Christian organizations have always played a large role in Canadian education. By 1949, five provinces had constitutionally protected denominational schools. The federal government’s responsibility for the education of Indigenous Peoples was effectively contracted out to the churches for more than a century, resulting in a history of abuse that has only recently come to light.
From the 1950s to the 1970s, several initiatives in different provinces set the stage for significant reforms to education. Some of these tested the limits of denominational protections, but could not shake the underlying constitutional structures.
Patriation of the Constitution and adoption of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982 codified fundamental changes in thinking about civil rights. The Charter allowed existing denominational rights to be challenged on many fronts. However, all such challenges were rebuffed by the courts on the grounds that the Charter cannot be used to override other parts of the Constitution.
By the 1990s, it became apparent that another route to reform was available, through the amending formula. Constitutional amendments were used to end denominational control of schools in Newfoundland and Quebec in 1997 and 1998.
The circumstances around those constitutional amendments are discussed in detail as possible precedents for similar outcomes in Alberta, Ontario, and Saskatchewan. This book contends that change will certainly come to these provinces and several paths to reform are explored. This reform aims to remove the discrimination inherent in denominational institutions while preserving some form of religious involvement in certain schools.
Authors
- Published in
- Ottawa, CA
- Series
- Education
Table of Contents
- Cover 1
- Halftitle Page 2
- Title Page 4
- Copyright 5
- Table of Contents 6
- Preface 8
- Acknowledgements 12
- Introduction 14
- Philosophical and Legal Foundations 24
- Separation of Church and State 26
- Freedom of Religion 27
- Secularism, Religious Pluralism, and Reasonable Accommodation 28
- Education as a Human Right 30
- Parent Rights versus State Control 31
- The Political Climate 34
- Economic Issues 35
- Models of Church / State Relationships 36
- Types of Denominational Schools in Canada 40
- Historical Context 44
- Church Before State 44
- Confederation and Section 93 48
- Post-Confederation Consolidation and Expansion 55
- The 1982 Constitution and Impact of the Charter 74
- Charter Challenges on Separate Schools 76
- Charter Cases on Parent Rights and Religion in Schools 81
- Lessons from the Charter Cases 88
- Constitutional Amendment: Newfoundland and Quebec 90
- Newfoundland 91
- Quebec 106
- Lessons from Newfoundland and Quebec 113
- Catholic Schools in Canada 118
- The Catholic Perspective 119
- The Decline of Religiosity and Church Influence 121
- Enrolments in Catholic Schools 123
- Are Catholic Schools Superior to Public Schools? 126
- Religion and Private Schools 130
- The Ontario Commission on Private Schools 131
- Scope and Characteristics of Private Schools 133
- Private School Legislation 136
- Supreme Court Decisions on Private Schools 138
- Student Performance in Private Schools 139
- The Policy Issue 140
- The Churches, the Federal Government, and Indigenous Education 142
- The Colonial Era 143
- Confederation and the Indian Act 144
- Residential Schools 146
- Day Schools 148
- Doubts about the Residential School System 149
- The End of the Residential School System 152
- Apologies, Litigation, and Resolution 154
- Similarities and Differences in Indigenous and non-Indigenous Policies 159
- The Contemporary Debate 162
- Sex and Health Education 163
- Reasonable Accommodation and Quebec Bill 21 170
- Public Opinion Surveys 172
- Other Opinion Sources 175
- The Economic Argument 176
- The Way Forward 180
- Status Quo versus Change 182
- A Framework for Change 186
- Models of Change 188
- Concluding Comments: Process and Implementation 202
- Notes 208
- Bibliography 224
- Court Cases Cited 236
- Backcover 242