To: Education observers From: Anna Stokke and Malcolm Bird Date: February 23, 2026 Re: Lessons From England’s Education Overhaul Ontario’s recent EQAO results show insufficient progress in reading and mathematics. In 2024-25, 36 percent of Grade 3 students, 49 percent of Grade 6 students and 42 percent of Grade 9 students failed to meet provincial math standards, […]
Recently updated Statistics Canada estimates of interjurisdictional employment show that the share of workers employed in a province who reside elsewhere increased in nearly every province between 2002 and 2022. This suggests that provincial labour markets are more interconnected today than in the early 2000s. The long-run increase may reflect greater labour mobility and the […]
To: Education observers From: Anna StokkeRe: How to Fix Math Education in Canada Strong math skills are essential for careers that drive the Canadian economy, and early success in math has been shown to predict later academic success and financial earnings. Yet for more than a decade Canadian math scores in both the Program […]
To: Ontario economy observers From: Don DrummondRe: The Ontario Labour Market is Faring Poorly Under Trump Tariffs Donald Trump’s tariff onslaught against Canada began with an executive order signed February 1, 2025. While there have been many twists and turns since, the tariffs are largely against manufacturing exports with steel, aluminum and automobiles hit […]
Published in Financial Post. Strong math skills are essential for careers that drive the Canadian economy, and early success in math has been shown to predict later academic success and financial earnings. Yet for over a decade Canadian math scores in both the Program of International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study […]
Published in the Globe and Mail. Ontario’s recent EQAO results show insufficient progress in reading and mathematics. In 2024-25, 36 per cent of Grade 3 students, 49 per cent of Grade 6 students and 42 per cent of Grade 9 students failed to meet provincial math standards, showing little improvement over the last three years despite targeted […]
From: Labour market watchersTo: Lin Al-AkkadRe: Workforce Readiness as Canada Decarbonizes – Skills-Mismatch Risk and Strategic Responses Transitioning from a declining coal-mining town into a growing hydrogen-energy region is already a huge personal leap for workers, but it becomes far tougher when job-training programs, labour-market signals and industry standards keep shifting. To succeed in a […]
The Bank of Canada’s most recent Survey of Consumer Expectations reveals a generational divide in financial stress, with prime working-age Canadians (25–54) reporting a record-high 27 percent probability of missing a future debt payment and nearly half of young Canadians (18–24) expecting to miss a payment. Notably, Canadians 55 and older reported just 0.7 percent. […]
Published in The Hill Times. Imagine a pipeline of workers laid off from one sector, discarded like old parts, while next door a booming green industry sits idle, struggling to hire. That mismatch is more than inefficient—it is a warning that Canada is heading into the energy transition without the tools required to match real […]
January 13, 2026 – For over a decade, math scores on international tests have declined across all Canadian provinces. On the 2023 Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) assessment, Grade 4 Canadian students performed below the international average on nearly every benchmark level. Given the strong link between early math achievement and later […]
Over the past decade, Canadian math scores on the Program of International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) have declined in all provinces. Canadian fourth-grade students performed below the international average on nearly every benchmark level of math achievement on the 2023 TIMSS assessment. Research shows early math achievement […]
From: David Green, Philip Oreopoulos, Craig Riddell, Mikal Skuterud, and Christopher WorswickTo: Honourable Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship CanadaDate: December 9, 2025Re: How We Subverted our Skills Based Immigration System In 2023, with little fanfare and no political opposition, the federal government gave itself the power to subvert Canada’s world-renowned skilled […]
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To: Education observers From: Anna Stokke and Malcolm Bird Date: February 23, 2026 Re: Lessons From England’s Education Overhaul Ontario’s recent EQAO results show insufficient progress in reading and mathematics. In 2024-25, 36 percent of Grade 3 students, 49 percent of Grade 6 students and 42 percent of Grade 9 students failed to meet provincial math standards, […] 
Recently updated Statistics Canada estimates of interjurisdictional employment show that the share of workers employed in a province who reside elsewhere increased in nearly every province between 2002 and 2022. This suggests that provincial labour markets are more interconnected today than in the early 2000s. The long-run increase may reflect greater labour mobility and the […] 
To: Education observers From: Anna StokkeRe: How to Fix Math Education in Canada Strong math skills are essential for careers that drive the Canadian economy, and early success in math has been shown to predict later academic success and financial earnings. Yet for more than a decade Canadian math scores in both the Program […] 
To: Ontario economy observers From: Don DrummondRe: The Ontario Labour Market is Faring Poorly Under Trump Tariffs Donald Trump’s tariff onslaught against Canada began with an executive order signed February 1, 2025. While there have been many twists and turns since, the tariffs are largely against manufacturing exports with steel, aluminum and automobiles hit […] 
Published in Financial Post. Strong math skills are essential for careers that drive the Canadian economy, and early success in math has been shown to predict later academic success and financial earnings. Yet for over a decade Canadian math scores in both the Program of International Student Assessment (PISA) and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study […] 
From: Labour market watchersTo: Lin Al-AkkadRe: Workforce Readiness as Canada Decarbonizes – Skills-Mismatch Risk and Strategic Responses Transitioning from a declining coal-mining town into a growing hydrogen-energy region is already a huge personal leap for workers, but it becomes far tougher when job-training programs, labour-market signals and industry standards keep shifting. To succeed in a […] 
The Bank of Canada’s most recent Survey of Consumer Expectations reveals a generational divide in financial stress, with prime working-age Canadians (25–54) reporting a record-high 27 percent probability of missing a future debt payment and nearly half of young Canadians (18–24) expecting to miss a payment. Notably, Canadians 55 and older reported just 0.7 percent. […] 
Published in The Hill Times. Imagine a pipeline of workers laid off from one sector, discarded like old parts, while next door a booming green industry sits idle, struggling to hire. That mismatch is more than inefficient—it is a warning that Canada is heading into the energy transition without the tools required to match real […] 
From: David Green, Philip Oreopoulos, Craig Riddell, Mikal Skuterud, and Christopher WorswickTo: Honourable Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship CanadaDate: December 9, 2025Re: How We Subverted our Skills Based Immigration System In 2023, with little fanfare and no political opposition, the federal government gave itself the power to subvert Canada’s world-renowned skilled […]