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The facilitator of the group will be responsible for noting:
1) Date & Name of Facilitator
2) P.A.T.H. examples from each group member (Present,
Authentic, speak your Truth, and Human)- this is in connection to your role as a future educator
3) Outstanding Questions group may have (readings, course expectations)
4) Early Childhood Sector News/Social Media
5) Attendance of group members

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January 12th 2025                                    Facilitator Josefina  P.A.T.H Examples   

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January 12th 2025                                    Facilitator Josefina  P.A.T.H Examples   

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No questions

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Overview

The Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care ( CWELCC) system will:

give families access to more affordable and high-quality child care options

help lower child care fees for parents or guardians of children under the age of 6

increase child care spaces

support the child care workforce

support inclusive child care

Licensed child care providers can participate in the CWELCC system to help reduce fees. Licensed child care providers must tell parents and guardians whether the program is enrolled in the CWELCC system through their parent handbook.

If your licensed child care provider is not enrolled, your fees will not be reduced.

As a parent or guardian of a child under the age of 6, you do not need to apply to get a fee reduction.

Accomplishments to date

92%

50%

$366.5M

nearly

29,000

Ontario's action plan

The agreement focuses on 5 key pillars:

lowering fees

increasing access

enhancing high-quality child care

supporting inclusion

enhancing data and reporting

Lowering fees

To ensure child care is more affordable for families, we are lowering average fees for CWELCC-enrolled licensed child care programs through a phased approach:

1. On March 28, 2022, we announced a child care fee reduction of up to 25% for children under age 6, retroactive to April 1, 2022.

2. By December 31, 2022, we further reduced child care fees up to 37% bringing the provincial average fee to $23 per day (50% of 2020 fees).

3. Starting in January 2025, we will cap fees at $22 per day for children under age 6.

4. By March 2026, lowering licensed child care fees to an average of $10 per day.

Increasing access

To provide families with more child care options and address increasing demand for child care, we are:

creating approximately 86,000 new licensed child care spaces by the end of 2026

supporting expansion of new child care spaces in geographic areas and diverse communities where they are needed most (for example, children with special needs, Indigenous and Francophone communities)

Enhancing quality

To ensure families have access to high-quality licensed child care, we are:

improving compensation for low-wage Registered Early Childhood Educators working with children up to age 12 in licensed child care

implementing a workforce strategy to support RECEs employed by CWELCC-enrolled child care providers and a multipronged strategy to better support the recruitment and retention of qualified professionals and professional learning supports for child care and early years staff

Supporting inclusion

To support the needs of diverse communities and populations, we have engaged with a broad range of partners to:

ensure space expansion plans and all child care and early years programs are designed to support the needs of vulnerable and diverse populations in your communities (such as Indigenous, Francophone, Black and other racialized groups, newcomers, low-income families and children with special needs)

gather data and assess the barriers to access for children of diverse populations and children with varying abilities

update Ontario's Access and Inclusion Framework, which supports service system managers in developing and implementing local service plans with an increased focus on access as it relates to inclusion
this includes identifying their priority neighbourhoods and/or priority populations for space creation under CWELCC

Enhanced data and reporting

To monitor our progress and support families, we will:

use evidence-based data to evaluate and improve how the child care system supports children and families

report regularly on our progress toward meeting federal requirements using enhanced data collection and analytics capabilities

What this means for families

Parents or guardians of children under the age of 6 do not have to apply to receive a child care fee reduction.

You may be eligible for reduced fees if:

you pay more than $12 per day for child care and your child:

is under the age of 6

turns 6 years old and is enrolled in a licensed preschool, kindergarten or family age group or a licensed home child care premises, until June 30

your licensed child care provider is enrolled in the CWELCC system

The amount that you will save depends on what the child care provider charges and may vary by region.

