Public Education at the Tipping Point

Hear from frontline educators at the 2025 Progress Summit on what’s driving the crisis and how we can defend democracy by fighting for strong, inclusive, and well-funded schools.

Canada’s public education system is in crisis mode. From chronic underfunding and privatization to attacks on teachers and burnout—these aren’t isolated issues. Across the globe, right-wing movements are attacking public education, banning books, rewriting history and pitting parents, teachers, and students against each other. That same rhetoric is taking hold here in Canada, as we saw in the 2025 federal election.

In this episode of the Perspectives Journal podcast, we bring you a live recording from the Broadbent Institute’s 2025 Progress Summit, a conversation on Public Education at the Tipping Point. Moderated by Heidi Yetman, President of the Canadian Teachers’ Federation, the panel shows how the erosion of public education threatens democratic values—and what teachers from across Canada and the world are doing to stop it.

Panelists include:

• Heidi Yetman – President, Canadian Teachers’ Federation (Moderator)
• Haldis Holst – Deputy Secretary General, Education International
• Carol Sarich – President, Canadian Association of Principals
• Ken Montgomery – Chair, Ontario Association of Deans of Education

Listen to this urgent discussion from the 2025 Progress Summit to learn what’s causing the current crisis, why it matters for Canadian democracy, and how we can organize for public education that’s well-funded, equitable, and inclusive.

Notes:

• Why the Program Cuts at York University Are Bad for Democracy by Honor Brabazon, Perspectives Journal Mar. 14, 2025
• 2025 Progress Summit: Daring to Take on Today’s Crises (highlights)
• Why Ontario Schools Are in Crisis Under Doug Ford ‘Sources’ podcast episode, PressProgress Feb. 21, 2025

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