Government is like a deadbeat spouse... a letter to the editor

So there was a 'Student Walk Out' last Wednesday and one of the student organizers said they were tired of being 'pawns' and being 'stuck in the middle of two divorcing parents' [Government and BCTF] 

This letter sums it up nicely....

Letter from Colleague: I finally know for certain...

Great letter from a colleague of mine....

I finally know for certain what is most important to BCPSEA and this government when it comes to the education of students.

I am the first one to support extra curricular. I believe in these activities. I have participated in many both as a student and as a teacher.  They have been a source of joy and personal growth. However, I am saddened to hear that our government places more importance on them than on the education of students. According to the 2nd letter from BCPSEA, I can choose to run an extra curricular activity on school property when I am locked out but I can't do homework, mark, contact parents, plan lessons, work on IEPs or participate in Professional Development Activities on or off of school property.

I now see in black and white that it is more important for this government that teachers participate in activities which the public can view than to put in the five hours a night after school that many teachers do in order to prepare for the next day which is done in classrooms after school or at home between preparing meals, taking care of children,  tending to elderly parents, taking courses, volunteering in my community, trying to have some "me" time, staying physically and emotionally fit so that I can do my job etc...  let alone being a union activist.

I hope that parents and the public truly realize what this second lockout letter is saying about their child's education.  I put in long hours before and after the bell because I am dedicated to my students and the profession that I have loved for the past 34 years.

I realize that the government is using this as a tactic to divide teachers.  My suggestion... colleagues, join your hands tighter together and march on.  We deserve better and so do the students of British Columbia.

Charlene Hodgson

Teacher

Blog Post: Dear Parent of the Average Child - One Teacher's Confession

This is a great blog post:

Dear Parent of the Average Child,

I'm sorry. Your child is wonderful. She is always at school on time, does her homework almost every day, works well on her own, and is patient with those around her. I really wanted to go tell your daughter how proud I was of her, of the work she was doing today.

I was about to, but you see, I had a young girl over in the corner crying because she hadn't had breakfast. Another was tromping around the classroom in winter boots. It's May. When I asked her to change, she told me she didn't have any other shoes.

I needed to send them and my CEA (certified education assistant) down to the office to see if we had some food, and any extra shoes in the lost and found.

Oh and over in the other corner, there was a boy screaming at the top of his lungs because, well no one is sure why. He is on a list to see a specialist; they hope to have a plan in place for him soon. Of course it has been three months, but the specialist teacher is overworked and only at our school a few days a week, so we have to be patient.

More children trickled in. One girl told me that her backpack is at Mom's but she was at Dad's last night. He forgot to send a lunch. She also wanted to tell me about her dad's new girlfriend but she told me I wasn't to tell mom because it's a secret.

A young man tells me his cat died last night. Another lost a tooth! Exciting -- until he sees the blood, then the fear sets in.

A child came in a little late, looking afraid and tentative. She watched carefully what was going on, but was too afraid to join in. Everyone agrees that the child's fears aren't normal and that she needs some counselling, but there are only so many hours in a day. They might be able to see her for one or two sessions next month. I started to go over to help her.

Your daughter, wonderful child that she is, helps her put away her things and leads her to her desk.

I was about to head over and say thank you, but I notice three boys in the corner playing rough. I ran over to stop them and have a conversation about expected behaviour at school. I also tried to throw in a lesson on non-violence while I was at it.

I turned back to look for your daughter. I haven't forgotten that I wanted to check in with her, but I look up and realize I should probably begin teaching the lesson of the day. I told myself I would check in with her later.

This was all before 9 a.m. Many other things happened during the day that made it very difficult for me to check in with your wonderful daughter. Students with learning disabilities, diagnosed and not diagnosed. Students with special needs and with behaviour problems. Students who are needier or put up their hand more often. Students who yell louder.

I realized after a day of running from child to child and crisis to crisis, I never did get a chance to check in with her today. I don't mean to leave your daughter alone, but she seems to be doing just fine without me. I hope it is true.

I'm sorry. I feel terrible. Would you mind telling her how proud I am of her? Let her know I appreciate her? I will check in with her tomorrow.

From Your Child's Teacher

Author's Note:

I have 23 little treasures in my room. I care about them all. I want to teach them all and see them all succeed. I've had more days like this one than I would like to admit.

