#TorontoIsFailingMe: My kid’s school is a disgrace
Nayamath Syed, 38
East York
My wife and I are originally from India, but spent more than a decade living in Abu Dhabi, where I worked as a computer analyst. Three years ago, when our daughter, Amal, was four, we decided we wanted to give her a first-class education. I quit my job and we moved to Canada in May 2011.
Upon our arrival, I quickly secured a position with an engineering firm, working as a global IT analyst. My family settled in East York, where we found an affordable two-bedroom unit in an apartment complex at Main and Danforth. We’ve lived there ever since—the bulk of our neighbours are Indian and Pakistani, but we also live alongside Filipinos, Koreans, Jamaicans and Ukrainians.
Our first autumn in Toronto, Amal started senior kindergarten at Secord Elementary School near Danforth and Main, which consists of a century-old main building and a convoy of 14 portables connected by hallways. The portables were built two decades ago as a temporary solution to student overflow, but the school has never received the funding to replace them. Over the years, these makeshift buildings have slowly deteriorated—we’ve had raccoon infestations, falling ceiling tiles and water damage. Some parents believe the water is contaminated, and that their kids have developed rashes after drinking from the fountains. Between growing classroom sizes and the arrival of full-day kindergarten in 2014, more and more kids have been forced into the portables.
For Amal’s first two years at Secord, her classes were held in the main building, but in September, she started Grade 2 in the portables. I couldn’t believe the conditions: peeling linoleum, splotchy brown water stains, dripping ceilings and tears in the roof. One of the parents even found patches of black mould. Amal was sick for several days in the first month alone—I can’t help but wonder if the conditions had something to do with that.
When we complained to the TDSB, our trustee told us they couldn’t get funding from the ministry to fix the damage, much less create a new building for the students. The ministry, in turn, said it was the TDSB that hadn’t presented a case for repairs. It’s a never-ending circle of blame. It doesn’t help that much of East York is populated by low-income and immigrant families. For all the talk of “priority neighbourhoods,” we’re obviously not a priority for them.
At the end of October, the parents’ council led a walkout—30 students, including my seven-year-old daughter, stood up at 10 a.m. and left school for the day to protest the decaying facilities. I watched proudly as Amal held up signs and fought for her education. The TDSB finally agreed to a full roof repair on the portables—construction is currently underway. But that isn’t enough: Amal deserves a brick-and-mortar classroom where she can learn in a safe, healthy environment. That’s why we brought her here.
—as told to Emily Landau
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/city/toronto-is-failing-me-my-kids-school-is-a-disgrace/&title=#TorontoIsFailingMe: My kid’s school is a disgrace&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/toronto-is-failing-me-my-kids-school-is-a-disgrace-624x395.jpg&description=Toronto's inner suburbs have become shorthand for crumbling postwar apartment blocks, underfunded schools or gang warfare. They’re among the neighbourhoods with the lowest incomes in the city, the longest trek to a TTC stop, and the highest concentration of immigrants and visible minorities. This month, we're sharing stories from Torontonians who live in the inner suburbs, told in their own words. Some are shocking, some tragic, some hopeful. Together, they convey an urgent truth: Toronto is failing too many of its citizens. Have a story of your own? Tweet, Facebook, or Instagram with the hashtag #TorontoIsFailingMe to tell us.
[caption id="attachment_304168" align="aligncenter" width="656"] Nayamath and Amal Syed at Secord Elementary (Image: Eamon Mac Mahon)[/caption]
Nayamath Syed, 38
East York
My wife and I are originally from India, but spent more than a decade living in Abu Dhabi, where I worked as a computer analyst. Three years ago, when our daughter, Amal, was four, we decided we wanted to give her a first-class education. I quit my job and we moved to Canada in May 2011.
Upon our arrival, I quickly secured a position with an engineering firm, working as a global IT analyst. My family settled in East York, where we found an affordable two-bedroom unit in an apartment complex at Main and Danforth. We’ve lived there ever since—the bulk of our neighbours are Indian and Pakistani, but we also live alongside Filipinos, Koreans, Jamaicans and Ukrainians.
Our first autumn in Toronto, Amal started senior kindergarten at Secord Elementary School near Danforth and Main, which consists of a century-old main building and a convoy of 14 portables connected by hallways. The portables were built two decades ago as a temporary solution to student overflow, but the school has never received the funding to replace them. Over the years, these makeshift buildings have slowly deteriorated—we’ve had raccoon infestations, falling ceiling tiles and water damage. Some parents believe the water is contaminated, and that their kids have developed rashes after drinking from the fountains. Between growing classroom sizes and the arrival of full-day kindergarten in 2014, more and more kids have been forced into the portables.
