Well kiddies, enjoy your last weekend of summer before school starts.
At least here in British Columbia, the education system has the decency to wait until the day after Labour Day to open up its doors to students for a new school year. Most of the provinces in the rest of the country have already started, many of them mid-week. What’s up with that?
The first day of school, however, just may be the only shred of common sense there is in provincial education these days.
British Columbia has a long history of teachers and politicians acting like petulant bullies in the school yard.
Both say they’re only doing what’s best for the children.
Hogwash.
Like all of us, teachers want more money and a lighter workload for the job they perform nine months every year. The politicians want to appear to be appeasing taxpayers by holding the line on salaries and heaping more work on the teachers.
The public sector already receive salaries and benefits most private sector workers drool over, screams the BC Liberals. We’re not going to give any increases to anybody in the public sector, they huff, and that includes the teachers because there’s not enough money in the kitty.
Well, it’s their own fault, retorts the teachers federation, because back in 2001 the Libs wanted to be seen as the good guys and reduced taxes. Return to those levels of taxation and it’s possible to increase education funding.
So does that mean teachers want taxes hiked so they get paid more? Guess so.
The games both sides are playing as they begin negotiating is getting sickening. Finding solutions to such immense problems is not going to be easy. The odds of making it happen, though, would be improved immensely if they got rid of the petty backbiting that consumes both sides at such a nauseating level.
They are certainly not setting good examples for the children.
When school starts on Tuesday, the B.C. Teachers Federation plans to implement its first phase of job action. They’ll do all their classroom duties and communicate with parents, but they won’t do any administrative work.
Last time around, in 2005, they started with a similar tactic by reducing some of their duties before hitting the picket line.
As much as the teachers and politicians insist what they’re doing isn’t causing students and parents to be caught in the middle of this ugly tug-of-war, there is no doubt they are.
How can they not be?
They don’t know who to believe.
The teachers say if the impasse goes long enough they won’t be putting out report cards. What good does that do for the students and their parents? Report cards are important because they give both students and parents an understanding of how the kids are progressing as the school year chugs along.
If it gets that far, or, heaven forbid, it escalates to the point there’s a repeat of the 2005 strike, then both sides are complicit in not coming to some sort of mutual agreement.
Despite the moaning and groaning from many corners about our education system, there is a lot to be proud of. There are some amazing kids coming out of our public education system and moving on to post-secondary institutions or real world success.
The terrific thing about school sports teams, music programs and clubs is that the outstanding individuals who run them teach students how to work together and problem solve for a common goal. They teach discipline, dedication and passion, often in a fun way. These are the activities that show them how to take their education and survive in the real world.
It’s time the teachers and politicians learned the same lesson.
Grant Granger is a NewsLeader reporter
ggranger@burnabynewsleader.com