When I think about a classroom without class limits or I think about a school system with even fewer specialist teachers and fewer services for our students, I worry. I wonder how many average kids go unseen everyday. I honestly don't think I can do this job under those conditions. Somedays I wonder how I do it now. I know for a fact I won't be able to do it well.

Please, please please understand how important this issue is. I didn't become a teacher for the paycheque or the glory. I became a teacher because I wanted to help kids do amazing things with their lives.

I want that for all my students. I want to do my job well. That means that I need the tools to do that. This includes a reasonable class size and help from specialist teachers. That is why I'm willing to take a 10 per cent pay cut and walk out in spite of the threats. For me, it isn't about the money. It's about the kids.

Excellent Letter from a 'very very annoyed parent'

From Kristina Barnett Lee

The Honorable Peter Fassbender, Min Ed
The Honorable Christy Clark, Premier
Mr Douglas Horne, MLA Coquitlam-Burke Mountain

Dear Sirs and Madam,

I write today to convey my extreme disgust with the manner in which the education system is being treated by your government. The conduct you have displayed with regards to the future of our children’s education is reprehensible. You claim to put “Families First” and to hold the needs of the children above all else, and yet there are children in our system who have challenges and special needs who are being lost because you won’t fund the help that they so desperately need. Your condescension toward teachers is easily traceable back to 2002 when, as Education Minister, Premier Clark removed the teacher’s right to bargain about learning and working conditions by enacting Bills 27 and 28 - action which has since been deemed by the Supreme Court of BC to have been a violation of Charter rights. Undaunted by the illegality of your position, your government enacted Bill 22, once again removing class composition, amongst other things, as an issue about which teachers have any say. Your government is clearly hoping that we are stupid enough to have forgotten that only 3 months ago Madam Justice Susan Griffin ruled that Bill 22 was also unconstitutional, found you guilty of bargaining in bad faith, and accused you of attempting to provoke a strike for political gain. Clearly the children are merely pawns in your political game of chess, and I am nauseated by the cynicism and Machiavellian ideals permeating your caucus.

When a government requires a School District to submit a balanced budget, but makes no budgetary allowance for increases in fuel costs, electricity costs, or tax increases, that government knows that the only way the District can possibly submit a balanced budget is by making cuts to our children’s education services.
When a government announces new schools, but does not actually provide capital funding or build them, resulting in the school district having to use millions of dollars from their operating budget to purchase, maintain, and service portable classrooms, that government knows that the only way the District can possibly submit a balanced budget is by making cuts to our children’s education services.
When a government knows that enrolment is declining, funds schools on a “per student” basis, and it costs virtually the same amount in fuel, electricity, and staffing to have 480 kids in a school vs 500 kids in a school, that government knows that the only way the District can possibly submit a balanced budget is by making cuts to our children’s education services.
When a government abruptly changes policy for funding of school seismic upgrading and announces that School Districts will have to pay for up to half the costs of putting our children in safe structures, that government knows that the only way the District can possibly submit a balanced budget is by making cuts to our children’s education services.

Your government would have us believe that teachers are demanding too high of a wage increase, and yet in the past dozen years teachers saw a 7.5% increase from their 2002 contract, a 0% increase from their 2005 contract, and a 16% increase from their 2006 contract. In those same dozen years, the benchmark price of real estate has increased 100-200% (depending on the region), BCHydro rates have increased by 40% (from an average of $70/mo to an average of $98/mo, after correction for inflation), gasoline prices have increased by 80-100% (from fluctuating around $0.70-0.80/L to fluctuating around $1.35-1.50/L), and the cost of feeding a family of 4 in BC has gone up 38.7% (from $626 to $868 per month). Clearly the increases in a teacher’s pay are not keeping up with the increases in the cost of living.

The BCPSEA and BCTF have failed to reach an agreement (which is hardly a surprise considering that Carole Taylor’s 2006 deal has been the only freely negotiated contract that the two sides have reached in the 27 years since Mr VanderZalm’s SoCreds gave teachers the right to strike) and so the teachers have escalated their action to a rotating strike. The lockout notice that the government has countered with is shocking and its logical underpinnings are convoluted, to say the least. While maintaining that children should not be put in the middle, the government has done exactly that by ensuring that teachers can not provide before- or after-school preparation or assistance to children. This does nothing BUT penalize the children, and once again lays bare the viciousness of this government’s intention to provoke action by the teachers for it’s own political gain - leaving our children as collateral damage along the way.

