Back to school: possible uncertainties, unknowns, and unrests?

BY PAUL JUNOR

As students, parents, guardians and caregivers prepare to send their children back to school, there are many questions, concerns, and issues that they may have. There are some real issues and ongoing challenges that will have to be faced head on by all the stakeholders; teachers, parents, education officials, school boards and trustees. The school year, which will commence on Sept 3^rd, promises to be an: interesting, exciting, stressful and possibly disruptive one for many reasons.

Ongoing teacher union issues with the government will clearly impact students, parents and could lead to: labour unrests, unsettling actions and major disruptions in schools.

The PC government led by Premier Doug Ford announced early in 2019, that they plan to increase average class sizes by one student in Grades 4 -8 and from  22 to 28 in  high schools. There has been an estimation made that this could result in the potential loss of 4,000 jobs as less teachers will be needed over the next four years. This significant reduction in the number of teachers will have a major impact on certain boards, especially those in urban centres, like Toronto.

Consequently, the Toronto District School Board (TDSB), and the York Region District School Board (YRDB) have made announcements that they will be reducing, or possibly eliminating courses in history, science, and geography. Furthermore, with these changes, there will be less specialized course options that students will be able to select from which could affect the graduate rate of students.

The government has indicated that it will provide $1.6 billion in transitional funding to school boards to help them ensure that specialized programs are protected. Nevertheless, it remains to be seen how these funds will be allocated. Although funding for public schools has increased by 30%, according to the Fraser Institute, enrolment in public schools has decreased by 5.2%, which equals to about about 111,000 students. With fewer students, fewer teachers are needed.

The fact that collective agreements between the Ontario Secondary Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF), Elementary Federation of Ontario (EFTO), Ontario and school boards expires August 31^st, and as of right now, there has been no discussions or agreements finalized for the upcoming year. Harvey Bischoof (the head of the OSSTF) spoke at their annual leadership meeting in early August. He indicated that classes would start on time in September, despite the lack of contract negotiations. He declared in his speech to the delegate’s on Thursday, August 16^th, that “the government at  Queen’s Park has declared war on one of the best education systems in the world. That system is in peril, and we as educators, are under attack as well… Our job is to cultivate resistance”. Without giving details about the specific actions that would be impending, his audience was left speculating about what he meant in his speech.

Negotiations between the government and the OSSTF have come to a standstill, and without a resolution, both sides will be heading to the Ontario Labour Relations board. The battle line is clearly drawn between the union and the ministry of education and one wonders what the outcome will be.

There are several things that parents/ guardians can do to ensure that their children are not adversely affected. Be proactive by staying aware, and engaged with your school trustees about the issues and concerns of the teacher’s unions and school boards. Becoming involved in parent council meetings, and develop a relationship with the teachers at your school. As a community we have to ensure that our future is protected, and our children are our future.