Illustrative Examples

Agnes has an 18 month-old daughter Vanessa. The child care centre she has chosen for her daughter enrolled in the CWELCC system in 2022. Before they enrolled, they charged $62/day in child care fees for Vanessa's age group. The reductions of 25% as of April 1, 2022 and 37% effective December 31, 2022 (52.75% overall) reduced such parent fees to $29.30/day effective December 31, 2022.

For the full year in 2024 at these fees, Agnes will have savings of over $8,500 on child care.

Meet Jonathan

Jonathan has a 2 year-old daughter Danielle. The child care centre he has chosen for his daughter originally opted out of CWELCC in 2022. Child care fees for Danielle's age group were $62/day in March 2022, and increased to $70/day in March 2023. On April 1, 2023, the child care centre enrolled in CWELCC. Child care fees for Danielle's age group saw a reduction of 52.75% from the child care fee of $62/day, effective April 1, 2023 (date of enrolment). Same as for Vanessa, fees for Danielle's age group were reduced to $29.30/day.

For the full year in 2024 at these fees, Jonathan will have savings of over $10,600 on child care (inclusive of about $2,100 in savings from the increased child care fee).

Child care subsidy

The Ontario child care fee subsidy program will continue to be available for families who are eligible to apply for financial support to help them pay for licensed child care.

Fee subsidy eligibility will continue to be determined through the income test that is administered by your local service system manager. The amount you will pay depends on your family's income and is reduced by 50% for eligible children, effective December 31, 2022. To get more information or apply for the child care subsidy, please contact your local service system manager.

Child care tax credit

The Ontario Child Care Tax Credit program will continue to be in effect for eligible families.

Find out if you are eligible to receive tax credit to help with child care costs.

What this means for child care providers

Licensed child care programs enrolled in the CWELCC system receive funding to plan for and deliver early learning and child care programs.

Where new CWELCC spaces will be created

We are prioritizing creating CWELCC spaces in regions with a history of low child care space availability. This will create affordable child care spaces where they are needed most.

This focus includes rural communities, Indigenous and Francophone communities and underserved populations, including:

children with special needs

low-income children

vulnerable children

children from diverse communities

Local service system managers:

will assess enrolment applications for a match with local priorities

may have a limited number of spaces

Eligible child care programs

You are eligible to apply for enrolment in the CWELCC system if you are a licensed:

child care centre

home child care agency

You must serve children under the age of 6 (or turning 6 before June 30).

If you are a home child care provider who is registered with a licensed agency, ask the agency if they are enrolled in CWELCC and what this means for you.

Ineligible child care programs

Unlicensed child care programs are not eligible to participate in the CWELCC system. This includes:

unlicensed home child care providers

authorized recreation programs

unlicensed school board-operated extended day programs

If you provide an unlicensed program and want to participate, consider either:

applying for a licence

joining a licensed home child care agency

Learn how to apply for a child care licence.

How to apply for CWELCC

Contact your local service system manager to:

check if your program aligns with their expansion plans

get information on how to apply for CWELCC

To enroll in CWELCC, you must show that your program aligns with local priorities (for example, it is in a neighbourhood with an underserved population).

When you join CWELCC

If you participate in the CWELCC system, you will enter into a service agreement with your local service system manager. This agreement outlines:

the amount of funding your program (or programs) will receive

the guidelines you must follow

You can use our cost-based funding estimator to find out how much funding your program might get as of January 1, 2025.

Requirements

Some of the requirements you will need to meet include:

showing that you are financially viable

setting base fees in line with the regulation and agreement with your local service system manager

following the rules set out in the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 and its regulations

maintaining your existing capacity for eligible children for whom you are receiving fee reduction funding

providing information to support data collection and reporting

If you don't participate in CWELCC

Licensed child care programs that do not participate in the CWELCC system must continue to follow the rules and requirements for operating a licensed child care program.

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Canada-Ontario early years and child care agreement

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Learn how we're providing more accessible child care options and lower fees. This includes reducing fees to an average of $10 per day for children under the age of 6 in licensed child care by March 2026.

