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Canada has a long history of education, but it took many attempts, policies, and legislation to ensure compulsory free education for everyone. Rather than one revolutionary piece of legislation, there was a gradual build-up to today's modern education system. Below is the most important early legislation that forms the foundation for the current system of education in Canada.
These policies recount the major educational changes that established a precedent for universal, compulsory, and free education in Canada. After 1871, many minor education policies have shaped curriculum and delivery in Canada, but the two most contentious issues surrounding education are teacher union rights and language rights.
<aside> 📍 Click here to learn more about the issue of language rights in Canada.
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<aside> 📍 Click here to learn more about the contemporary politics of education in Ontario.
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<aside> 👇 Continue scrolling to learn more about the teacher unions dispute in British Columbia.
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British Columbia, in the past two decades, has also gone through major changes and conflict. The BC Liberal government, under the leadership of Premiers Gordon Campbell and Christy Clark, respectively, made many changes to the way that education is delivered, administered, and funded.