The Ontario government was out this morning (Tuesday, September 3, 2013) promoting full-day kindergarten (FDK). The Education Minister Liz Sandals was at Ogden Public School in the Spadina Chinatown area to say that a study has shown what what seems to be huge improvements in the ability of children to learn as a result of this program. A news release from the government says that over two years (2010-2012) the FDK program reduced risks in social competence development from 10.5 per cent to 5.2 per cent. It also reduced risks in language and cognitive development from 16.4 per cent to 4.3 per cent and risks in communication skills and general knowledge development from 10.5 per cent to 5.6 per cent. The study was conducted jointly with McMaster University and Queen’s University on a group of nearly 700 children divided among those who went to FDK and those who did not. The categories above are apparently created by the United Nations.The full report has not been released but the extracted information provided this morning states that parents can save up to $6500 a year in private child care costs. It does not mention the cost to taxpayers however. An aspect also untouched in the promotional material is the differences between immigrant and foreign language children as opposed to those who come from English-speaking homes.