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Our opinion about CWELCC:

CWELCC is impacting private sector daycares, where staff hours may be adjusted due to the elimination of before and after care. As a result, children are welcome to arrive at opening hours and be picked up at closing time, all within the same fee their parents are currently paying. According to some private childcare operators, they are not permitted to hire additional staff, which could lead to changes in the child-to-staff ratio, potentially increasing it beyond current levels.

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Amanda

Brittany

Josefina

Nadi

# data[].attributes.body
The facilitator of the group will be responsible for noting:
1) Date & Name of Facilitator
2) P.A.T.H. examples from each group member (Present,
Authentic, speak your Truth, and Human)- this is in connection to your role as a future educator
3) Outstanding Questions group may have (readings, course expectations)
4) Early Childhood Sector News/Social Media
5) Attendance of group members

# data[].attributes.body
Facilitator Nadi

P.A.T.H Examples

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Percentage of early childhood educators in Ontario child care declining, despite goal | Globalnews.ca

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The percentage of staff in Ontario child-care centres who are registered early childhood educators has been declining over the past few years.

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We were discussing an article that highlights the percentage decline in the number of Early Childhood Educators in Ontario. The proportion of RECEs in childcare centers has dropped from 58.9% in 2022 to 56% currently, moving further away from the goal of 60%. This shortage has led to staffing challenges in childcare centers, affecting both the availability and quality of early childhood education. One of our members shared that the High Park YMCA was closed at the beginning of last year for the same reason. https://toronto.citynews.ca/2023/11/08/high-park-ymca-child-care-centre-closing-in-new-year/

The primary reason for this percentage decline is the $10-a-day childcare program. Commonly cited contributing factors include low wages, limited benefits, and challenging working conditions, which have exacerbated workforce shortages in the sector. As a result, families seeking childcare face increasingly restricted access to services.

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A shortage of early childhood educators is forcing the infant care centre in the Toronto High Park YMCA to close its doors in the new year.

The Toronto High Park YMCA Child Care Centre says starting in January 2024 they will not be able to continue offering infant care at its Dundas Street location. The organization says it has been working hard to recruit early childhood educators, however, there is a sector-wide shortage at play.

"It is symbolic of a larger challenge, not only at our YMCA at High Park but our YMCAs across Toronto and I would argue many childcares across the province," said Jamison Steeve, the chief strategy officer of YMCA GTA.

"There's a human resource shortage in childcare, there's a lack of ECEs to provide the care that we really need and value for our youngest learners. ...this is the canary in the coal mine."

The non-profit says it has been advocating for a workforce strategy to address some of the recruitment challenges child care providers face including the need for governments to fund higher wages.

"I think we saw it during COVID-19 the heroes of the pandemic were often those people on the front lines, service providers. Now that the pandemic is over we need to find ways to value them again," says Steeve.

Child care advocates say Ontario's early childhood educators are among the lowest-paid in Canada, making on average $19 per hour and that without a raise, the province's $10-a-day childcare plan won't happen.

"We can talk about opening new centres and building new spaces, the government talks about that all the time, but without early childhood educators it's just four walls and not a child care program and I think this is the missing piece in the Canada-wide child care plan," says Carolyn Ferns, policy coordinator with the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care.

"We can get to $10 a day for families but if not enough of them are accessing those spaces what does it mean?"

Education Minister Stephen Lecce said he would release a workforce strategy in the fall that includes a boost to compensation though nothing has been announced.

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Shortage of early childhood educators forces child care centre in High Park YMCA to close

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The Toronto High Park YMCA Child Care Centre says they will not be able to continue offering infant care at its Dundas Street location

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Amanda

Brittany

Josefina

Nadi

# data[].attributes.body
The facilitator of the group will be responsible for noting:
1) Date & Name of Facilitator
2) P.A.T.H. examples from each group member (Present,
Authentic, speak your Truth, and Human)- this is in connection to your role as a future educator
3) Outstanding Questions group may have (readings, course expectations)
4) Early Childhood Sector News/Social Media
5) Attendance of group members

# data[].attributes.body
Facilitator Brittany

P.A.T.H Examples

# data[].attributes.body
Amanda

Brittany

Josefina

Nadi

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
New federal rules would prevent international students who graduate from early childhood education programs from applying for a work permit in Canada - a change that the Ontario government, colleges and advocates warn will kneecap the growth of Ottawa's signature $10-a-day child-care program.