For Amal’s first two years at Secord, her classes were held in the main building, but in September, she started Grade 2 in the portables. I couldn’t believe the conditions: peeling linoleum, splotchy brown water stains, dripping ceilings and tears in the roof. One of the parents even found patches of black mould. Amal was sick for several days in the first month alone—I can’t help but wonder if the conditions had something to do with that.
When we complained to the TDSB, our trustee told us they couldn’t get funding from the ministry to fix the damage, much less create a new building for the students. The ministry, in turn, said it was the TDSB that hadn’t presented a case for repairs. It’s a never-ending circle of blame. It doesn’t help that much of East York is populated by low-income and immigrant families. For all the talk of “priority neighbourhoods,” we’re obviously not a priority for them.
At the end of October, the parents’ council led a walkout—30 students, including my seven-year-old daughter, stood up at 10 a.m. and left school for the day to protest the decaying facilities. I watched proudly as Amal held up signs and fought for her education. The TDSB finally agreed to a full roof repair on the portables—construction is currently underway. But that isn’t enough: Amal deserves a brick-and-mortar classroom where she can learn in a safe, healthy environment. That’s why we brought her here.
—as told to Emily Landau){kind=link}
Well said.
Good luck, sadly, getting the TDSB to do anything meaningful for you. As parents of five sons, we have fought the TDSB on many fronts, many times. Their decisions are led mainly be ego, and the desire to build little empires. Just look at the insane news stories of the past few years alone. The trouble starts at the top, filters all the way through the system, and it ain’t changin’ anytime soon :( Thankfully, our kids are almost out of there, successfully, but it was not an easy journey. I still hope the Province takes it over.
I say that the TDSB should do an Undercover Boss type of thing, where we do a little switch… The (grossly) overpaid executives have to work in the portables for a week, and the kids at this school get the TDSB offices for a week. Then maybe they’ll see why something has to be done.
Seriously, if I were in their position, I’d file a complaint with the health department. Mould and vermin should be enough to at least get them fined and realize that it might be more expensive to keep these old buildings, than it is to build new ones.
Anecdotes are great, but please give a factual overview as well (still a large middle class, people of colour included, in the ‘burbs. Don’t go to extremes to avoid the stereotyping you’ve engaged in the past. Tell the story of dropping crime in Scarborough, for example, and of the majority owning their homes.). Kudos for spreading your coverage to Toronto outside of the downtown core, though! I live in North Scarborough (Ward 41, Scarborough Rouge-River) – a safe and very culturally diverse neighbourhood. Both of my daughters are attending school here (one at a TDSB high school, the other at TCDSB elementary school) – they LOVE their schools & their teachers. Excellent student-teacher ratios here, wonderful staff, gorgeous spacious school grounds. I’m NOT on board with your negative and damaging hashtag, Toronto Life. The suburbs are a mixed bag of experiences. Send some real reporters to ALL suburban wards and tell the full story. Many are content here.
@maxwellarnold:disqus I think that’d be an interesting idea. But what concerns me is you are saying that TDSB executives are grossly overpaid…Who are you talking about, what makes their salary “grossly overpaid”, and by how much?
Having gone through the sunshine list many times in the education sector, it seems that the board employees (higher-ups) at all Ontario boards seem to be paid pretty on par with what other higher-ups in different education systems around the world are paid. In fact, there are a number of countries, including Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, that pay their board employees and teachers much higher than Canada (and Ontario) pays. In fact, Ontario boasts one of the best education systems in the world, and consistently increase rates, graduation rates, and post-secondary attendance rates year over year.
I don’t think that the salary of a board employee has anything to do with this. In fact, this article seems like it’s trying (poorly and with major bias) to state that there’s a funding problem. Wouldn’t that suggest actually increasing funding as a more appropriate solution?
Very well said.
I guess the writer (Emily Landau) didn’t deem it necessary to explore the side of the TDSB, school, or its Trustee. Maybe she forgot? #PoorArticle
Thank you! Just telling the truth from my perspective! :)
Well if parents are so concerned about facilities they should be advocating for schoolchoice and charter schools.Its the only long term solution to the TDSB’s educratic stonewalling
I was silly enough to believe Trustee Sheila when she spoke to me at a number of debates. She is well versed in TDSB procedure and politics. However upon reflection I now can only assume that someone that has held her position for so long that she is the reason for the vast divide between funding available further south in her ward and in the north. She lives in the beaches and supports those particular schools. It is a disgrace that she has allowed the ward to become so recklessly uneven.
Hence “your perspective” this is “his perspective”….take it or leave it. It’s been public knowledge of the shinnanigans that take place within the TDSB
If this was a temporary measure( the portables) and my kids were at this school I would be getting on to the Kathleen Wynne and not a one time, keep the pressure one, it is appalling kids are in these hovels, If the ministry are blaming the TDSB and vice versa well now they both know so don’t give up the fight to have the kids in decent buildings. If you want change you have to keep up the fight. Good luck to the Kids, parents and teachers.
