The teachers want “classroom conditions” to improve, and that is an admirable goal. However, they can not be given the ability to make those decisions… kind of like the fox guarding the hen house. It has to be up to the employer to decide such things… with input from the teachers, of course. Personally, I think the reason teaching has become such a draining occupation goes much deeper than “30 kids in a classroom.” You hear teachers describing their “typical” classrooms and have to shake your head. When you have 6 behaviour disordered students, 4 students with learning disabilities, and 4 ESL kids, and another who needs special care, I don’t care whether you have 30 kids or 15 kids– that is NOT a workable classroom. The question is: “Why are there so many students with behaviour disorders.” (Hint: Dr. Spock… a whole generation that was not disciplined by another generation that was too interested in “finding themselves.”)

For 20 years I’ve been saying that we’re trying to get every square peg in the system through the round holes created by the system. Here’s where “the good old days” really were good. A student who wasn’t academically inclined could drop out after grade nine and get into a vocation that he/she enjoyed and make a decent living. Now, we’re pushing to get those same students through a rigorous academic load. NONSENSE, I say!

As far as the government getting out of the education business. No, I don’t agree with that. Education should not be placed into the hands of the private sector. B.C. have a good “independent schools” association and opportunity for private groups to set up their own schools. This is a good alternative. The government saves millions (or maybe even billions) of dollars as they don’t pay for capital costs. Teachers in these schools often make less (I make 20K less than my public school counterparts), but the take-home pay isn’t as much less as one might think (BCTF dues are pretty hefty). These schools undergo rigorous evaluations by the Ministry of Education (we just had ours) to ensure that the provincially-approved curriculum is being delivered. This evaluation is a good thing– it keeps fringe groups from teaching questionable material. Too bad the public system didn’t get evaluated the same way. I’ve heard stories of teachers who in no way should be in the classroom.

Curriculum must be set by the government. In fact, Canada and the USA are two of the few countries in the world that don’t have a national curriculum. That’s a real disadvantage to students who move around (and we are a mobile society). For more information on this though, check out Ed Hersch’s book, “The Schools We Need and Why We Don’t Have Them” or “Cultural Literacy.”

Another problem I see here in B.C.: The administrators in a school are in a different bargaining system than the teachers… that often results in principals and teachers being adversorial (sp.?) rather than collegial.

I enjoyed reading your thoughts, Doug. Keep on blogging!