Under immigration changes announced last month, the postgraduate work permits, which were widely available in the past, will now be restricted to areas that have labour-market shortages in Canada.

Ontario is facing a shortage of early childhood educators, or ECEs, that some child-care operators say is preventing them from operating at full capacity right now and could stop them from opening new spaces in the future.

Despite that, the only mention of early childhood education in the federal government's list of categories in which students will continue to qualify for postgraduate work permits is "education/teaching of individuals in early childhood special education programs."

"This federal policy change will make it even more difficult for Ontarians to find affordable child care and no doubt impacts will be felt immediately," said Marketa Evans, president and CEO of Colleges Ontario.

Ontario expecting shortage of 8,500 ECEs by 2026

Internal government documents previously obtained by The Canadian Press through a freedom-of-information request show that the province expects a shortage of 8,500 ECEs by 2026.

Public colleges currently have 5,300 international ECE students enrolled, Evans said, which is about 50 per cent of total enrolments.

Alana Powell, executive director of the Association of Early Childhood Educators of Ontario, has been seeking clarity about the impacts of the federal changes, and said if international student ECE graduates are excluded from accessing work permits, it will be a blow to the sector.

"We are experiencing a workforce crisis," she said.

"Ongoing retention and recruitment of early childhood educators in Ontario continues to be a concern, and it's concern for current operational levels, let alone planned expansion under the $10-a-day system. So to see any sort of barrier in place for bringing more early childhood educators into the workforce is a big problem at a time like this."

ECE programs will qualify: immigration minister's office

When asked about the apparent omission, Immigration Minister Marc Miller's office was adamant that ECE programs would be included in the list of those that qualify for postgraduate work permits.

"Absolutely, ECEs will definitely be covered," director of communications Aissa Diop first said three weeks ago, suggesting it was a matter of unclear wording on the government website.

But the changes take effect for students who apply for permits after this Friday, and with the exception of special education, early childhood education programs were still not on the government's list of eligible study areas as of Tuesday morning.

Ontario's minister of colleges and universities has written to Miller, warning that early childhood education is not currently eligible, nor are other areas in which the province sees shortages, including hospitality, health-care administration and automotive technologists.

"Several critical areas are currently missing for Ontario," Nolan Quinn wrote.

The list appears to have been quietly updated this week to include registered nursing - a change the province hopes signals the federal government is willing to consider more inclusions.

Quinn has asked Miller to more openly communicate any future updates.

Colleges confused about impact on programs: president

It is all leading to confusion among colleges, which are trying to sort out the impacts on their programs ahead of the new rules kicking in Friday, Evans said.

"Our ask is that it be paused because of all of this confusion," she said in an interview. "We don't know if these are errors or intentional omissions and again, I think there hasn't been that much time to digest."

When Miller announced the changes, he said the growth in international students and the corresponding postgraduate work and spousal permits are areas where "we owe it to Canadians, and in the context of an economy where the labour market in some areas is constricting, we need to adjust accordingly."

At the time, Miller also announced he was slashing the number of international student visas by another 10 per cent. That was on top of a temporary cap the government announced in January to reduce the number of new student visas by more than one-third this year, in part to ease pressure on an already-strained housing market.

Colleges Ontario has raised other sectors it believes the federal government is wrongfully omitting, including engineering technician and technology programs, which Evans says are key to the electric-vehicle industry, and dental hygiene, key to the federal dental-care rollout.

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Work permit changes could worsen Ontario child-care staff shortages, advocates warn | CBC News

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New federal rules would prevent international students who graduate from early childhood education programs from applying for a work permit in Canada - a change that the Ontario government, colleges and advocates warn will kneecap the growth of Ottawa's signature $10-a-day child-care program.

