The Education Promise is a bold, five-year initiative designed to transform public education through actionable policy changes that address Canada’s most urgent challenges. 

Canada has never needed a strong public education system more than it does now. We are facing unprecedented challenges – from polarization to climate change, productivity to well-being, from inequality to rapid advances in technology. Public education has the power to help respond to these pressing issues by preparing the next generation with the skills and resilience needed to succeed in an increasingly complex and divided world. But public education in Canada is hamstrung by jurisdictional and sector barriers, policy based on short-term, siloed thinking, a lack of national data, and the absence of a pan-Canadian strategy to support change. 

In a context of complexity and uncertainty, traditional analytical tools and problem-solving methods no longer work. …Traditionally, public policy makers have addressed social problems through discrete interventions layered on top of one the other, building on a “cause and effect” relationship. However, these interventions may shift consequences from one part of the system to another, or simply address symptoms while ignoring causes.

OECD

After nearly three decades of research and advocacy for public education, People for Education knows that change cannot be made by the education system alone. We need a pan-Canadian approach that brings together leaders across sectors and jurisdictions to collectively build a shared strategy that addresses root causes, not just symptoms. 

The Education Promise seeks to address the challenge of siloed policy development in education by developing systemic, upstream policy solutions with a broad base of cross-sector and jurisdictional support.