Manitoba must do more to ensure every child can learn how to read: human rights commission

More work needs to be done to ensure Manitoba's children all have a fair chance to learn how to read, a new report says.

The Manitoba Human Rights Commission says students with disabilities particularly experience barriers preventing them from accessing a "basic and essential human right."

In a 137-page report released Thursday, the commission said that while the province has recently taken steps to improve literacy including upcoming changes to the English Language Arts curriculum and a directive to implement universal early screening, there is room for improvement.

The report includes dozens of recommendations on how to improve the way reading is taught and assessed, as well as how to better accommodate students with reading disabilities and address systemic issues.

It's partially based on responses to a 2023 survey of students, parents and school staff in the province, many of whom said the approach Manitoba schools have used to teach reading is not effective.

The report said the province's English curriculum should provide clear guidance on how to teach students to read based on "direct, explicit, systematic and cumulative approach" — an instruction method the commission said has been proven to be effective — like is done in Ontario.

On early reading screenings, it said most school staff surveyed reported using benchmarks that were not valid or reliable tools to tests students' ability to read . It said that there are concerns that even with universal screening in place, there's a "missing link" as to how help students succeed after that.

Some other recommendations include more training for educators, a strategy to address shortages of school psychologists, speech-language pathologists and other critical supports, and improving access to assistive technologies.

The commission said it will continue to monitor the changes the province is making to reading education, and release updated findings as they're implemented in 2026/27.

Parents at an event held for the release of the report said something needs to be done to help children with learning disabilities succeed.

Natalie Riediger, who has two children with dyslexia, said there's a lack of supports in Manitoba's schools.

"I took my children out of the public education system because the system just could not accommodate them," she said. "There's lots of families … who can't do what we did. That's a big reason why I'm here, because every child deserves the right to learn to read."

Alicia Smith, executive director of Dyslexia Canada, said she hopes the report builds momentum for changes that are already taking place elsewhere in the country.

"They've already made some initial steps," she said. "But there's quite a lot more to it than that, and there's some nuances in those recommendations that I hope that the government will move forward with."