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The article discussed this week is referring to the current situation facing immigration and work permits this article was published at the end of October 2024. The government has published a list of careers that will have work permits available for international students who are taking courses for careers in Canada. Unfortunately it appears that Early Childhood Education has been omitted from that list. Therefore current international students who are taking ECE programs will not be able to apply for a work permit in Canada. Many ECE professionals and advocates voiced their opinions on this matter explaining how damaging this could be as we are facing a terrible educator shortage in the country. When asked about the omission, the immigration officer explained that it was actually a miscommunication in wording, however, at the time of the article it had not been fixed. Fortunately, it was added later on in December by IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada). As a group we spent some time discussing the first article and how we perceived it from our own perspectives. One group member commented on that she is reading the article from the perspective of working with student ECE's who seem to be in the career more for the status instead of passion due to the fact that ECEs are in high demand and they knew it would be somewhat easier to find a job. Another group member commented that she too sees this in her employment, however noted that due to the shortages, immigration policies will then further impact the need for educators if they decided to omit the post graduates. We then discussed the relation between the changes to work permits and immigration policies on the decline of international students that Canada seems to be facing today. This could have an effect on the decisions that international students are facing when applying to colleges in Canada as well as the higher costs of tuition and difficulty with affordable housing and cost of living in general. We came to the conclusion that it is important to include Early Childhood Education in work permits due to the fact that we are in need of educators across the country. We also expressed that we know how important early childhood learning is not only for the children, but also for the economy and country as a whole. The government will need to realize this when making important decisions to help reduce the shortages and encourage people to become educators.

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Canada Work Permit Family Sponsorship

By: Mariam Baher

Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has expanded the fields of study eligible for Post-Graduation Work Permits (PGWPs) by adding Education as its 6th category.

Considering recent caps and pauses on some Canadian immigration programs, such as the Parent and Grandparent Sponsorship Program and the Agri-Food Pilot Program, this news offers hope for those who are in Canada and are eligible to apply for permanent residence under specific PNP programs.

New Education Category

On December 17, 2024, IRCC has added a new education category to the existing list of five eligible fields of study. This change addresses Canada's high demand for teachers and early childhood educators. By introducing this new category, the government is not only helping to fill these critical positions but also offering international students more opportunities to work in Canada after graduation. This expansion opens up additional career paths for graduates in education-related fields and provides a potential pathway to permanent residency in Canada.

What is a PGWP?

A Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) is an open work permit that allows international graduates from designated learning institutions (DLIs) to work for most employers across various industries in Canada. The length of the permit depends on the duration of the study program, ranging from eight months to three years.

Graduates in education fields, such as teachers and early childhood educators, may be eligible to be invited to apply for permanent residency through Canada's Express Entry (EE) system or through the Canadian experience class (CEC) program depending on your work experience in Canada. In short, the Express Entry system invites high-ranking candidates who meet specific job or language criteria to apply for permanent residency.

For the 2025 Express Entry draws, the new Education category will target potential candidates in occupations like teaching, early childhood education, and teachers for individuals with special needs. For a full list of eligible occupations under the Education category, you can visit the table located on the Government of Canada's website, where you can search for "education" and find the related occupations along with their corresponding CIP codes.

PGWP Eligible Field of Study Categories

Before the addition of the education categories, the PGWP-eligible fields of study were:

1. Healthcare occupations

2. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) occupations

3. Trade occupations

4. Transportation occupations

5. Agriculture and agri-food occupations

With the addition of the Education category to the list above, graduates from programs that contribute to Canada's growing demand for education professionals, can now apply to the PGWP program under this category. This gives international students the opportunity to gain valuable work experience, which can potentially help them qualify for permanent residency. This new education category not only gives hope to more EE candidates but also supports Canada's economy by addressing labour shortages in our country.

