Hall-Dennis Report

Last updated

The Hall-Dennis Report, officially titled Living and Learning: The Report of the Provincial Committee on Aims and Objectives of Education in the Schools of Ontario, called for broad reforms to Ontario education to empower teachers and the larger community and to put students' needs and dignity at the centre of education.

Contents

The report was commissioned by Ontario Education Minister Bill Davis in 1965 and delivered to him in 1968. Multiple attempts were made to implement it in the 1970s.

The common name for the report comes from its two co-chairman: Emmett Hall, a judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, and Lloyd A. Dennis, a former school principal.

The report cautioned that form can overtake function and that new educational programs must be constantly reappraised. [1]

Large-scale experiments were done in the 1970s, including team teaching [2] and open classrooms. [3]

The teaching of history became more student-centred, with more awareness of searching for truth. There was also an increased sensitivity to marginalized peoples. [4]

Sections

The report is divided into the following sections:

Truth Shall Make You Free

This section introduces the need for reform and the guiding principles of the committee, and begins making recommendations.

Need for reform

"Today, on every side, however, there is heard a growing demand for a fresh look at education in Ontario. The Committee was told of inflexible programs, outdated curricula, unrealistic regulations, regimented organization, and mistaken aims of education. We heard from alienated students, frustrated teachers, irate parents, and concerned educators. Many public organizations and private individuals have told us of their growing discontent and lack of confidence in a school system which, in their opinion, has become outmoded and is failing those it exists to serve."

Guiding principles

The Hall-Dennis committee was guided by the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Child, including:

  • "Everyone has the right to education"
  • "Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality"
  • "Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children."

Recommendations

There are many recommendations throughout this section, including:

  • "greater public involvement, a greater partnership between the home and school, between the community and the school."
  • "the establishment of an autonomous, non-political advisory body of citizens, representative of the various interests of the people in Ontario"
  • "The lock-step structure of past times must give way...[The student's] natural curiosity and initiative must be recognized and developed"
  • "The fixed positions of pupil and teacher...must give way to a more relaxed teacher-pupil relationship which will encourage discussion, inquiry, and experimentation, and enhance the dignity of the individual."
  • "the school must be aware of the health and emotional needs of pupils."
  • "Educators ought to employ every conceivable device and means that society can make available, [but not] in a narrow, didactic manner and with groups of children all presumed to be learning the same thing at the same time."

Related Research Articles

Progressive education, or educational progressivism, is a pedagogical movement that began in the late 19th century and has persisted in various forms to the present. In Europe, progressive education took the form of the New Education Movement. The term progressive was engaged to distinguish this education from the traditional curricula of the 19th century, which was rooted in classical preparation for the early-industrial university and strongly differentiated by social class. By contrast, progressive education finds its roots in modern, post-industrial experience. Most progressive education programs have these qualities in common:

Science education is the teaching and learning of science to school children, college students, or adults within the general public. The field of science education includes work in science content, science process, some social science, and some teaching pedagogy. The standards for science education provide expectations for the development of understanding for students through the entire course of their K-12 education and beyond. The traditional subjects included in the standards are physical, life, earth, space, and human sciences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teacher</span> Person who helps others learn

A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Physical education</span> Educational course related to the physique and care of the body

Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys. Ed. or PE, and sometimes informally referred to as gym class or simply just gym, is a subject taught in schools around the world. PE is taught during primary and secondary education and encourages psychomotor, cognitive, and effective learning through physical activity and movement exploration to promote health and physical fitness. When taught correctly and in a positive manner, children and teens can receive a storm of health benefits. These include reduced metabolic disease risk, improved cardiorespiratory fitness, and better mental health. In addition, PE classes can produce positive effects on students' behavior and academic performance. Research has shown that there is a positive correlation between brain development and exercising. Researchers in 2007 found a profound gain in English Arts standardized test scores among students who had 56 hours of physical education in a year, compared to those who had 28 hours of physical education a year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">School prayer</span> State-sponsored or mandatory prayer by public school students

School prayer, in the context of religious liberty, is state-sanctioned or mandatory prayer by students in public schools. Depending on the country and the type of school, state-sponsored prayer may be required, permitted, or prohibited. The United Kingdom requires daily worship by law, but does not enforce it. Countries which prohibit or limit school prayer often differ in their reasons for doing so. In the United States, school prayer cannot be required of students in accordance with the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. This is generally rigorously applied in public schools; the Establishment Clause does not prevent prayer in private schools that have no public funding. In Canada, school-sponsored prayer is disallowed under the concept of freedom of conscience as outlined in the Canadian Charter on Rights & Fundamental Freedoms. School-sponsored prayer is disallowed in France as a byproduct of its status as a secular nation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pedagogy</span> Theory and practice of education

Pedagogy, most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political, and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as an academic discipline, is the study of how knowledge and skills are imparted in an educational context, and it considers the interactions that take place during learning. Both the theory and practice of pedagogy vary greatly as they reflect different social, political, and cultural contexts.

The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) is a United States professional organization dedicated to "improving the teaching and learning of English and the language arts at all levels of education. Since 1911, NCTE has provided a forum for the profession, an array of opportunities for teachers to continue their professional growth throughout their careers, and a framework for cooperation to deal with issues that affect the teaching of English." In addition, the NCTE describes its mission as follows:

The Council promotes the development of literacy, the use of language to construct personal and public worlds and to achieve full participation in society, through the learning and teaching of English and the related arts and sciences of language.

Founded in 1920, The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) is a professional organization for schoolteachers of mathematics in the United States. One of its goals is to improve the standards of mathematics in education. NCTM holds annual national and regional conferences for teachers and publishes five journals.

A Praxis test is one of a series of American teacher certification exams written and administered by the Educational Testing Service. Various Praxis tests are usually required before, during, and after teacher training courses in the U.S.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ministry of Education (Ontario)</span> Provincial government department in Canada

The Ministry of Education is the ministry of the Government of Ontario responsible for government policy, funding, curriculum planning and direction in all levels of public education, including elementary and secondary schools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">French immersion in Canada</span> A form of bilingual education in Canada

French immersion is a form of bilingual education in which students who do not speak French as a first language will receive instruction in French. In most French-immersion schools, students will learn to speak French and learn most subjects such as history, music, geography, art, physical education and science in French.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic education</span> Schooling run as direct democracies

Democratic education is a type of formal education that is organized democratically, so that students can manage their own learning and participate in the governance of their school. Democratic education is often specifically emancipatory, with the students' voices being equal to the teacher's.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Célestin Freinet</span> French pedagogue

Célestin Freinet was a noted French pedagogue and educational reformer.

A lesson plan is a teacher's detailed description of the course of instruction or "learning trajectory" for a lesson. A daily lesson plan is developed by a teacher to guide class learning. Details will vary depending on the preference of the teacher, subject being covered, and the needs of the students. There may be requirements mandated by the school system regarding the plan. A lesson plan is the teacher's guide for running a particular lesson, and it includes the goal, how the goal will be reached and a way of measuring how well the goal was reached.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Student voice</span> Perspectives and actions of students

Student voice is the individual and collective perspective and actions of students within the context of learning and education. It is identified in schools as both a metaphorical practice and as a pragmatic concern. Tech educator Dennis Harper noted that student voice gives students "the ability to influence learning to include policies, programs, contexts and principles."

The Fundamental Law of Education is a Japanese law which sets the standards for the Japanese education system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Right to education</span> Human right

The right to education has been recognized as a human right in a number of international conventions, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which recognizes a right to free, primary education for all, an obligation to develop secondary education accessible to all with the progressive introduction of free secondary education, as well as an obligation to develop equitable access to higher education, ideally by the progressive introduction of free higher education. In 2021, 171 states were parties to the Covenant.

Reform mathematics is an approach to mathematics education, particularly in North America. It is based on principles explained in 1989 by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). The NCTM document Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics (CESSM) set forth a vision for K–12 mathematics education in the United States and Canada. The CESSM recommendations were adopted by many local- and federal-level education agencies during the 1990s. In 2000, the NCTM revised its CESSM with the publication of Principles and Standards for School Mathematics (PSSM). Like those in the first publication, the updated recommendations became the basis for many states' mathematics standards, and the method in textbooks developed by many federally-funded projects. The CESSM de-emphasised manual arithmetic in favor of students developing their own conceptual thinking and problem solving. The PSSM presents a more balanced view, but still has the same emphases.

Floyd Grant Robinson was a teacher, education theorist and curriculum developer. He wrote many works on the topics of stimulating complex thinking and the importance of education across the entire lifespan. Robinson is most notable for his work done while at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) between 1965 and 1991.

Information Communications Technology is usually included in the Home Economics and Livelihood Education program in grade school and taught through the Technology and Home Economics program in high school. The recent status of ICT education in the Philippines, along with other Southeast Asian countries, was surveyed by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) in 2011. Using the UNESCO model of ICT Development in Education, the countries were ranked as Emerging, Applying, Infusing or Transforming. The Philippines were ranked at the Infusing stage of integrating ICT in education, indicating that the country has integrated ICT into existing teaching, learning and administrative practices and policies. This includes components such as a national vision of ICT in education, national ICT plans and policies, complementary national ICT and education policies, professional development for teachers and school leaders, community or partnership and teaching and learning pedagogies. A 2012 study reported that public high schools in Metro Manila had a computer to student ratio of 1:63. While 88 percent of schools have internet connections, half of the students claimed not to be using it.

References

  1. section titled Fundamental Issues in Ontario Education
  2. Peter Hennessy, The Dream World of the 1968 Hall-Dennis Living and Learning Report is alive and well in the story of transforming public education Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine , Canadian Education Association, Nov 9, 2011
  3. Kate Hammer, Canadian Schools Adopt Old-Style Architecture, The Globe and Mail, Sept 5, 2012
  4. Jim Tountas in Education 500, Faculty of Education, University of Western Ontario