Why bother talking with the trustee involved. Sheila Carey Meagher is busy working 60 hours a week getting voting for the Director salary against the orders of the Ministry of education. Shame of both of them.
Nayamath should have moved his family to another city outside of the GTA. There are many excellent schools and communities outside of Toronto. There is no good reason why every immigrant to Ontario must move to Toronto. The province absolutely must do more to encourage immigrants to move to other communities across the province. They would integrate and become successful much faster, the communities would benefit from their talents and it would take some pressure off Toronto–a city that is growing WAY too fast for its infrastructure to support it.
All I have to say about the ministry is to take a look at the Ontario teachers pension plan to better understand where all of the money is going. Fat cats line their pockets with absurd amounts of income. All while expensing pricey lunches to the company. Over management is a factor as well.
Just a quick editor’s note: we’ve updated this post to address a few minor errors and oversights.
Increasing funding, perhaps. But could it be necessary if the funds were simply allocated more efficiently?
This is my point about the salaries. Go on Google and look up “TDSB salary disclosure”. The province is required to disclose the names and salaries of those earning $100,000 or more per year. There are hundreds of TDSB employees in this salary bracket, the highest paid of whom earns over $260,000 per year. You can pay six new teachers’ salaries with that.
I’m not saying that people in this salary bracket aren’t earning it. But this is a school board, not a bank. I have no problem with someone earning $100k+ if they’re EARNING it. But if the board’s duty is to run the schools, I’m pretty sure that keeping buildings in order and not dangerous to the students is a part of that.
Then, is it conscionable to be collecting a six-figure salary and having the audacity to say “we haven’t got enough money to fix this problem”?
Like where? London? Windsor? North Bay? St. Catharines? Most of those places are already struggling with high employment. You can live in a place with jobs or a place with cheap housing. You get to pick one.
I had grade 2-4 in those portables and that is when they were new! I can’t believe 19 years later they are still being used. One would think and hope that after 20 years a more reliable and permanent (though I guess these portables now are) solution could be created.
Wherever there is opportunity for computer analysts. I’m sure employers are looking for them in other places besides Toronto.
actually, all those cities you listed have an unemployment rate lower than Toronto’s 10%
http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/01/14/torontos-unemployment-rate-deteriorates-dramatically-to-10-1-as-rob-ford-says-city-is-booming/
there seems to be this myth that Toronto is job rich vs other places.
That really only applies to finance industry, film industry and a few other niche areas.
Otherwise, many other places in ontario have more jobs.
Your point is hugely important and appears to support the argument in this series. That schools in Toronto vary so drastically, that some areas, neighbourhoods and school districts have amazing facilities, educators and support, while others… not so much. Is this not the point? It’s great that your children have great schools in a ‘culturally diverse neighbourhood’ but what about others that do not? The assumption prior to this series of articles is that yes of course the schools and educators in all areas of the cities are great or top notch, that is what we should expect from a city like Toronto. Shedding light on the ones that do not fall under that category and clearly important and challenges what many of us assume about the school board.
well ya, all the schools in that area are shitty….
move to an area with nicer schools.
No money to grease campaign coffers, low voter turnout, no one care. It is that simple.
This is the reality of democracy.
If your community is not going to organize and most importantly Vote and line the campaign coffers, don’t complain because you are wasting your time.
Have any facts to prove this? Or is this just an uninformed rant…
Not uninformed. I know a former employee. An audit and an assessment of management I’m sure would show just how many waisted dollars go out the window instead of the pockets of the hard working teachers of Ontario.
So one would think. My son attended Northern SS at Yonge and Eglinton for 2 years. Nice area, high incomes. Overall, the school was dump. I took an Italian night class in his last year there, and could not believe the state of the classroom. Dusty, dirty and I am sure mouldy. No wonder the poor kid was sick so often.
The thing is, the TDSB just released a list of 130 schools, 84 of which are elementary schools, that are at 65% capacity or below. Yes it is terrible that she is learning in decaying portables right now and that’s not ok but there are many other elementary schools in the area surrounding Secord Elementary to choose from. So if he is so (justly) appalled at the conditions, why doesn’t he get her on the list for another school nearby, many of which are on the below capacity list like Secord is. Growing up in Toronto I had many friends and myself included that at one point or another went to a school outside our district because it was better.
You’re obviously a TCSB shill…….Best education sys in the world my foot! Typical blue collar mentality….
So, immigrants move to Canada from their failed third world nations and then complain it’s not good enough for them?