ABSTRACT
Canada, and in particular Ontario, offers an illustrative example of a high-quality public education system. This chapter examines the themes of privatization and public investment. With its passionate advocates and fierce critics, privatization has taken an important place in debates on how to achieve improved outcomes for children and youth. Simply put, privatization consists of transferring ownership of an enterprise or service from the public sector to private hands. The priority given to education in Canada is evident in its relatively high percentage of GDP spent on this sector, representing a significant public investment. The accomplishments of Ontario's Whole System Reform Strategy can also be expressed as follows: over 180,000 more elementary school students have reached higher proficiency in reading, writing, and mathematics by grade 6 than would have been the case without the strategy.
