Almost a year after the Hamas attack on Israel shook the Middle East and prompted a conflict that continues to reverberate around the world, the Ontario government is giving school boards strict instructions on how to mark the anniversary of Oct. 7.
A memo sent to school boards across the province, obtained by Global News, warns that the government will be paying close attention to how educators handle the one-year anniversary and how schools deal with the continuing rise in intolerance.
“As we approach one year since the October 7th attack, we ask all school boards across the province to uphold this principle and be vigilant in ensuring classrooms remain safe, inclusive, and welcoming for all students and staff,” Minister of Education Jill Dunlop wrote in a note to school boards.
The memo instructs school boards to focus on learning and includes a stern warning about the minister’s “expectation” in provincial classrooms about the nature of any discussions about world events.
“Our schools and school-related activities should never be used as vehicles for political protests that enable inflammatory, discriminatory, and hateful content,” Dunlop said in the memo.
“While everyone is entitled to their own political opinions, they are not entitled to disseminate political biases into our classroom,” the memo said.
The ministerial memo comes amid an ongoing controversy at the Toronto District School Board after a class trip to attend a demonstration drew criticism.
Ontario’s education minister has asked for an investigation into a now controversial Toronto field trip that saw students involved with a downtown protest.
Dunlop ordered a probe into last Wednesday’s field trip to attend the day of action for Grassy Narrows First Nation and the TDSB said it has launched its own investigation.
Some parents and other groups, however, complained the trip veered away from education and into protest and activism.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford blasted the board for the way the trip played out — and accused some educators of planning to “indoctrinate” students.
“I think it’s disgraceful — you’re trying to indoctrinate our kids,” he said, claiming the protest had been a “Palestine rally” in Toronto.
Dunlop’s memo, sent on Thursday, said the province is experiencing a “distressing rise in intolerance, racism, antisemitism, and Islamaphobia across Ontario, including our schools” and asked boards to create “safe spaces for students and staff.”
“It is my expectation that every school board will hold itself accountable to the highest standards under Ontario’s Code of Conduct and govern with respect, civility and responsible citizenship to ensure schools are free of discrimination and harassment in every corner of the province,” the memo reads.