There are less than 8 weeks to go until the Ontario Election. We have yet to hear much discussion on the state of publicly funded education in Ontario, the improvements that have been made in less than a decade, or how we can continue to improve.

In fairness, we are still in the middle of a long, hot summer when few people are paying close attention to education issues, let alone politics. Still, it’s telling that none of the major political parties have chosen to talk about their ideas for publicly funded education in any meaningful way. Perhaps this is an indication that they all agree that Ontario’s publicly funded education system is on the right track.

But even if that were true, Ontario’s students will not continue to succeed if the system stands pat. There is still much to be done. Lifting children out of poverty – so they can concentrate on learning and not their hungry bellies – is still an important item on Ontario’s to-do list if we are going to provide every student with an opportunity to succeed. Ensuring the successful roll-out of full-day kindergarten is another important initiative that should be a priority to all political parties. Continuing to invest strategically in schools, students and teachers is also key to ensuring Ontario can reach its full potential.

Speak for Children has released a number of facts about the current system and ideas for making it even better. This is a discussion Ontarians deserve to have, and want to have.

Candidates, are you listening?