E D U C A T I O N   &   T R A I N I N G   P O L I C Y

AIMS has established itself as one of Canada’s leading centres for research on education policy. Our research on education policy is centred on two major themes: Increasing accountability in public educational institutions and providing information for parents and students about how well their schools are performing and identifying and researching policy options that expand educational choices and remove the barriers that trap students in failing institutions – parents and students deserve more than one educational choice.

The Institute’s research program in the education and training policy file has not only elevated the discourse in a number of areas, but our AIMS pioneering research on evaluating the quality of education has helped to introduce more accountability and transparency in the region’s elementary and secondary education systems. AIMS “School Report Cards” have been a focal point for our high-impact, policy-relevant research and commentary.

POLICY PAPERS & OP-ED COMMENTARIES

 

Post-Secondary Tuition and Low-Income Access

© UNB. Post-Secondary Tuition and Low-Income Access discusses New Brunswick's Tuition Access Bursary program, which covers college and university tuition for the children of families earning under $60,000 per year. Author Patrick Webber's paper reviews numerous studies, surveys and reports from domestic and international sources, which speak to the relationship ...

E-Learning in K-12 Schools: The Prospects for Disruptive Innovation

E-Learning in K-12 Schools The Prospects for Disruptive Innovation A report by Paul W. Bennett E-Learning in K-12 Schools examines how Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador lost the e-learning initiative, why centralized top-down “21st century learning” visions run aground, and how school system constraints ...

Extending the Educational Lifeline

The Atlantic Institute for Market Studies (AIMS) is proud to release Extending the educational lifeline: The benefits of adopting Nova Scotia’s Tuition Support Program (TSP), authored by Dr. Paul Bennett, Director of Schoolhouse Consulting. The study is the third special education-related paper released by Dr. Bennett for AIMS, and follows ...

Education on Wheels: Seizing Cost and Energy Efficiency Opportunities in Student Transportation

Halifax, NS (13 January 2015):  A new AIMS research report, “Education on Wheels,” shows that student transportation costs are rising steadily across Maritime Canada, even as student enrolment declines, and that provincial governments in the region are missing opportunities to achieve cost and energy efficiencies. The authors, Paul W. Bennett and ...

Maintaining Spotless Records: Professional Standards, Teacher Misconduct and the Teaching Profession

Certifying teachers and regulating the teaching profession is emerging as a critical public policy issue–and one that urgently needs addressing in the interests of students as well as taxpayers in Nova Scotia and a few other provinces. Establishing and maintaining professional standards in Canada has, in practice, been delegated to ...
MEDIA MENTIONS

 

“Education isn’t one-size-fits-all. Different kids require different kinds of outreach.” Charter Schools on News 95.7

Is it time we expanded our understanding of public education in the Atlantic region? Listen to AIMS author and alumna Paige MacPherson of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation discuss the charter ...

Letter of the Week: When will we learn not to stick kids on school buses?

On September 2, 2018, the Chronicle Herald published a letter to the editor referencing our 2015 study Education on Wheels: Seizing Cost and Energy Efficiency Opportunities in Student Transportation as evidence ...

AIMS research on teacher accountability referenced in Telegraph-Journal commentary

A commentary in the Telegraph-Journal referenced AIMS research on teacher accountability. Read the article here Read the AIMS research on teacher accountability here ...

Dr. Paul Bennett oped featured in the Chronicle Herald

On June 13th, 2018, AIMS author Dr. Paul Bennett had an opinion piece published in the Chronicle Herald titled "Opaque site selection process for new Eastern Shore school riles residents." ...