Canadian Social Research Newsletter

Canadian Social Research Newsletter
December 11, 2005

Welcome to the weekly Canadian Social Research Newsletter, a listing of the new links added to the Canadian Social Research Links website in the past week.

The e-mail version of this week's issue of the newsletter is going out to 1544 subscribers.
Scroll to the bottom of this newsletter to see some notes and a disclaimer.

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IN THIS ISSUE:

Canadian Content

1. Canadian 2006 Federal Election Resources (Canadian Social Research Links)
2. Fairness in Education for Single Parents in Nova Scotia (Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives - Nova Scotia Office) - December 8
3. 2006 Indexation Adjustment for Personal Income Tax System (Department of Finance Canada) - December 9
4. New from Statistics Canada:
--- Political activity among young adults, 2003 (study) - December 6
--- Canadian Community Health Survey, Nutrition: Public Use [FREE] Microdata File, 2004 - December 5
5. Transitional Employment Allowance, Flat Rate Utilities, Rental Housing Supplements and Poverty in Saskatchewan - October 2005 (Social Policy Research Unit - University of Regina)
6. What's New from the Childcare Resource and Research Unit ( University of Toronto) - December 9

International Content

7. Poverty Dispatch Digest : U.S. media coverage of social issues and programs --- December 7
8. 2005 State of the Microcredit Summit Campaign Report (Global Microcredit Summit 2006) - December 7
9. Hunger Relief Portal - Relief Organizations and Hunger Statistics

Have a great week!
gs

Gilles Séguin
Canadian Social Research Links
http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net

E-mail:
gilseg@rogers.com

1. Canadian 2006 Federal Election Resources
(Canadian Social Research Links)

2006 Canadian Federal Election Resources
Canadian Social Research Links offers you 150+ links to useful resources for the 2006 federal election, organized as follows:
* Elections Canada (the compulsory links to government election-related info)
* Registered political parties for the 2006 federal election - including party platforms
* Media coverage of the 2006 federal election
* 2004 Federal Election --- What happened again?
* Links to selected non-governmental sites focusing on the federal election, including (so far, for starters...) the following groups : Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives - Childcare Resource and Research Unit (University of Toronto) - Straight Goods - National Anti-Poverty Organization - Canadian Union of Public Employees - Mapleleafweb - nodice.ca
* Miscellaneous links --- federal election and general political websites

Bonus!
It sure pays to be well-connected : one of the subscribers to the Canadian Social Research Newsletter , who shall of course remain nameless, has discreetly sent me a copy of the Conservative Party of Canada platform section dealing with Women's Issues that will be announced next week:
See http://tinyurl.com/2yw5j

- Go to the 2006 Federal Election and General Political Links page page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/politics.htm

2. Fairness in Education for Single Parents in Nova Scotia - December 8
(Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives - Nova Scotia Office)

Single parent students have to choose between family needs and attending university
Press Release
December 8, 2005
"HALIFAX: Single parents face a monthly shortfall of between $180 and $415 while attending university according to study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The study, “Fairness in Education for Single Parents in Nova Scotia,” presents the first detailed examination of income and expenses for single parent-university students in Nova Scotia. The author, Katherine Reed, of the Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre, examined what would be the income and expenses of several single parent families, if the heads of the families were university students."

Complete report:

Fairness in Education for Single Parents in Nova Scotia (PDF file - 261 K, 20 pages)
December 2005

Source:
Nova Scotia Office
[ Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives - CCPA ]

- Go to the Nova Scotia Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/nsbkmrk.htm

3. 2006 Indexation Adjustment for Personal Income Tax System - December 9
(Department of Finance Canada)

2006 Indexation Adjustment for Personal Income Tax System
News Release
December 9, 2005
"All personal income tax amounts will be adjusted by 2.2 per cent in 2006 to ensure that inflation does not cause people to pay more income tax.
Restoration of full indexation of the personal income tax system was announced in Budget 2000 and took effect that same year. Since that time, personal income tax amounts have been indexed to inflation every year using Consumer Price Index data, as reported by Statistics Canada."
- includes Backgrounder : How Tax Parameters Are Indexed

Source:
Department of Finance Canada

- Go to the Federal Government Department Links (Agriculture to Finance) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/fedbkmrk.htm

4. New from Statistics Canada:
--- Political activity among young adults, 2003 (study) - December 6
--- Canadian Community Health Survey, Nutrition: Public Use [FREE] Microdata File, 2004 - December 5

What's New from The Daily [Statistics Canada]:

December 6, 2005
Study: Political activity among young adults, 2003
"Young adults do not vote as often as people in older age groups, but they help make up for it by engaging in other politically-related activities, according to a new report published today in Canadian Social Trends. The report 'Willing to participate: Political engagement of young adults', available free online, used data from the General Social Survey to examine the extent of political activity among young adults aged 22 to 29. It measured their traditional political participation, that is, voting, as well as alternative activities, such as participating in demonstrations or attending public meetings."

Complete article:

Willing to participate: Political engagement of young adults
(PDF file - 157K, 6 pages)

Other free articles from past issues of Canadian Social Trends
- incl. links (in the left margin of the page) to more info on Canadian Social Trends and how to subscribe or to purchase a single copy.

