In the past few weeks you’ve made over 1300 comments on flexibility and choice in the K-12 education system. Here’s a synthesis of what you’ve said so far. Click on the links below each theme to read supporting examples.
Questions 7-9 are now closed but you can comment here if you have more to add to this conversation.
Question 7 Snapshot: What do you think are the benefits and challenges to offering students more flexible learning opportunities?
Benefits
- A greater role for parents (1, 2, 3)
- Increased student motivation and ownership over their learning (4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
- Accommodation of different learning styles (9, 10)
- Practical skill development and a greater connection with the community (11, 12, 13)
- More flexibility around schedules (the “when” of learning) (14, 15, 16, 17)
Challenges
- Students may not have the maturity or foresight to make good choices about what to learn (18, 19, 20)
- If given too much choice, kids may pick the easiest route (21, 22, 23 , 24, 25)
- Concerns about inadequate curriculum coverage and de-emphasis of basic skills (26, 27, 28)
- Concerns about assessment (29, 30, 31, 32)
- Overreliance on technology (33, 34, 35, 36)
- More work for already burdened educators (37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
- Worsening of existing inequalities (42, 43, 44, 45)
- Overcoming teacher resistance and/or lack of understanding (46, 47)
Question 8 Snapshot: Flexibility and choice are evident in many B.C. schools and communities. Do you have some good examples to share?
Here are a few of the examples you’ve shared with us. What do you think of them? Do you have others to share with us? What can we learn from them? (48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57)
Question 9 Snapshot: How do you think our schools and school districts need to change to support more flexibility and choice?
- Ability to select school of choice (58, 59, 60, 61)
- More emphasis on practical life skills, real world connections (62, 63, 64, 65)
- More calendar flexibility (66, 67, 68, 69, 70)
- Reduce school district bureaucracy, duplication of services (71, 72, 73, 74, 75)
- Fewer learning outcomes per course (76, 77)
- More support for at risk and special needs students (78, 79, 80, 81)
- Government needs to make changes too (82, 83)
- Smaller class sizes (84, 85, 86, 87, 88)
- Lower student-teacher ratios (89, 90)
- More funding (91, 92, 93, 94)
- Eliminate/reduce/maintain/increase funding to independent schools (95, 96)
- Concerns with standardized testing (97, 98)
- More support and respect for teachers, greater awareness of their working conditions (99, 100)
These ideas have now been amalgamated into our individual summaries to date for Questions 7-9. Please visit these questions for more details or to comment further. This post is now closed to further comments.
I am afraid with more parent involvement in the childès education the child will feel less emprowered in decision making .
Well, more Pro-D training for teachers would enable them to attain better info about what options are available to use the opportunities for flexibility. What does flexibility actually entail in the practical classroom setting? What can teachers actually do in order to implement this terrific idea? How do they (we) break out of the traditional role in which we have been trained ourselves?
Increased student motivation and ownership over their learning is in my opinion what makes any learning authentic. The more authentic a task, the more engaged a student will be. This will hopefully help the student remember the activity/lesson for ever, not just till the test is over.
A wonderful example of flexibility is the year round school in my neighbourhood which offers an alternative to parents. I have heard positive feedback on this system from both parents and teachers. There are also various independent schools and private schools which are partially funded by the government that provide another great alternative. I also enjoy the fact that we provide french immersion schools in B.C.
I wonder if bcedplan is going to look at making the system LESS flexible to reduce costs and stress on kids and the system! Parents can show up in September registering their kids. IN fact, they can change schools whenever they want. This creates a lot of problems not just for the kids, but also for the education system.
In B.C., we have a better education system and achievement level than found in most areas of the U.S.A. However, the analysis and research being done in the U.S. to fix their own problems is worthy of review here in B.C. I would recommend http://www.edlabs.harvard.edu.
As one “living laboratory” example, in Canada, except for a few in Alberta, Charter Schools are looked upon with horror. We should be open to determine why many of these schools, open to the same children as public schools, gain higher achievement levels for equal or lower costs. I personally do not know why, but we should not be afraid to learn from their good or bad practices.
In some districts, I hear that emergent beginners in English are not pulled out for the beginning month or two to learn English. Because the students are integrated, they are introduced to English’s horrendous, illogical spelling system which does not relate to learning vocabulary or in a very irregular way! This is not the way it should be! Students should be segregated FIRST for a few weeks or months with a speaker of their own language to learn some basic usual words and phrases, introduced eventually to the sort of phonics system English has (so they know it is a complete mess) and then they should be integrated!
I would like to know, if we the taxpayers have been paying the teachers their full salaries since the start of the year for doing less than the work they are supposed to do. Is it not part of their regular duties to work on and issue report cards? I would suggest that they should not receive 100% of their salaries if they are not performing all of their duties. If this and other actions are done under the ‘strike’ mantra, life is good. Less work same pay – kids matter?
Need to make school districts offer more than one program at the secondary level. In the Cowichan Valley students are forced into a self-paced school in 1 catchment area or you have to remove your child from their peers and bus your child to another community or leave the school district. These forced unique delivery models need to be assessed by the ministry as school districts make money off of students that do not graduation on time. Need to make changes NOW.
