Appendix A: Sample indicators and metrics

Appendix A: Sample indicators and metrics

This section outlines examples to help guide education duty-holders craft human rights-based indicators to monitor and report on progress/outcomes in implementing the 29 Calls to Action. These examples are not exhaustive. Duty-holders are encouraged to develop context-specific indicators that reflect their unique roles, responsibilities, and the expressed needs of Black students, staff, families, and community groups.

Rather than providing indicators for every Call to Action from the Dreams Delayed Action Plan, this section highlights a small set of examples under the key themes: Accountability and Transparency, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Student Well-being. Duty-holders should use these as illustrations to build from and create their own tailored indicators.

Indicators should capture measurable and meaningful empirical evidence of policy review, revision and implementation, resource allocation, and improved human rights-based outcomes for Black students and staff, while also showing transparency, accountability and where appropriate, engagement with the community. In addition, education duty-holders are encouraged to consider, potential risks and barriers to implementing these indicators, and to develop mitigation strategies to address them.

Figure 2: Sample indicators and metrics

Accountability and Transparency

Action 1 – Education Duty-Holders Must Acknowledge and commit/pledge to action on Anti-Black Racism and Discrimination in Education – Immediate 
(1–2 years).

Targeted duty-holder(s): All education duty-holders.

Indicator: A formal public statement acknowledging systemic anti-Black racism and discrimination in education is issued.

Type of Indicator: Structural – existence of published acknowledgements, frameworks, and policies.

Potential data sources: School board and ministry websites, union statements, Faculties of Education statements, independent audits.

Timeline: Public acknowledgement released within 12-18 months of release of Dreams Delayed.

Human rights-based outcome: Duty-holders explicitly recognize systemic anti-Black discrimination and harassment and establish monitoring mechanisms to address this issue.

Potential risk: Statements are issued without meaningful consultation or follow-up action(s). 

Proposed mitigation strategy: Duty-holders should ensure the public statement reflects meaningful engagement with Black communities and includes clear next steps and commitments to accountability. Duty-holders should also establish clear standards for meaningful engagement (e.g., early involvement, shared decision-making), and document how community input is leveraged. Duty-holders should ensure outreach to diverse Black communities (e.g., those differentiated by creed, place of origin, disability). Ongoing feedback mechanisms with Black communities (including students, staff, families, and community members) should be established to ensure accountability.

Action 2 – Education Duty Holders Must Develop a Communication Strategy to Acknowledge Anti-Black Racism and Discrimination in Education – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s): All education duty-holders.

Indicator: Multimodal communication materials acknowledging anti-Black discrimination are co-developed with Black communities and publicly available.

Type of Indicator: Structural – communication strategies and accessibility policies that ensure multimodal dissemination across diverse Black communities.

Potential data sources: School board websites, newsletters, Ministry of Education websites, Faculties of Education websites. Quantitative and qualitative surveys, focus groups, consultation records, meeting minutes, community feedback forms, partnership agreements.

Timeline: Materials co-developed and distributed in multiple languages and formats within 2 years.

Human rights-based outcome: Black students, families, and communities report improved awareness of duty-holder commitments and greater access to information in formats that meet their needs. Black communities confirm meaningful engagement in the development of communication strategies and that their input influenced final materials.

Potential risk: Limited collaboration with Black communities, inaccessible communication formats, or consultations that do not meaningfully influence final materials, reduced trust.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Communication materials should be translated into the most commonly spoken languages within each school board and disseminated through multiple channels (online, print, and in-person), in compliance with accessibility standards such as the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). Duty-holders should establish clear standards for meaningful engagement (e.g., early involvement, shared decision-making), and document how community input shaped the strategy. Duty-holders should ensure outreach to diverse Black communities (e.g., those differentiated by creed, place of origin, disability).

Action 10 – Unions Must Establish an Accountability Framework for addressing the discrimination and harassment experienced by Black educators and addressing anti-Black racism when committed by members – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s): unions (provincial, local level).

Indicator: Accountability frameworks include concrete enforcement mechanisms (e.g., investigation timelines, anti-reprisal safeguards, remedy procedures), to address anti-Black racism, discrimination and harassment experienced by Black union members.

Type of Indicator: Process – operationalization of enforcement mechanisms within accountability frameworks.

Potential data sources: Policy and framework documents, legal analysis, documentation of complaint procedures, union reporting on case management timelines.

Timeline: Frameworks to include enforcement mechanisms within 1–2 years, annual review thereafter.

Human rights-based outcome: Complaints of anti-Black discrimination and harassment are addressed through timely, fair, and proportionate processes, with safeguards against reprisal. Black members experience increased trust in union complaint and discipline processes.

Potential risk: Mechanisms are inconsistently applied. Members may experience reprisal which may discourage reporting.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Establish clear service standards (e.g., investigation timelines). Include anti-reprisal protections and confidential reporting options. Provide training for union leadership and representatives on anti-Black racism and trauma-informed approaches. Monitor and publicly report anonymized aggregate data on complaints and outcomes.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Action 15 – The Ministry of Citizenship and Multiculturalism Must Amend the Anti-Racism Act Regulation 267/18 and Data Standard – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s):  Ministry of Citizenship and Multiculturalism (MCM), Government of Ontario.