December 5, 2005
Canadian Community Health Survey, Nutrition: Public Use Microdata File, 2004
The public use microdata file from the 2004 Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), Nutrition: General Health Component is now available. This survey collected information from over 35,000 respondents of all ages residing in private households in all 10 provinces. (...) This product is available free of charge to non-profit organizations in the health sector for research and non-commercial purposes. "(bolding added)

- Go to the Federal Government Department Links (Fisheries and Oceans to Veterans Affairs) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/fedbkmrk2.htm

5. Transitional Employment Allowance, Flat Rate Utilities, Rental Housing Supplements and Poverty in Saskatchewan - October 2005
(Social Policy Research Unit - University of Regina)

Transitional Employment Allowance, Flat Rate Utilities,
Rental Housing Supplements and Poverty in Saskatchewan (PDF file - 609K, 36 pages)
October 2005
"This paper examines (...) recent program changes in Saskatchewan as part of the neo-liberal response to the new global economy and its search for cheaper, more flexible labour. The province is failing to support the interests of the poor and is continuing down the path of compelling them to undertake low wage employment."
Source:
Social Policy Research Unit - University of Regina

- Go to the Saskatchewan Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/skbkmrk.htm

6. What's New from the Childcare Resource and Research Unit - December 9
( University of Toronto)

What's New - from the Childcare Resource and Research Unit (CRRU) - University of Toronto

Each week, the Childcare Resource and Research Unit disseminates its "e-mail news notifier", an e-mail message with a dozen or so links to new reports, studies and child care in the news (media articles) by the CRRU or another organization in the field of early childhood education and care (ECEC). What you see below is content from the most recent issue of the notifier.

9-Dec-05

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WHAT’S NEW
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>> 2005 annual report of the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario
Report from Ontario’s Auditor General includes an assessment of the Ministry of Children and Youth Services’ child care activities; calls
for clearer program expectations and assessment of their implementation.

>> Canadian Social Policy Renewal and the National Child Benefit
Warriner, Bill
Report from the Saskatchewan Institute of Public Policy uses the example of the NCB to examine the social policy challenges brought about by globalization.

>> The effects of state prekindergarten programs on young children’s school readiness in five states
Barnett, W.S.; Lamy, C. & Jung, K.
Study from the National Institute for Early Education Research (US) finds that "preschool programs have statistically significant impacts on children’s language, literacy and mathematical development."

>> Frontiers in child care research: Annual meeting of the Child Care Policy Research Consortium
Materials from a conference sponsored by the U.S Child Care Bureau "identify and respond to critical issues in child care research, policy and practice."

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CHILD CARE IN THE NEWS
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>> Child care dollars: How many spaces does a billion bucks buy? [CA]
CBC News, Reality Check, 8 Dec 05

>> Whoa, baby! Chew on these child care plans [CA]
Globe and Mail, 6 Dec 05

>> Tory day care proposal draws mixed reviews: Some Calgary moms like current system [CA]
Calgary Herald, 6 Dec 05

>> Martin boosts daycare pledge [CA]
Toronto Star, 6 Dec 05

>> Daycare proposal [CA]
CTV News and Current Affairs, 5 Dec 05

>> Gulf between parties is size of a small child: Liberals, Tories differ distinctly on daycare options [CA]
National Post, 5 Dec 05

>> Tories promise new child care allowance [CA]
CBC News, 5 Dec 05

>> Look who has an eye on schools [AU]
Sydney Morning Herald, 1 Dec 05

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FEDERAL ELECTION
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>> Issue File: Early learning and child care in the 2006 federal election
This Issue File will collect materials about ELCC within the 2006 federal election. It will provide: information about how ELCC is positioned in the political parties' platforms; what key social policy groups are calling for in the election; news clippings; and other resources about ELCC in the federal campaign.

---------------------------------------------------
Reconceptualizing
Early Childhood Education Canada
---------------------------------------------------

Reconceptualizing Early Childhood Education Canada
http://www.reconece.org/

Reconceptualizing Early Childhood Education Canada is a forum for early childhood educators, university and college instructors, advocates and researchers interested in alternative perspectives on research, theory, practice and policy in the Canadian early childhood education field. Alternative perspectives may focus on qualitative research methods, feminism, social justice, political action, social inclusion, cultural and linguistic diversity. Forum activities will potentially include a list serve for discussions and announcements, publications and a summer institute. Reconceptualizing Early Childhood Education Canada will be informally linked to an international Reconceptualizing Early Childhood Education Group.

Please contact Rachel Langford, Centre for Early Childhood Development,
George Brown College: rlangfor@gbrownc.on.ca
Tel. (416) 415-5000 Extension 2566

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
This message was forwarded through the Childcare Resource
and Research Unit e-mail news notifier. For information on the
CRRU e-mail notifier, including instructions for (un)subscribing,
see http://www.childcarecanada.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Related Links:

What's New? - Canadian, U.S. and international resources from Jan 2000 to the present.
Child Care in the News - media articles from January 2000 to the present
ISSUE files - theme pages, each filled with contextual information and links to further info
Links to child care sites in Canada and elsewhere
CRRU Publications - briefing notes, factsheets, occasional papers and other publications

Also from CRRU:

Towards a national system of early learning and child care
Regularly updated
NOTE: this is a large (and growing) collection that includes government and non-governmental reports, press releases, news articles and other documents dealing with the new federal-provincial-territorial arrangements for early learning and child care in Canada.

