Special Education Funding in Ontario: Bogged Down in Claims

This commentary discusses the status of special education in Ontario. Special education essentially involves tailoring and personalizing the school experience for each exceptional student when the regular curriculum is not well-suited to their needs. The papers describe the services offered as part of special education and then describe the problems in the current system. The authors highlight the difficulties arising from the complex funding formula that supports the special education system, and the time and resources now being directed toward administrative requirements rather than classroom teaching. The authors put forward several proposals for improving special education which supplement the multi-year plan introduced by the Ontario Ministry of Education to increase the accountability and quality of special education programs and services.

ISBN – 1-894509-30-X