Dear MindShare Community Innovator,

Welcome to the Canadian EdTech Top 10 Report: Issue #354

I trust you had a memorable Thanksgiving long weekend and are feeling energized for the week ahead! 

Here's some eyebrow-raising new research recently released by KPMG Canada. More than seven in 10 Canadian students (73 per cent) now rely on generative artificial intelligence (AI) for their schoolwork, up sharply from 59 per cent in 2024.   

As we enter mid-October, the excitement is building across Canada’s EdTech ecosystem! The countdown is officially on to the 16th Canadian EdTech Leadership AI Summit,  just 15 days away, where we’ll explore this year’s powerful theme:

“Human-Centered Sustainable Learning in an AI-Inspired World.”

This week’s issue is all about innovation meeting action, from Amira Learning’s new partnership with Pearson Canada to bring AI-powered reading assessment and tutoring tools into Ontario classrooms, to inspiring leadership insights and the latest trends reshaping how educators teach and students learn across Canada and beyond.

🎙️ Featured Podcast: Empowering Human-Centered Leadership in the AI Era
Tune in to our special Summit Sneak Peek Podcast featuring Rashmi Swarup, Director of Education & CEO, Peel District School Board, as she shares her vision for leading with humanity in an age of rapid technological change.

“The connection is humanity - because equity is foundational to all we do.”
- Rashmi Swarup, Director of Education & CEO, PDSB

🚨 Only 15 Days to Go!
Join us October 29-30, 2025 at the University of Toronto Mississauga in partnership with PDSB, IMI and the MScSM program. Don’t miss your chance to connect with Canada’s top education and industry leaders shaping the AI-powered future of learning.

🎟️ Here’s how to get involved:
✅ Register today and save $100 with code MSL100
🎓 Explore C21 Dell AI Use Cases ahead of the official Task Force Report launch
📘 Receive your free copy of the C21 AI Task Force Report. 

🍁C21 Canada Dell AI Use Case of the Week: 

AIME: Advancing Ethical, Inclusive AI Integration in Teacher Education

Faculty of Education, Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario.

💡 AI Tool of the Week:
Sora 2, discover four powerful tools built into Sora 2 to streamline content creation, automate evaluations, and support learners as they work, all in real time.

📖 Book of the Week:
AI with Intention: Principles and Action Steps for Teachers and School Leaders by Tony Frontier, a must-read guide for educators, ensuring that technology serves learning, not the other way around.

📚 Top Stories This Week:
1️⃣ Amira Learning becomes the first AI-driven reading tool available through Pearson Canada and OECM, supporting literacy with real-time, personalized feedback.
2️⃣ Canva integrates with ChatGPT, redefining creative collaboration for educators and marketers.
3️⃣ Ontario launches the AgRobotics Challenge, inspiring high school students to tackle farm innovation.
4️⃣ Brock University opens its new Burlington Campus with $5.2M in provincial funding.
5️⃣ Canada honours 70 outstanding educators with the 2025 Prime Minister’s Awards for Teaching Excellence.

Explore more on our Summit Page →

Together, we’re shaping a future where AI amplifies human creativity, compassion, and curiosity. The challenge, and opportunity, before us is to ensure innovation remains anchored in purpose and people.

Let’s keep building, learning, and leading together.

Hope to see you at the Summit #CDNEdTech25!

Until next time, let’s keep the learning curve steep!

Best, R.

Robert Martellacci, M.A. EdTech
Chair, 16th Canadian EdTech AI Leadership Summit
Founder & President, MindShare Learning Media
Chief Digital Publisher, The MindShare Learning Report™
Founder, MindShare Workspace
CEO & Co-founder, C21 Canada

The Government of Canada has recognized 70 of the nation’s top educators with the 2025 Prime Minister’s Awards for Teaching Excellence, Teaching Excellence in STEM, and Excellence in Early Childhood Education. Announced by Ministers Mélanie Joly and Patty Hajdu on behalf of Prime Minister Mark Carney, the awards honour innovative teachers who inspire creativity, critical thinking, and excellence among students. The announcement also launched the 2026 nomination period, open until January 14, 2026, encouraging Canadians to nominate educators making a meaningful impact in their communities. Since 1994, more than 2,300 educators have received these prestigious awards, highlighting the essential role of teachers and early childhood educators in shaping Canada’s future.