Your government claims that LNG industry development will “build a prosperous economic future for British Columbia”. I disagree. What will build a prosperous economic future for British Columbia is adequate funding for the education of our future generation. Provide us with education for all children, instead of having so many kids in a class that the teacher can’t properly assess and supervise everyone. Provide specialist teachers and education assistants for kids with special needs, so that they can learn and progress with their peers, rather than disengaging and becoming lost. Provide School Districts with budget increases to cover utility rate increases, so that our children won’t suffer because the District has to pay BC Hydro and Fortis an extra $625,000. Currently, between not negotiating in good faith, and not providing the School Districts with an adequate annual budget, you are failing us; you are failing our children.

A few weeks ago when the Coquitlam Board of Education was having its last few public meetings before finalizing what cuts to make, my children became aware that their library was in jeopardy. My seven-year-old summed it up with “Mum, you said that you pay taxes so that the government gives us hospitals and schools to help us learn, but how can we learn without books and a LIBRARY? The government doesn’t care about us; the government is an asshole” And while I chastised him for using an inappropriate word, I cannot disagree with his opinion or fail to marvel at how astutely a child can assess a complicated situation and distill it down to its core.

Kristina Lee, Coquitlam
Post Script:
I am not a teacher. I am not married to a teacher. My parents were not teachers. I have no direct financial interest in this dispute other than being a very, very annoyed parent.

Sources
Vancouver Sun
The Province
www.dieticians.ca
vreaa.wordpress.com
newsroomgov.bc.ca
business.financialpost.com
www.rbc.com
British Columbia’s Liquified Natural Gas Strategy One year update , gov.ca.ca
cbc.ca
sd43.bc.ca/budget

Teacher responds to profane letter but proofreading the letter with red pen....

A student wrote this letter to their teacher, who proceeded to edit it like any submitted written work in an English class. Pretty nicely done, though I wouldn't leave the end comment about "looking stupid"

The teacher went through and sliced and diced the letter in red marker, noting everything from not having a date to not indenting the signature line to a comma splice.

See the letter below. Note: Some readers might find some of the language offensive.



Source: WGNTV and Reddit

Teacher Resignation: I am not leaving my profession, in truth, it has left me

Increasingly teachers are speaking out against school reforms that they believe are demeaning their profession, and some are simply quitting because they have had enough.

One letter of resignation from a veteran teacher, Gerald J. Conti, a social studies teacher at Westhill High School in Syracuse, N.Y. was shared in a recent Washington Post article.


Read the entire letter here.

He talks about the changes over the years and how the teaching profession and the classroom have become devalued and pushed by testing to get funding.... here is an excerpt:

In their pursuit of Federal tax dollars, our legislators have failed us by selling children out to private industries such as Pearson Education. The New York State United Teachers union has let down its membership by failing to mount a much more effective and vigorous campaign against this same costly and dangerous debacle. Finally, it is with sad reluctance that I say our own administration has been both uncommunicative and unresponsive to the concerns and needs of our staff and students by establishing testing and evaluation systems that are Byzantine at best and at worst, draconian. This situation has been exacerbated by other actions of the administration, in either refusing to call open forum meetings to discuss these pressing issues, or by so constraining the time limits of such meetings that little more than a conveying of information could take place. This lack of leadership at every level has only served to produce confusion, a loss of confidence and a dramatic and rapid decaying of morale.

He closes his letter with this:

After writing all of this I realize that I am not leaving my profession, in truth, it has left me. It no longer exists. I feel as though I have played some game halfway through its fourth quarter, a timeout has been called, my teammates’ hands have all been tied, the goal posts moved, all previously scored points and honors expunged and all of the rules altered.
For the last decade or so, I have had two signs hanging above the blackboard at the front of my classroom, they read, “Words Matter” and “Ideas Matter”. While I still believe these simple statements to be true, I don’t feel that those currently driving public education have any inkling of what they mean.

[Source]