Indicator: Anti-Racism Act Regulation 267/18 and data standard are amended to incorporate expanded variables, including Code and non-Code related grounds enabling duty-holders to collect, analyze and report standardized intersectional data effectively.

Type of Indicator: Structural – legal and regulatory amendments enacted and operational.

Potential data sources: Ontario Regulatory Registry, Hansard transcripts, ministry news release, technical data standards documentation.

Timeline: 6-12 months.

Human rights-based outcome: Enabling consistent monitoring of systemic anti-Black discrimination and harassment through a strengthened legislative basis for standardized Code and non-Code related intersectional data collection across public sector institutions.

Potential risk: Duty-holders may fail to collect and analyze necessary intersectional data, leading to ongoing gaps in identifying disproportionalities and addressing systemic barriers.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Implement phased amendments with clear timelines, cross-ministerial coordination, public consultation, and transparent reporting. Provide technical guidance and align implementation with privacy legislation.

Action 16 – Ministry of Education Must Centralize and Standardize Data Collection, Analysis, and Reporting – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s):  Ministry of Education.

Indicator: A centralized data infrastructure or reporting portal is established to support the collection, analysis and reporting of education data.

Type of Indicator: Structural – creation of centralized digital infrastructure for standardized data submission and reporting.

Potential data sources: Ministry announcements, budget documents, procurement records, public reporting portals.

Timeline: 18–24 months.

Human rights-based outcome: Strengthened provincial oversight and accountability on anti-Black discrimination and systemic barriers, reduced fragmentation in education data systems, improved comparability across boards.

Potential risk: Funding gaps, technological delays, inconsistent uptake by boards.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Allocate dedicated funding, implement phased roll-out, provide technical support, and establish mandatory reporting directives.

Action 22 – Education Duty-Holders Must Review and Update Complaints Procedures and Processes – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s): Ministry of Education, school boards, unions, Ontario College of Teachers.

Indicator: Complaints policies and procedures are reviewed and updated to include provisions addressing anti-Black racism.

Type of Indicator: Structural – formal review and revision of complaints policies and procedures.

Potential data sources: Board policy manuals, union governance documents, Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) compliance reviews, OCT governance documents, and publicly posted revised policies.

Timeline: Policy revisions completed within 1–2 years.

Human rights-based outcome: Clear and accessible complaint pathways address anti-Black discrimination and harassment and include safeguards against reprisal.

Potential risk: Procedures remain complex or inaccessible and staff lack training.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Consult Black educators when revising procedures; simplify complaint pathways using plain language; ensure multilingual access; and provide mandatory training for administrators.

Student Well-Being

Action 24 – Ministry of Education Must Monitor and Expand the Graduation Coach Program for Black Students – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s): Ministry of Education, school boards.

Indicator: Black students report a stronger sense of belonging and greater confidence in planning their transitions to secondary and post-secondary pathways.

Type of Indicator: Outcome – student reported experiences of sense of belonging and preparedness.

Potential data sources: Student climate surveys, focus groups, Graduation Coach program evaluations, Statistics Canada student outcomes data.

Timeline: Baseline data collected prior to expansion, follow-up assessment within 2 years.

Human rights-based outcome: Black students report increased sense of belonging, academic confidence, and improved preparedness for secondary and post-secondary education, apprenticeships, or other employment pathways.

Potential risk: Low participation in surveys.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Use anonymous, culturally responsive survey tools, integrate qualitative feedback, track trends over time, triangulate findings with graduation and transition data.

Action 26 – School Boards Must Create Inclusive Guidance Counselling for Students’ Transitional Stages – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s):  School boards, Ministry of Education.

Indicator: Guidance protocols are updated to include explicit safeguards against anti-Black discrimination and inappropriate streaming practices.

Type of Indicator: Structural – revision of board policies, and counselling protocols.

Potential data sources: Policy manuals, professional development materials.

Timeline: Revisions approved within 1–2 years.

Human rights-based outcome: Guidance counselling promotes access to academic and post-secondary pathways.

Potential risk: Protocol changes remain symbolic without monitoring.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Provide staff training, conduct audits of course selection patterns, and require oversight when disparities persist.

Action 29 – Education Duty-Holders Must Develop Targeted Recruitment of Black Educators and Education Workers – Immediate (1–2 years)

Targeted duty-holder(s):  School boards, Ministry of Education.

Indicator: Targeted recruitment and hiring initiatives are established to strengthen the recruitment and progression of Black candidates throughout the hiring process.

Type of indicator: Process – disaggregated monitoring of recruitment and promotion pipelines.

Potential data sources: Workforce demographic reports, climate surveys.

Timeline:  Data collection initiated within 12 months, annual reporting thereafter.

Human rights-based outcome:  Barriers within hiring and promotion processes are identified and addressed.

Potential risk:  Incomplete self-identification data, and privacy concerns.

Proposed mitigation strategy: Implement voluntary confidential self-identification processes and standardized reporting frameworks.