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Policy Monitor

The Policy Monitor tracks Federal, Provincial and Territorial early childhood policy initiatives, developments and announcements.

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Manitoba
Excerpt: "The Manitoba government is announcing details of the Family Choices Building Fund as part of the recently launched five-year plan to create more high-quality child care for families across the province, Family Services Minister Kerri Irvin-Ross said today."
Excerpt: "The new Poverty Reduction Strategy — Realizing Our Potential — will expand our poverty reduction efforts to reach more vulnerable people and will continue to reduce poverty in Ontario."

Newfoundland & Labrador
Excerpt: "Creation of the new Department of Education and Early Childhood Development: The best education systems integrate early learning activities with the formal education system. The new department will be responsible for the continuum of learning from infancy through high school. It brings together the teams that will spearhead initiatives in early childhood education, the introduction of full-day kindergarten and other advances throughout the primary, elementary and secondary systems."

2014 Mandate Letter: Education

Ontario
Excerpt: "Moving Forward on Child Care and the Early Years: Building on the successful implementation of full-day kindergarten, which will be fully implemented this year. As outlined below, you will continue to work with school boards, municipalities, First Nations, child care operators and parents to modernize, stabilize and strengthen the child care system and improve oversight; Overseeing the implementation of legislative and regulatory changes through the Child Care Modernization Act, 2014, if passed."
Excerpt: "Government will be investing $3.75 million over five years to increase and enhance services to children with complex health needs says Minister of Health and Wellness Doug Currie."

Nova Scotia
Excerpt: "My government, through the department of Education and Early Childhood Development, has already started a review of regulated child-care programs. This review is focusing on the safety of children in childcare and identifying ways to make childcare more accessible and affordable for families, enhancing the quality of programming for children, and supporting staff who work with our youngest children. Recommendations from the review will be ready in the spring of 2015."

Nova Scotia
Families in Yarmouth and surrounding areas, now have access to more services and supports for young children because of the new Early Years Centre for Yarmouth Central School.
Excerpt: "New data released today by the Department of Education, Culture and Employment (ECE) confirms that actions the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is undertaking to support the healthy development of children in the NWT are focused on areas of greatest need. The information was collected over three years using the Early Development Instrument (EDI), a standardized method of measuring readiness to learn that is used across Canada and in several other countries."

Nova Scotia
"In today's digital world, new and expectant parents are looking for credible information online," said Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's chief public health officer. "This new program has been customized according to Nova Scotia standards. It provides the information parents need in the online, mobile format they want."

Ontario
Excerpt: "Ontario has fully rolled out its full-day kindergarten (FDK) program, making it available to 265,000 four- and five-year-olds in approximately 3,600 schools across the province. By the end of the 2014-15 school year, almost half a million kids will have benefitted from FDK since it was first introduced in 2010. With more than $1.5 billion in funding to date, FDK is one of the most significant investments Ontario has made in education in a generation."
Excerpt: "Every board shall, in every elementary school of the board in which instruction is given in grade 1, operate a full day junior kindergarten and kindergarten in accordance with paragraph 6.2 of subsection 170 (1) of the Act."

Alberta
Excerpt: "To ensure that young children have the supports and opportunities they need to thrive and do well, it helps to know how they are doing and how the environments in which they are being raised are affecting their development both positively or negatively. Having this kind of research data provides evidence for sound policy and decision-making. A number of pilot studies of early development have been conducted in Alberta in the past, but these were limited in size and scope. The ECD Mapping Initiative was the first population-based study of preschool children to encompass the whole province. "