A number of factors contributed to the school's beginnings: the efforts of the Canadian National Committee for Mental Hygiene (of which Bott was a prominent member), the emergence of psychology as a discipline distinct from philosophy at the University of Toronto, the philanthropic activities of the Rockefeller Foundation, and the evolution of the Child Study movement in North America [1].

By 1937, the funding of the Rockefeller Foundation covered only about half of the school’s expenses, and a special committee was appointed by the university governors to consider the future of St. George’s.

[2] In 2010, the institute was named in honour of Dr. Eric Jackman, a clinical psychologist and alumnus of the laboratory school whose financial gift was the largest donation to early childhood education in Canadian history.

Some areas of interest are concerned with elementary education, including literacy, numeracy, and science, with supports for understanding how new technologies may contribute to children’s learning and how knowledge building communities are formed.

Another focal point of research is concerned with early childhood development and community-school relationships that support children and families.