Introduction

Plans for the new full-day kindergarten program (the Early Learning Program) are well underway. ETFO supports the introduction of the Early Learning Program (ELP) and has been working with the Ministry of Education to address a number of issues that have arisen related to its implementation.

School Board Implementation
Schools boards have identified the schools where the new programs will take place and have begun the process of hiring early childhood educators to work with teachers in the program during the school day. Boards are also mandated to provide extended day (before- and after-school) programs and are working to fulfill this new role.

A Full-Time Teacher in Every Kindergarten Classroom
After the release of the Early Learning Advisor’s report in June 2009, ETFO campaigned to convince the government that there should be a teacher assigned to the ELP for a full day rather than a half-day as recommended by the report. The federation, and others supporting this position, were successful in convincing the government that our staffing model was the most appropriate for the program.

Bill 242
In February, the government introduced Bill 242, the legislation that provides the framework for the new full-day and extended day programs for kindergarten-aged pupils. ETFO was actively involved in discussions with government about changes to the bill and focused particularly on the need to clarify that teachers will work collaboratively with early childhood educators but will have overall responsibility for the classroom.

Member Concerns
ETFO members have raised a number of questions about the ELP. Most of these concerns are addressed in the FAQ page in this website section.  

It is likely there will continue to be implementation issues, and ETFO will continue to address them through discussions at Queen’s Park or through other means as required.