There has been plenty of hand-wringing in recent years about the “overscheduled child.” With after-school hours increasingly dominated by piano lessons, soccer practice, and countless other planned activities, many of us have a nagging sense that kids are missing out on something important if they have no time for unstructured play.
Spring eceLINK 2013
- Leadership in the Early Years
- Professional Learning and Professional Learning Networks
- Research into Practice: Leadership in Early Childhood Education
Winter eceLINK 2013
- Our Rejuvenation Experience: A word from the Sudbury branch
- Toronto First Duty: A decade of research and development
- The Magnificent Two Percent: A perspective from a male ECE
- Why High Quality Universal Child Care is Part of a More Equal Canada for all of us
Fall eceLINK 2012
- Our professional identity
- Modernizing childcare in Ontario: our response to the Ministry of Education
- Access to the Early Childhood Education Field in Ontario: Final Report
- Leading through practice: Our collective journey
- A Lesson in Leadership: Camp AECEO experience
- Are ECEs ready for FDK?
Spring eceLINK 2012
- The College of ECE Complaints Process and You
- The Relationship between an Association and Regulatory Body
- Access Bridging Program Success Story
- Camp AECEO Leadership Conference
Winter eceLINK 2012
In this issue:
- Seamless Full Day Early Learning
- Early Learning and Care Options across Ontario
- Leadership in the 21st Century Part II
- Working towards a seamless integrated system
- An Interdisciplinary & Collaborative approach to Ontario's Best Start Initiative
- Showcase a Leader
Summer/Fall eceLINK 2011
- Leadership in the 21st century
- Andrew Fleck CCS 100th Anniversary
- My career journey
- How big a risk can outdoor play be for children
- The importance of music in early childhood
- Showcase a leader
Spring eceLINK 2011
- Ethical and professional standards for early childhood educators
- Playing and learning in early childhood education
- Holding on to a dream: ECE equivalency story
- My educational journey
- Student leadership in action
Canadian families desperately need a national child-care program
Canadian families are doing their share for a prosperous future – they’re having more babies – but governments are letting them down.
Public spending on licensed child care remains grossly inadequate, and so is the supply of space. Meanwhile hard-pressed parents face crushing costs as a “baby boomlet” puts new strain on Canada’s over-stretched child care resources.
That’s the finding of a new report by the Toronto-based Childcare Resource and Research Unit and analysts at the universities of Guelph and Manitoba.
Toronto Star June 22, 2014
Schools in affluent areas more likely to offer after-hours child care, study finds
A survey by People for Education has found major gaps in the delivery of before- and after-school programs for young students — despite this being a key part of the province’s full-day kindergarten plan. Toronto Star June 23, 2014
The Value of Unstructured Play Time for Kids
German psychologists find people who were allowed to play freely as children have greater social success as adults.
Winter eceLINK 2011
In this issue:
- Schools as community hubs
- Update on Child and Family Centres
- AECEO 60th Anniversary celebration photos
- Advocacy Alert: Ontario can't live without child care
Child Care Modernization Act, Bill 143
The government of Ontario announced the release of new legislation that addresses the modernization of child care.
An Act to enact the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2013, to repeal the Day Nurseries Act, to amend the Early Childhood Educators Act, 2007 and the Education Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts
More than just a child care waitlist registry
valued family support, assessment service should stay with Andrew Fleck
OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - May 27, 2014) - Despite a $4 million provincial funding infusion for Ottawa child care services, parents and child care staff throughout the city are flummoxed as to why the City of Ottawa is ending community provision of a valued assessment and referral service that fielded over 11,500 calls from parents in 2013.
Read moreEarly childhood education and child care in the 2014 Ontario election
The Ontario election is scheduled for June 12th, 2014. CRRU has selected materials from the political parties, NGOs and news media to explain how ECEC is positioned in this election campaign. We will continue to update this page as new developments occur. Materials are listed from the most recent to the least recent.
Ontario needs a good child-care strategy: Editorial
In a provincial election that is understandably focused on jobs and the economy, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath deserves credit for shining a spotlight on a vital service that helps society thrive: a safe and sustainable child care system. Such a system doesn't exist in Ontario now.
Read more
Party leaders asked to commit to a 6-point plan for early learning and child care
May 14, 2014
The Association of Early Childhood Educators Ontario, Canadian Union of Public Employees (Ontario), Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care, Childcare Resource and Research Unit and Advocates for Progressive Child Care Policy are calling on the leaders of Ontario's three main political parties to respond to concerns about the state of early childhood education and child care by committing, if elected, to six key elements toward a strategy that will begin to fix early childhood education and child care in Ontario.
Open Letter to the leaders of Ontario's three main political parties
Who'll make the grade on child care?
Parents, activists to issue "report card" for party leaders before June 12 vote
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - May 20, 2014) - Years of starts, shifts and cuts, add up to inadequate public funding and ineffectual provincial policy by successive governments. It's time for this situation to end, say a group of parents, early childhood educators and activists who, this election are challenging party leaders to "make the grade on child care".
Read moreOntario election: Horwath vows $100M to support childcare centres
Toronto Star, May 11, 2014
Horwath chose Mother’s Day to announce at a campaign stop near Hamilton Harbour that saving subsidized child care spaces is a priority for her third-place party.
NDP Child care pledge welcome but not enough, advocate says
Ontario's child care sector would "welcome" the $100-million investment that New Democrats are promising, but a prominent advocate says it's not enough money to address all outstanding issues.






