel should work cooperatively with police partners on drills.
  • recommendation that schools should establish a method to conduct lockdown and bomb threat training and review annually for all staff and students during each school year, and that where possible police partners should be present to assist with the training of staff and students.
  • recommendation that schools consider adding a bomb threat drill as part of their emergency evacuation drills and that school personnel should work cooperatively with police partners on these drills.
• Educators should be familiar with the role of police in delivering age-appropriate public safety education on topics such as cybercrime, human trafficking, and road safety.

Appendix C - 2022-26 Central Terms with Teacher Federations and Education Workers Unions

PA Days should be scheduled in compliance with, and reflect commitments in, collective agreements (both central and local terms). The topics listed below may be covered during the three mandatory PA Days or other board directed PA Days for the 2025-26 school year.