Lindsay Thompson’s daughter started the school year excited and eager to go to class each day because “she loved school so much.”
asserted
she → start → school
But when she learned her Grade 5 class was being dissolved, and she would be moved into a class with children she doesn’t get along with, she was “very upset.”
asserted
she → learn → children
“She’s struggling with it,” said Thompson, whose daughter attends Williamson Road Junior Public School, calling the move a big change.
asserted
daughter → struggle → move
Similar scenes played out elsewhere as schools recently underwent reorganization, which can result in students and teachers switching classes and more split-grade classes.
asserted
students → play → classes
The Toronto District School Board says about 360 elementary schools were affected by reorganization in late September, compared with roughly 440 last year.
asserted
schools → say → 440
Meanwhile, the city’s Catholic schools are still being reorganized, with students and teachers moving into new classes on Oct. 13.
asserted
students → reorganize → Oct.
Annual September reorganization stretches to October at TCDSB, while TDSB’s deadline is earlier than last year.
asserted
deadline → stretch → year
Annual September reorganization stretches to October at TCDSB, while TDSB’s deadline is earlier than last year.
“This is a normal process that happens every year to make sure staffing reflects enrolment while meeting class size requirements and collective agreements,” said Emma Testani, press secretary for Education Minister Paul Calandra.
asserted
Testani → stretch → Calandra
“Boards are expected to manage these changes responsibly and minimize disruption for students and families.”
asserted
Boards → expect → students
Yet as Ontario schools scramble to balance class sizes — a process that plays out differently, and often less disruptively, elsewhere in Canada — parents are left questioning whether the disturbance, weeks into the school year, could be avoided.
uncertain
disturbance → scramble → year
“My daughter changed classes last year and was with a group of kids that she either didn’t really know or didn’t get along with — so it was really hard on her.
asserted
it → change → her
”
The girl was loving school this year.
asserted
girl → love → school
But then came the Friday afternoon email saying her Grade 5 French Immersion class of 18 was being eliminated, with students divided among three classes.
asserted
students → come → classes
The following Monday morning, she was among a group of kids moved to a new class of 28 students.
asserted
she → follow → students
“There was one class that completely collapsed and then it rippled through every single class from Grade 1 to 5,” said Thompson, also co-chair of the school’s parent council.
asserted
Thompson → be → council
“We talk about reorganization in terms of enrolment numbers, staffing allocations and class sizes, but for children it means losing the classroom they thought was theirs.
asserted
they → talk → classroom
Friend groups and learning partnerships are separated, teachers have to rebuild classroom communities, and children who have already settled in have to start over.
asserted
who → separate → communities
Her experience echoed across the city.
asserted
experience → echo → city
At Dewson Street Junior Public School, about 80 kids were shuffled to accommodate roughly five, said Nigel Barriffe, president of the Elementary Teachers of Toronto, the local union representing public school teachers.
asserted
Barriffe → shuffle → teachers
Annual process seems more disruptive than usual, as staff work to bring class sizes in line with provincial requirements.
asserted
staff → seem → requirements
Annual process seems more disruptive than usual, as staff work to bring class sizes in line with provincial requirements.
asserted
staff → seem → requirements
“Compliance with the regulation does not answer the question that parents and educators are asking: Is this actually the best decision for these children?” said Barriffe, at a press conference outside the school on Sept. 28, when TDSB students who’d been affected began their new classes.
asserted
who → answer → classes
In a statement, the TDSB said the timing of the Friday notification — parents say this leaves them with no time to process, prepare their children, or raise concerns before the Monday move occurs — “is intended to avoid a prolonged period of uncertainty, rather than having students spend days anticipating a potential move.”
asserted
students → say → move
It also said that principals and staff “consider the individual learning styles, social skills and academic needs” when grouping students.
asserted
principals → say → students
Triple splits created
Elsewhere, reorganization resulted in three grades merged into a single class, with one teacher delivering lessons for three separate grades.
asserted
teacher → create → grades
At The Grove Community School, a small alternative school, one of its five teachers was cut and students from grades 4, 5 and 6 were combined into one class of 27.
asserted
students → cut → 27
Ananya Ohri, co-chair of the parent council, says the new class spans different developmental stages, and many students have individual education plans, and complex social, emotional and educational needs, noting “This is a real blow in terms of the quality of education these kids are going to receive.”
Similarly, at Chine Drive Public School a Grade 4-5-6 class was also created, made up of 27 students.
asserted
class → say → students
“They’re speaking out of both sides of their mouth,” said mother Sara Wetmore, noting the province’s concerns about low math scores, but then allowing one teacher to cover three different math curricula.
asserted
teacher → speak → curricula
The TDSB said triple-grade splits occur when there are too few students for classes in successive grades.
asserted
splits → say → grades
In Ontario, reorganizations are complicated by the combination of hard caps on class sizes from kindergarten to Grade 3, and full-day kindergarten starting at age 4, explains Paris Semansky, co-executive director of the advocacy group People for Education.
asserted
Semansky → complicate → Education
No other large Canadian province has that combination, she says, which leads to more classroom reshuffling and less predictability.
asserted
which → have → reshuffling
Because school isn’t compulsory until age six, families make different choices about when to start their kids in school, says Semansky.
asserted
Semansky → make → school
It can be tough to predict who will actually walk through a school’s doors in September.
asserted
who → predict → September
Many parents say reorganizing in the first days of school would be far less disruptive.
asserted
reorganizing → say → school
But enrolment can fluctuate in the opening weeks as families move, return from travel, or register their children.
asserted
families → fluctuate → children
Boards typically take an official head count in mid-September to determine staffing needs and whether schools need to be reorganized, which can affect just a handful of students or dozens.
asserted
which → take → students
The ministry says school boards are responsible for staffing and reorganizing classes, but must follow provincial class-size rules and collective agreements governing class sizes and teacher assignments.
asserted
boards → say → sizes
In a big city like Toronto, where families frequently relocate, just a handful of new students can push classes over their caps, triggering widespread reorganization, says Semansky.
asserted
Semansky → relocate → reorganization
Yet while that can be chaotic, she’s not aware of “any lasting negative impact on kids.
asserted
she → ’ → kids
It’s disruptive for a bit, but it does settle out.
asserted
it → ’ → bit
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
