Toronto’s population may be booming, but the city’s public schools are quietly shrinking. Despite a 15 per cent increase in residents over the past decade, enrolment in the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) has fallen by about three per cent — from roughly 243,000 students in 2013 to 236,000 in 2023. Now, frustrated parents are demanding answers.
The TDSB’s Parent Involvement Advisory Committee (PIAC) recently passed a motion urging the board to do more to understand why families are withdrawing their children from public schools. Currently, when a student leaves, parents must fill out a form indicating where the child is going next — another board, a private school, or abroad — but not why they are leaving.
Dr. Mark Unger, a PIAC representative for University-Rosedale and Toronto Centre, said the motion stems from both personal experience and broader community concerns. One of his children transferred to a private school this fall after unresolved issues at their TDSB school. “Several parents left for the same reason,” he explained. “But the board would never know that, because no one asked.”
Parents believe a proper exit survey could uncover deeper issues behind the declining numbers — from dissatisfaction with teaching quality and school climate to equity concerns and unmet learning needs. Unger said identifying these patterns could help the TDSB make meaningful changes to retain families and rebuild trust.
So far, the TDSB has not said whether it will adopt the proposal. The Ministry of Education — which placed the board under provincial supervision in June — has also not responded to questions about the initiative.
TDSB trustee Matias de Dovitiis attributes much of the decline to broader economic pressures rather than dissatisfaction alone. He points to Toronto’s soaring housing costs, which have driven many young families out of the city. “Twenty years ago, our schools were full, and kids were playing hockey after class,” he said. “Now, parents are having fewer children, or they’re leaving Toronto altogether. It’s made schools emptier — and budgets tighter.”
Because provincial funding is tied to enrolment, that drop has serious financial consequences. Between 2017 and 2022, enrolment declined by four per cent, costing the board an estimated $150 million in lost per-pupil funding by 2024. The Ford government has also maintained a moratorium on closing underused schools, leaving the TDSB to shoulder fixed costs like heating and maintenance with fewer students.
Data shows that in 2024, about 6,750 students left TDSB schools — nearly 60 per cent to other school boards, 18 per cent abroad, and 16 per cent to private schools. But without insight into the reasons behind these moves, parents like Unger say the board is operating in the dark.
He hopes that the proposed exit survey — if implemented this school year — will shine a light on why families are walking away. “It’s not about blame,” Unger said. “It’s about accountability and learning how to do better for the students who stay.”