Option A: Social Policy Documents in Toronto Please select one of the following four social policy documents produced by the City of Toronto government.
• Option A: You may choose ONE social policy document from the provided list of City of Toronto social policies below and critically examine and discuss the context and directives of the formulated and/or implemented social policy
• City of Toronto – Newcomer Strategy (2013) • City of Toronto – Strong Neighbourhoods Strategy 2020 (2014) • City of Toronto – The Seniors Strategy: Towards an Age Friendly City (2013) • City of Toronto – Housing Opportunities Toronto: An Affordable Housing Action Plan 2010-2020 (2009) 2 You are to read and take notes on the policy document and focus on what the policy is attempting to direct, envision, and implement. Questions to address are included below. You do not have to answer these questions in order. You may choose to emphasize a few of the questions more than others – you do not need to pay equal attention to all of the questions. Do not just describe the document – you are to go a step further and analyze it.
• What is the purpose and rationale of the policy document and how is this defined? • What problem(s) is it trying to solve and why? • What research/evidence does the document present to demonstrate the problem? What analyses of this research are presented? • What are the social planning directives? (How is the document proposing to address and implement solutions to the problem in urban communities?) • Does the document mention the role of community-based organizations and/or residents? If so, how and why? You can refer to the document as a reference in your assignment and also refer to lecture material, course readings, as well as additional readings that you may find in a library search that focus on social planning and community development, and that will also help you to further understand the particular topic of your document. For example, if you choose the City of Toronto Newcomer Strategy you might want to find articles and books on newcomers and immigration in cities more broadly and/or in Toronto to help you more strongly understand and interpret the policy document. Interviews with City of Toronto staff or other human participants are not allowed and information gleaned from personal conversations is not allowed in the paper.