Bett UK 2026 has released a new whitepaper on the UK’s SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) crisis, featuring insights from over 1,000 teachers about the challenges facing students and educators amid proposed government reforms. The research reveals widespread concern, with half of teachers fearing reduced funding for mainstream schools and two-fifths believing disadvantaged pupils are often misidentified as having SEND. Many educators see both the social benefits and academic challenges of integrating SEND students into mainstream classrooms, highlighting tensions between policy and classroom realities. The whitepaper underscores the urgent need for sustainable funding, training, and practical support to bridge the gap between reform ambitions and the real-world experiences of teachers and learners.

Invigilator, a remote assessment platform, has secured $11 million in international equity funding led by Kaltroco to accelerate its expansion into the United States. The platform, already used by over 100 organizations and responsible for processing more than six million results, integrates AI-powered monitoring, ID verification, authentication, and anti-plagiarism tools. Designed to work even on entry-level devices, Invigilator aims to make secure and accessible assessments globally available while maintaining data efficiency. The funding will support AI development, new U.S. partnerships with universities and professional institutions, and broader adoption in the rapidly growing $2.1 billion online exam proctoring market.

York University has renamed its prestigious joint JD/MBA program the Hennick JD/MBA Program following a $6 million donation from The Hennick Family Foundation, bringing the total program investment to $8 million with matching funds from Osgoode Hall Law School, the Schulich School of Business, and the University. The gift will fund scholarships, expand programming, and enhance career mentorship as the program celebrates its 50th anniversary. Jay and Barbara Hennick, renowned Canadian philanthropists, said their goal is to empower students to pursue leadership roles at the intersection of law and business. University leaders praised the contribution as a transformative investment that strengthens York’s reputation for excellence in education, innovation, and global impact.

Brock University officially opened its new Burlington Campus on October 6, 2025, alongside a $5.2 million provincial investment to expand teacher education programming. The funding will create 360 new teacher education spaces across Brock’s Burlington and St. Catharines campuses, supporting the university’s growth and commitment to training future educators. The new campus, located in Burlington’s Robert Bateman Community Centre, features modern learning spaces, science labs, a shared library with the Burlington Public Library, and a satellite office for Indigenous student services. University and government leaders hailed the investment as a major step toward fostering community partnerships, innovation, and educational excellence in Ontario.

CyberBytes, presented by the Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) in partnership with KnowledgeFlow, is a national professional development program designed to empower Canadian K–12 educators with essential digital literacy and cybersecurity skills. The self-paced, online program covers four core areas, Cyber in Culture and Society, The Cyber Backbone, Cyber Security and Privacy, and Cyber Design and Evolution, helping teachers understand and apply technology meaningfully in their classrooms and daily lives. Rather than focusing on coding instruction, CyberBytes emphasizes comprehension of the underlying technologies, digital ethics, accessibility, and online safety. Supported by the Government of Canada, the initiative aims to cultivate digitally fluent educators capable of guiding students confidently through Canada’s evolving digital landscape.

The University of Alberta is launching Western Canada’s first fully online Master of Engineering (MEng) in Construction Engineering and Management, beginning in Fall 2026. Designed to match the same rigorous standards as the in-person program, it enables industry professionals to advance their education without interrupting their careers. The program offers global networking opportunities, access to leading experts, and skills applicable across manufacturing, energy, and construction industries. Applications open October 1, 2025, with inaugural-year tuition matching the on-campus rate before expected future increases.

Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) has received a $1-million investment from Genome British Columbia (Genome BC) to expand agricultural genomics research at its Applied Genomics Centre (AGC), now renamed the Applied Genomics Centre supported by Genome BC. The funding will enhance applied research benefiting over 60 industry, First Nations, and community partners across B.C., advancing sustainable and resilient food production. This partnership, ongoing since 2019, was pivotal in helping the AGC earn designation as Canada’s first Technology Access Centre (TAC) focused on applied genomics for agriculture. The investment will provide more research opportunities for KPU faculty and students while strengthening B.C.’s leadership in agri-tech innovation and food security.

Senior Education Development Specialist - Zen Educate

Vancouver, BC, Canada

Solutions Engineer, Higher Education - D2L

Kitchener, ON, Canada

Associate Portfolio Manager - Cengage Group

Remote, ON, Canada