Need a Source? Safe Schools Policy and Practice: An Agenda for Action

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) welcomes the release of Safe Schools Policy and Practice: An Agenda for Action, a report received today by Minister of Education Sandra Pupatello that recommends changes to the current system’s approach to dealing with violence in schools.

We at CAMH are pleased with the direction the report has taken to make our schools safer—focusing on educating youth and preventing aggressive behaviour and violence, rather than on ‘zero tolerance’ and expelling teens from school once an incident has occurred. With 31% of students reporting being a victim of bullying in the past year, we are delighted to see the report focusing on the everyday forms of abuse, bullying and violence that many kids experience, rather than on the rarer but highly visible incidents that we see in the media.

Cited in the report’s recommendations are CAMH programs that have been shown to improve the school environment by educating students in ways to avoid violence and be safe every day, including:

The ‘Fourth “R” Program developed to help Grade 9 students form healthy relationships and make better choices while they navigate critical developmental minefields such as substance use, sexual relationships, bullying and violence. Through open dialogue and role-playing, the curriculum engages teachers and students in enthusiastic discussion about peer pressure, media literacy, emotional and psychological abuse and healthy communication.
CAMH’s partnership with the Black Creek Community Centre and the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) in a video-creation project to help teens problem-solve ways to avoid conflict and violence. The sample video, based on the actual experiences of Toronto youth and speaking directly to the problems they face, will be used as a tool throughout the TDSB.

Experts available for comment:

Dr. David Wolfe, RBC Chair in Children's Mental Health; Director, CAMH Centre for Prevention Science
Carin Mclean, Supervisor, Youth Outreach Service, CAMH

For more information, or to schedule an interview: media please contact, Michael Torres, Media Relations Coordinator, CAMH at (416) 595 6015

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The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is a specialized teaching hospital fully affiliated with the University of Toronto, and is the largest mental health and addiction facility in Canada. CAMH is also a Pan American Health Organization and a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre.