Ontario schools' special education programs are not meeting students' needs, says the auditor general. Staff absences and undocumented exclusions are concerns.

The auditor general's report shows that special education needs are growing faster than overall student enrollment. The system is struggling to keep up.

In the past decade, student enrollment has grown by 4%, but special education needs have grown by 7%.

The report says student needs have become more complex.

Without enough staff, managing high-needs students is difficult. This leads to stress, injuries, and absences for educational assistants.

Unaddressed behavioral challenges and staffing issues cause classroom problems and absences.

Almost 1 in 5 educational assistants were absent on any given day. Most of the time, their absences were not filled by qualified staff.

Principals, teachers, and educational assistants say that high absences are due to stress and physical injuries from students.

Teachers lack training to work with special education students, making the problem worse.

Most teachers have not received training on special education topics, including identifying needs and managing behavior.

The report found issues with informal exclusions of special needs students.

There are no provincial guidelines on exclusions, leading to different policies in different schools.

Many teachers have seen informal exclusions, often due to behavioral challenges or lack of support.

Exclusions are usually related to behavioral challenges or safety concerns.

The auditor found problems with assessments for special education students.

Many students have been waiting over a year for a special assessment.

One school board saw all students within a year, but others had longer wait times.

Assessment issues may be why the number of identified special education needs has not increased despite growing enrollment.

Learning plans are not applied consistently, and supports are not monitored.

Parents and advocates say special education is broken in Ontario, citing funding as the main issue.

The government increased special education funding by 15% over 4 years.

This increase matches the rate of inflation.

The government agreed with most of the auditor's recommendations.

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