The new Education category under PGWP-eligible fields of study offers those in qualifying programs a better chance of securing work in Canada and potentially permanent residency. If you're planning to study in Canada and graduate from one of these eligible programs, contact us today to assess your eligibility and start your application process.

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PGWP Eligible Fields of Study: New Education Category

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Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has expanded the fields of study eligible for Post-Graduation Work Permits (PGWPs) by adding education as its 6th category.

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The facilitator of the group will be responsible for noting:
1) Date & Name of Facilitator
2) P.A.T.H. examples from each group member (Present,
Authentic, speak your Truth, and Human)- this is in connection to your role as a future educator
3) Outstanding Questions group may have (readings, course expectations)
4) Early Childhood Sector News/Social Media
5) Attendance of group members

# data[].attributes.body
Faciliator: Amanda McFadden

P.A.T.H Examples

# data[].attributes.body
Amanda

Brittany

Josefina

Nadi

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Childcare in Alberta is going to be a bit more affordable in Alberta.

As part of a $3.8 billion Canada-Alberta Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, the province is helping families access affordable childcare in Alberta with the childcare provider of their choice.

Starting on April 1, those parents with children who are up to kindergarten age and are attending full-time licensed daycare facilities or family day home programs across the province will be eligible for a flat parent fee of $326.35 per month.

That would work out to be roughly $15 per day.

The parents who require part-time care will pay $230 per month.

To help support the changes to the cost of childcare, roughly 85 per cent of licensed daycare providers will receive a funding increase once these new fees take place on April 1.

This change happened because families and parents across the province rely on licensed child-care providers to help support children's growth and development while the parent is at school or work.

These licensed childcare providers and early childhood educators are playing a critical role in helping children build necessary skills and their growth and overall health, and as the province's population grows, the need for affordable, accessible, and high-quality licensed and regulated childcare has risen.

While the average fee of these services had previously been $15 a day as of January 2024, there were lots of families who were still paying far more, depending on where the family lives, the age of the child, and the chosen child-care provider.

Which often led to confusion, and inconsistency and caused families difficulty when trying to estimate their child-care fees if they switched child-care providers.

The child-care providers also expressed concerns about the fairness and complexity of the existing funding framework.

Now, with this flat monthly fee, there will be transparency and predictability for families across Alberta, and this will improve fairness to providers on top of increasing the efficiency of the system.

Due to this change, the Alberta government will cover roughly 80 per cent of child-care fees through grants.

With this change, a family that is using a full-time daycare provider could save $11,000, on average, per child per year.

The Alberta government is also going to be reimbursing preschools up to $100 per month per child on the parent's behalf, which is up from the previous $75.

"Albertans deserve affordable child-care options, no matter where they are, or which type of care works best for them. We are bringing in flat parent fees for families so they can all access high-quality childcare for the same affordable, predictable fee," explained the Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade, Matt Jones in a recent media release.

This new flat monthly rate is replacing the Child Care Subsidy Program for children up to kindergarten age attending childcare during regular school hours.

Even though there will be a flat fee for parents, childcare providers will have the flexibility to offer optional services for an additional fee.

Those services will be over and above the services provided to all children.

To read more about the federal-provincial childcare agreement, click here.

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Childcare in Alberta is going to be $15 a day

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Childcare in Alberta is going to be a bit more affordable in Alberta. As part of a $3.8 billion Canada-Alberta Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, the province is helping families access affordable childcare in Alberta with the childcare provider of their choice.

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Alberta has released news that they are decreasing their daycare wages to $15 a day, come April 1, 2025. The article states that although, as of January 2024, the average cost of these services was $15 per day, many families were still paying much more, depending on the child's age, the family's location, and the child care provider they selected. However, with this flat fee of $15, families throughout Alberta will benefit from more predictability and transparency, which will also increase system efficiency and promote fairness for providers. Alberta is doing a great thing changing these costs, as this can result in an average annual savings of $11,000 per child for a household that currently uses a full-time daycare provider!