Canadian Parents Increasingly Choosing Independent Schools for Their Kids: Study

Students’ backpacks, jackets, and shoes are seen outside an elementary school classroom in Vancouver on April 13, 2023. The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck

Parents across Canada are increasingly choosing independent schools over government schools for their children, according to a new study by the Fraser Institute.

Released on April 26, the study says the share of K-12 students enrolled at independent schools across the country increased in every province over a 19-year span, while the share of those enrolled in government schools declined.

The findings were based on enrolment data obtained from provinces between the period of 2000/01 and 2019/20. The study defines independent schools as those characterized by alternative approaches to teaching with a “distinct academic focus or religious orientation.”

In the 19-year period, independent school enrolment, as a share of total enrolment, rose from 8.7 percent to 13.2 percent in British Columbia, 4.1 percent to 4.3 percent in Alberta, 1.2 percent to 2.8 percent in Saskatchewan, and 6.8 percent to 8 percent in Manitoba.

In central Canada, Ontario saw a rise from 4.9 percent to 6.9 percent while Quebec’s records indicated an increase from 9.4 percent to 11.7 percent.

The Atlantic provinces observed similar trends, as the share of independent school enrolment climbed from 1.6 percent to 3.1 percent in Nova Scotia, 0.9 percent to 2.2 percent in Prince Edward Island, 0.8 percent to 1.6 percent in Newfoundland and Labrador, and 0.7 percent to 1.0 percent in New Brunswick.

‘Decline’ in Public School Enrolment

Enrolment in public schools showed a different picture, though its approach in education is still the dominant form in all ten provinces.

“Every province except Alberta (increase of 24.7 percent) recorded a decline in the absolute number of students enrolled in public schools,” the authors wrote.

The province with the largest decline (29.4 percent) in public school enrolment was Newfoundland and Labrador during the studied period.

“Every province, including Alberta, also experienced a decline in the share of total students receiving their education from public schools,” they said.

The study said the phenomenon of increased independent school enrolment can be attributed to provincial funding. It noted that Quebec and British Columbia, along with Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, provide partial funding to these schools.

However, Ontario and the four Atlantic provinces “do not allow money to follow children to the school of their choice,” it added.

This did not stop Ontario from recording a higher share (6.9 percent) of independent school enrolment than Alberta (4.3 percent) and Saskatchewan (2.8 percent).

“[I]t is important to note that Ontario is also the province with the fewest regulations for establishing an independent school,” they reasoned.

Homeschooling

Meanwhile, Alberta recorded the highest rate of students enrolled in homeschooling at 1.9 percent in 2019/20.

“Five provinces record home schooling enrolment rates of less than 1 percent but every province except British Columbia has experienced an increase in both absolute enrolment and the share of total enrolment,” the study said.

“Home schooling remains a relatively small but growing part of the overall education system.”

Michael Zwaagstra, senior fellow with the Fraser Institute and co-author of the study, says “the evidence is clear” that parents are looking for more choice in how their children are educated.

“For their children’s education, parents across Canada are increasingly choosing options outside the government school system,” he said in a news release.