Current developments in Early Childhood Education and Care: Provinces and territories
Regularly updated

- Go to the Non-Governmental Early Learning and Child Care Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/ecd2.htm

7. Poverty Dispatch Digest :
U.S. media coverage of social issues and programs --- December 7

POVERTY DISPATCH Digest
Institute for Research on Poverty - U. of Wisconsin
This digest offers dozens of new links each week to full-text articles in the U.S. media (mostly daily newspapers) on poverty, poverty, welfare reform, child welfare, education, health, hunger, Medicare and Medicaid, and much more...
The Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison offers a free e-mail service that consists of an e-mail message sent to subscribers each Monday and Thursday, containing a dozen or so links to articles dealing with the areas mentioned above. The weekly Canadian Social Research Links Poverty Dispatch Digest is a compilation, available online, of the two dispatch e-mails for that week --- with the kind permission of IRP.

Here's the complete collection of U.S. media articles in this week's Poverty Dispatch Digest:
(click the link above to read all of these articles)

December 7, 2005

Today's subjects include: Proposed Federal Budget Cuts - Editorial // Early Childhood Education - Opinion // Educational Achievement // Health Care - Editorial Series // Welfare Reform - Michigan // Proposed Child Support Enforcement Cuts - Texas // Early Childhood Education - Minnesota, South Carolina, Oklahoma // At-Risk Students - Kansas // Asset Building Initiative - Utah // Universal Free Breakfast Program - Rhode Island // Public Housing - Philadelphia // Homelessness - Indianapolis

December 5, 2005

Today's subjects include: Federal-State Conflict over Food Stamps // Proposed Federal Budget Cuts and the Poor // Proposed Federal Work Rules for Welfare Recipients - Editorial // Role of Marriage in Curbing Poverty - Opinion // Call to Renew Fight against Poverty - Opinion // Decline in Number of Children without Health Insurance // Effect of High College Costs on Poor Students // Welfare Reform - Michigan // Antipoverty Efforts - Utah // Poverty Level - Selected Counties // Effect of Proposed Cuts in Child Support Enforcement - Michigan // Plight of Older Foster Children - Montana // Warning of Pitfalls in Universal Preschool Initiative - California // Fixing New Computerized Benefits System - Colorado // Increased Need for Social Services - Saginaw County, MI // Combating Hunger - Ohio and Michigan // Homelessness - San Mateo County, CA

Each of the weekly digests offers dozens of links or more to media articles that are time-sensitive.
The older the link, the more likely it is to either be dead or have moved to an archive - and some archives [but not all] are pay-as-you-go.
[For the current week's digest, click on the POVERTY DISPATCH Digest link above]

The Poverty Dispatch weekly digest is a good tool for monitoring what's happening in the U.S.; it's a guide to best practices and lessons learned in America.

Subscribe to the Poverty Dispatch!
Send an e-mail message to John Wolf [ jwolf@ssc.wisc.edu ] to receive a plain text message twice a week with one to two dozen links to media articles with a focus on poverty, welfare reform, child welfare, health, Medicaid from across the U.S.
And it's free...

Source:
Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP)
[ University of Wisconsin-Madison ]

For the current week's digest, click on the POVERTY DISPATCH Digest link at the top of this section.
Recently-archived POVERTY DISPATCH weekly digests:

- December 1 , 2005
- November 23
- November 17
- November 10
- November 3

POVERTY DISPATCH description/archive - weekly issues back to January 2005, 50+ links per issue
NOTE: this archive is part of the Canadian Social Research Links American Non-Governmental Social Research page.

- Go to the Links to American Government Social Research page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us.htm
- Go to the Links to American Non-Governmental Social Research (A-J) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us2.htm
- Go to the Links to American Non-Governmental Social Research (M-Z) page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/us3.htm

8. 2005 State of the Microcredit Summit Campaign Report - December 7
(Global Microcredit Summit 2006)

The 2005 State of the Microcredit Summit Campaign Report
"The 2005 State of the Microcredit Summit Campaign Report was released on December 7th at the UN in New York. The Report presents end of 2004 data on the progress made towards the Campaign's goal of reaching 100 million of the world's poorest families with microcredit."

Complete report:
State of the Campaign Report 2005 (PDF file - 763K, 68 pages)

Related Link:
Global Microcredit Summit 2006 (November 2006, Halifax)

- Go to the Asset-Based Social Policies Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/assets.htm

9. Hunger Relief Portal - Relief Organizations and Hunger Statistics

Hunger Relief Portal - Relief Organizations and Hunger Statistics
This site is a portal consisting of a listing of organizations involved in the elimination of hunger.
Articles on hunger and poverty are also presented, along with statistics on world hunger.