Ontario launches major consultation process for post-secondary education sector

The Ontario government has launched a sweeping consultation process of its post secondary education (PSE) system to determine how innovation can be best employed to strengthen the province's education experience and boost its contribution to economic development. A discussion paper was quietly released just before the Canada Day weekend outlining the challenges to PSE and measures to be considered to make it both sustainable and responsive to the needs of students, industry and society at large.

Ontario's 20 publicly funded universities contribute to the province through training a highly skilled workforce and R&D and commercialization, while 24 community colleges provide an occupationally oriented education and apprenticeship, with a growing emphasis on applied R&D.

The paper argues that while efficiency-focused strategies can lead to cost-reductions and the elimination of redundancies, "they alone will not be sufficient to meet the fiscal challenges facing the post-secondary sector". Instead institutions should consider the adoption of innovation "to drive productivity".

"The innovation-focused approach is in direct contrast to an efficiency-focused approach ... which could lead to savings while maintaining class sizes and improving learning outcomes".

The discussion paper — entitled Strengthening Ontario's Centres of Creativity, Innovation and Knowledge — does not mention the prospect of differentiation between institutions. But at least one PSE expert argues that much can be gained from a system in which institutions offer either an undergraduate training experience or a graduate education in which research is a central component.

Dr Richard Van Loon says Ontario should consider making three planned new universities undergraduate only to address the desire of professors to teach more while concentrating research efforts on improving teaching for all students.

Other issues raised by the discussion paper are the increased use of on-line education to take advantage of the revolution in information technology and its impact on PSE, increased mobility of students and the need for mobility of credentials and credits, and the growth in entrepreneurial education.

The paper notes that several institutions have already begun to introduce experiential learning facilities where students benefit from cross-fertilization with the private sector within a shared space.

The 1999 Bologna Declaration which seeks to create a common space for higher education in Europe is also cited to encourage greater student-centred learning. Nearly 50 countries have signed onto the declaration and a symposium was held in 2009 by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada to consider Canada's role in the global PSE landscape. Stakeholders have until September 30 to file written submissions.

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