The Daily News put out an interesting debating point on Thursday with its front page story on the possibility of a privatized school system. The Daily based its story apparently on the basis of some documents it received, that suggest the province is planning to go ahead with a plan that would basically eliminate local school boards and force the school system to be run more like a corporation.
Needless to say the idea has raised a few red flags with the Prince Rupert District Teachers’ Union, which divines this as a plan to put all the power of budgeting education in the area in the hands of principals and something called school planning councils, which reading the union’s position will replace the currently elected school board system.
No doubt the main worry of the Teacher’s Union is the possibility of a contracting out plan with a revised education system; perhaps they see the idea as an end run around their collective agreements. Maybe their right, maybe their wrong, but without full disclosure on the issue the worst case scenarios will always come to the top of the pile.
Another worrisome thought on the privatization idea is the concept of local schools competing for students, a situation that unofficially already seems to take place, as parents sometimes arrange for their children to be placed in a more desirable (in the parent’s mind) school outside their catchment area. One of the concerns about a privatization scheme is the emptying of some area schools as parents scramble to get their children into those schools that may be benefiting both financially and in extra resources from the more competitive nature. Also the idea of amalgamating schools in the area is a possibility, resulting a closing of neighbourhood schools.
The privatization plan, while not really explained in any detail, does not appear to be tuition based system, where parents pay an extra premium as those who send their child to an Independent school do, but rather it’s a reallocation of resources within the structure of the current public school system. Which will make for an interesting study as to which schools may benefit from increased resources and why.
Education is always a flash point issue in British Columbia, one of the most contentious of labour relations in a province steeped in ancient battles. The Province and its various school boards have always had a rather rough co-existence, much finger pointing and raised voices always seem to come to the forefront whenever the two sides exchange opinions. Likewise the recent labour disruption between teachers and the province have shown there is always a simmering pool of distrust of each other in those camps as well, just waiting for a reason to come to a full boil.
Another problem in the system of the day is a lack on interest from parents who tend not to take much notice as to what is happening in their local schools. Whether it’s a very busy lifestyle or just a plain lack of interest, far too often parents take the easy way out and just let the system evolve as it will.
Drastic change can happen quite easily, unless parents choose to inform themselves properly on what is working and what needs to be fixed in their school system. This situation seems like one of those seismic shifts in education, that all parents should have a better understanding of. In the Daily article the paper recounts the concerns of the local school board over the difficulty in getting parents involved as it is, without now adding a new dynamic to the mix. But in the end it really is up to the parent to take a more active role in their children’s education. Unless they ask the questions and get more involved there will be no recourse later to say; "what's going on here?"
The secrecy surrounding these latest options in British Columbia education certainly won’t do much to calm down the suspicions and anxieties from all the stake holders in our children’s education. There may very well be a benefit to the ideas being floated out there at the moment and really anything that may improve the educational lot of our children is a welcome thing.
Information is a key ingredient in any change to long held conventions. In this case a full examination of the issue is required, as well as full involvement from all concerned, politicians, administrators, teachers, school board members and most importantly parents.
Below in Podunkicized form is the original story from the Daily News.
PRIVATIZED SCHOOLS MAY BE IN THE CARDS
James Vasallo
The Daily News
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Page One
According to documents obtained by the Daily News, the province is pushing ahead with a plan that would all but eliminate school boards, force schools to be run more like individual corporations and hire more business-minded administrators to run them, rather than promote teachers to the post.
“This program would put all of the power of budgeting within the hands of principals and school planning councils, whereas now all that goes through an elected school board,” said Marty Bowles, Prince Rupert District Teachers’ Union President (PRDTU). “(Administrators will be number-crunchers, not necessarily a person interested in the social issues of a school.”
Earlier this month, administrators met at a government-funded education leadership conference under the guise of discussing succession planning. Some principals and vice- principals were surprised once the conversation turned away from ensuring the future viability of their profession to setting up their own accrediting college. Up to now, administrators have always started out as teachers.
“It turns out, in my opinion, the real agenda was to separate administrators, principals and vice-principals, out even further from teachers. To move administrator-teachers out of the system (by creating) their own credentials, their own college,” said Bowles. “You lose the most important aspect of a school, the social learning that goes on in the environment.”
This information taken in the context of a Ministry of Education document presented at the time on School Centered Leadership and Shared Business systems seems to show a plan to privatize schools with the manager-principal and a small group of parents, in the form of School Planning Councils, making all future budgeting decisions in schools. Schools will be funded solely using a per-student formula.
“The thing I don’t understand is we have trouble enough getting parents out to PAC meetings and SPC meetings,” said Tina Last, School district 52 board chair. “Parents are involved in a lot of other things, now we want to them to say what the education will look like in their school. Suddenly, will there be enough students in schools? Will they start to go cross-boundary, because one school looks more attractive? Will it create competition between schools and discord in the district?”
Bowles believes that could be precisely what happens, a situation that would lead to the eventual death of the neighbourhood school.
“Can you imagine what it’s going to be like when this big school has got all these dollars, and this little school hasn’t got enough? They’re going to be saying ‘Gee aren’t we glad we amalgamated these two neighbourhood schools now we’ve got a bigger pot to draw from.” he said. “I certainly could not sit on a committee and say Johnny gets to eat. Freddy gets a childcare worker and Martha over there doesn’t get any help at all.”
The document also outlines how services could be shared, including support staff (IUOE and CUPE members at this time.)
“This is definitely a pretext to contracting out of all union positions,” Bowles said. “They say that local contracts will protect workers but we all know what this government thinks of contracts. They shred contracts at the slightest provocation or need.
They’ll start with support staff and then eventually work towards teachers for sure.”
North Coast MLA Gary Coons, a former teacher, said he was disturbed to see the province’s model of school centered leadership, a diagram with Principals and SPC’s in the middle surrounded by a “wheel” of data that drives the decisions. Outside the wheel are all the groups that seemed to oppose the government during the teacher’s job action last September, he said.
“In the ‘secret documents’ it shows principals and school planning council’s in the middle,” he said. “On the outside it shows the community, students, parents, teachers, support staff, trustees…. I think this is totally backwards.
“I think this whole concept is wrong, it might benefit some large schools but it is an attack on rural communities.”
The Ministry of Education is presently offering five schools the opportunity to pilot the concept. The document also offers special funds to those willing to play along.
Bowles says this is a bribe pure and simple and ultimately a wedge to be used in making all schools in the province private.
“It’s so obvious that they’re just going to ram it through anyway,” he said. “It’s up for all of us standing outside that circle, and hopefully a few inside, to say no and stand up for public education.”
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