I have compiled a list of actions that you could take to help give our children the future they deserve: Dedicated Federal Funding for Longitudinal Studies Push for a specific funding envelope through a federal agency like the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) or Statistics Canada to commission a multi-year, pan-Canadian longitudinal study. The […]
I have compiled a list of actions that you could take to help give our children the future they deserve:
Dedicated Federal Funding for Longitudinal Studies Push for a specific funding envelope through a federal agency like the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) or Statistics Canada to commission a multi-year, pan-Canadian longitudinal study. The study should be explicitly mandated to compare the long-term educational, mental health, and emotional development outcomes of children in different provinces/regions with varying degrees of public health restrictions (e.g., length of school closures, isolation tactics, masking, etc.) too measure the impact of covid-19 mitigation strategies on student's learning.
You can also use parliamentary committee work to drive policy by advocating for the Standing Committee on Health (HESA) or the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA) to undertake a specific study on the "Post-Pandemic Emotional and Academic Recovery of Canadian Children and Youth." This study would allow us to call key experts, researchers (including those already funded by CIHR), provincial officials, and community advocates from Sarnia—Lambton—Bkejwanong to testify. The final report would then include specific federal recommendations, including for the comparative studies and targeted funding.
Action: Advocate for a motion, private member's bill, or specific line item in the federal budget to ensure this study's creation and funding.
Call for the Expansion and Targeting of Existing Mental Health Funds to support pandemic-affected-kids The federal government provides funding for mental health initiatives, often transferred to provinces (e.g., through health accords or specific pandemic aid like the Safe Restart Agreements).
Action: advocate for conditions or increased funding in these transfers specifically earmarked for child and youth-focused mental health and learning supports in schools and community centres. The request should emphasize funding for Educational Assistants, school counsellors, and social workers to address learning gaps and emotional needs and to assist children with social re-engagement and resilience. Frame the need by highlighting that downloading the cost of disease mitigation onto the individual has exacerbated existing disparities, requiring a strong federal response to ensure equitable recovery.
Enhance the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) or Introduce a Targeted Grant: The funding would be conditional on provinces/school boards hiring more staff (teachers, Educational Assistants, and specialized support staff like school counsellors) to reduce classroom sizes and provide more individualized attention to address the learning and social-emotional gaps caused by the pandemic. This addresses a national problem (learning loss) with a fiscal solution, bypassing direct curriculum control but incentivizing provincial action that directly benefits children in communities like Sarnia—Lambton—Bkejwanong
Action: Propose a one-time or temporary, targeted increase to the Canada Child Benefit, or a new federal recovery grant for families with school-age children, specifically to help parents offset costs associated with tutors, extracurricular activities, or therapy needed to address pandemic-related learning loss and emotional distress.
I appreciate you taking the time to help the children of your community, and I'd like to add thank you for being a guest judge at my daughter's spelling bee. It makes all the difference in the world for girls to have women in politics who they can look up to!
Earnestly, Erin Carroll
