More students with disabilities are attending school part-time.
The Ontario Autism Coalition says a survey of schools shows 26% of students on modified schedules.
It says that translates to nearly 94,000 students who are not going to school full-time.
Last year’s survey found 19% of students placed on modified schedules.
The Coalition states that school boards say the measure is necessary because of a lack of resources.
A report by the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario released in April 2025 identified such things as a lack of early intervention, limited resources and support services.
Vice-President of Community Outreach Kate Dudley-Logue says it shows the system is failing students and placing unsustainable pressure on families, educators, school boards, and communities.
“Chronic underfunding of special education and the lack of commitment or will from this government to ensure that students with disabilities are safe and accessing a meaningful education is the issue, and it must be addressed,” says Dudley-Logue.
The survey area also reveals that 33% of students are experiencing some form of exclusion, such as missing special events or field trips.
Another 6% of students are not attending school at all.
“It’s offensive that Minister Calandra is putting such an incredible emphasis on attendance in his new legislation in Bill 101 while students with disabilities are quite literally being told that they cannot attend school even though they want to,” says Dudley-Logue.
Calandra has said those students will be exempt from the new attendance requirement.
The NDP’s Education Critic Chandra Pasma says it is not the response parents want to hear.
“Parents don’t want their kids exempted. They want their kids to be at school like every other child,” says Pasma.
“They want their children to receive the meaningful education that they have a right to under the Education Act in Ontario.”
Pasma says school boards need as much as $850 million more to adequately support special education learners.
The province earmarked $3.85 billion for special education for the 2025-26 school year.
The 2026 budget makes no mention of the allocation for the next year.
