School divisions asked to make class size info public

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This article was published 15/10/2024 (383 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba school divisions have been given class size targets of 20 for kindergarten-to-Grade 3 and 25 for older elementary cohorts.

The department of education has asked public school leaders to submit data about teacher-to-student ratios and begin posting it this semester.

School leaders have until Nov. 30 to upload the first round of class sizes and ratios for the public.

The new accountability measure is part of a provincial initiative to lower class sizes. It stops short of formal caps.

“We are confident that this initiative will lead to enhanced in-class interactions between students and educators,” Mona Pandey, assistant deputy minister of system performance and accountability, wrote in a memo to superintendents on Sept. 23.

Schools with average class sizes that surpass 20 for K-3 and 25 for grades 4 to 8 are required to report details about additional support that’s provided to students, Pandey said.

Support can include, but is not limited to, the hiring of educational assistants or rotational teachers, she noted.

The province allocated $3 million to hire more elementary teachers to lower ratios in 2024-25.

Winnipeg, Pembina Trails and Hanover were the recipients of the extra funding, receiving $1.5 million, $1 million and $500,000, respectively.

A provincial spokesperson said those three boards have some of the largest K-3 class sizes in the province.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca