Hard choices as parents ponder full-day program
January 15, 2010
Kristin Rushowy
EDUCATION REPORTER
Parents who want a half-day kindergarten program might have to move their child to another school if the local one is among those offering full-day instruction.
The almost 600 elementary schools across Ontario to introduce the new program this September will only have full-day classes for 4- and 5-year-olds, and not the half-day option, said Michelle Despault, spokeswoman for Education Minister Kathleen Wynne.
However, if parents want their children to attend their home school, they may informally pull them out for half the day, she added.
"It's not a mandatory program."
However, "if a parent did make a decision to withdraw their child from the full-day program for half a day, they would need to understand that they will not receive the full benefits of the full-day program – they may miss out on some of the curriculum."
Toronto mother Tara Sharpe thinks the full-day program is an excellent option, especially for working parents, but said she would like her older daughter, now in junior kindergarten, to remain in a half-day program.
She enjoys taking her for walks, exploring the neighbourhood, reading together, having playmates over, "just unstructured time" the half-day allows.
However, come September, her daughter's school will only have an all-day program.
"I have the option to pull her out at the half-day mark, but I don't think it's really a true option," she said. "If there's curriculum being taught in the afternoon, and you want your child to receive it, most parents aren't going to feel right about pulling them out in that case."
She hopes the province takes this into account as the program is rolled out and fine-tuned – "something that allows both options to coexist."
School boards across Ontario are expecting a deluge of applications at the schools where full-day is to be offered, and some have already said they could use a lottery system to decide who gets in, and bus unsuccessful applicants to a half-day program elsewhere, if demand exceeds space.
Midday busing will also end at schools with full-day programs.
Although it's not expected many parents will opt out, a child taking up a full-day spot but only coming for half might be preventing another family from accessing the program where demand is great, Despault said.
Toronto Star