In Support of Public Education

It is time that the
government put our money
where their mouth is now!

~ carliewired

Although I am retired, I have been supporting teacher friends on the picket line. This battle has been twelve years in the making. It began with our provincial government deciding to disrespect existing negotiated labour contracts. In 2002 they arbitrarily wiped out all parts of teachers' contracts that did not directly relate to wages and bonuses. All the contract language that covered class size and class composition was suddenly gone. The teachers association took them to court and won......so the government wrote a new bill and did it again. Finally, in January this year our provincial supreme court supported teachers' constitutional rights, fined the government $2 million in damages and ordered the government to restore what had been lost in public education. But the battle is not over.....I can only hope for an negotiated settlement over the weekend.

Government has removed $1000 per child in public education funding over the last twelve years. The cupboard is bare. Teachers cannot do the same job they once did. Our major concern is for the needs of special education. Some students need one on one support in the classroom. Some need special programs with special teachers. Some students need individual equipment. There just isn't enough money to go around any more. We want our librarians and our learning assistance teachers teachers back.

I happen to believe that children are our future. They are worthy of our investment as a society. Children are as important as a hydro dam or a pipeline or a new highway. We need a government that is willing to put our money into our classrooms and give each child its best chance for a quality education.