Great read Judy B. I also find it very telling that the students are on tv organizing a walk out. Firstly, why do they know so much about the teacher’s union issues? Do they know about the IWA and the steelworkers union issues too? Secondly, did the organizer get any reprimand for doing this? So in turn, if another student organizes a walk out to protest an incompetent teacher, would they ignore that too? Not a chance. Memory serves me right though, I think that every government (Liberals, NDP, Socreds) have all had back to work legislation. The sad part here is that, our educators cannot do the math on the real cost of a 15% pay hike. The government (us) would have to give the same hike to all the public sector workers. I just hope that this time, the government collects on the fines. Last time, they forgave them. If they follow through, I guarantee you the punishment will be felt……I sound like a teacher!
Finally a place where we, the taxpayer, gets heard. When my children were in elementary school, I heard the same argument from the teachers (30 years ago)…..”it’s for the kids”. No it’s not. The teachers are the only sector that refuses to get with the times. Every union and private person has had to give up benefits, income etc – but not the teachers. They negotiated amazing deals in the hay day decades ago and won’t give up a nickel anywhere. What’s with all these Pro D days and what happens to these teachers that go skiing at Whistler on these paid days? You know the answer is nothing. I have had to pay for math tutors for all my kids with no accountability to the teacher. Who,in the real world, can get paid leave to improve their skills…..show no improvement and still get a raise??? Teachers take all the days allotted to them off, we must pay double wages for this (substitute) and forever complain about the conditions. Well then, QUIT!!! And why do we have so many school boards. Absolute job creation for those fat cats. We have three full boards on the North Shore with all the perks and expense accounts to go with it. Stay tough government and this time when you impose fines…..COLLECT THEM. p.s. I don’t know anybody who disagrees with me. Parents at school are too afraid to speak out on camera. One thing I do question – why are autistic/highly needy children in the classroom anyways?
Thank you for allowing my comment. I’m a big taxpayer with no government pension, stress days, sick days, free medical, 6 week paid leave of absence, paid training days, guaranteed employment no matter what I do etc. etc. etc. I, am also the government,,, when their union complains about the government, that’s you and me.
You might be interested in some of these related threads, comments and links:
1. Efficiency improvements needed.
2. Teacher Professional Association is needed.
3. Majority rule vs minority rights.
4. Shameful examples of leadership.
5. Self-managed Pro-D.
6. Authoritarian Control vs Collegial Professionalism.
7. Outcome expectations vs resources available.
8. Work/life balance & respect for personal boundaries.
9. Personal resources vs work resources.
10. Keep trying.
Carolyn…I agree completely! Our local high school hours are from 830am-3pm with an hour for lunch – that works out to a 5.5 hour working day for teachers! Our elementary school is even worse at 5 hours! Of course the teachers will lament about all the work they do at home after this abreviated day. How about this suggestion: Most private sector unions use time clocks. Let’s demand an 8 hour day (like the rest of the working world) and have the teachers actually do their extra work on the school premises. This could include marking papers, class prep, meeting with parents and even coaching.
And when did issuing report cards and taking attendance become OPTIONAL! Are you able to dictate what you want to do in your job like these teachers? Who is running this assylum?
I am also fed up with the argument that they don’t get paid in the summer. What rubbish! Their very generous annual salary is paid out over 10 months instead of 12 – that doesn’t change the amount! They work only 187 days a year…..that’s a full time salary for part time work in my opinion! Add the gold plated pension and other benefits and they are doing better than almost any other sector in this province. Enough is enough!
what about studies that show the AVERAGE teacher works 53 hours a week? On a personal note, I can’t believe it is that low… In my first year of teaching I worked on school-related work easily over 80 hours a week, and now have leveled off around 60 hours on average.
Christy claimed Bills 27 and 28 were creating flexibility and choice and was cheered by Superintendents, Principals and Vice Principals. Instead, it was ruled an illegal violation of the constitutional rights of teachers and, instead of remedying the situation and restoring the $3 billion stolen from public education, the Liberals continue to thumb their nose at the Supreme Court. Until they pay what they owe and stop giving corporations the lowest tax rate in the entire G8, they will never be able to afford to properly fund public education, which they seem to have no intention of doing.
I am also extremely disappointed and frustrated by such shameful examples of leadership.
If you are interested, see my related comment here.
I applaud that you are involved and I mean you no disrespect when I say that is the way it should be. Public school cannot accommodate every learning style and personality type. The plan needs to be to prepare these student for the world, not the world for the students becasue they will be severely disappointed to find the world will not change to suit them. If they are to succeed, they will have to understand that there is a rigid reality out there. Society used to, and in some cases still does teach boys that the sun will rise and set at their whim and I have seen many fail to adapt when they are hit with the reality that they are just another human being. We need to be doing the best for most with the resources that we have. I don’t have kids, and I would love to opt out of school taxes and direct that money to my retirement, but back in the 60′s and 70′s I was taught to read, write and to math and I’ve been paying taxes ever since. Oh, yeah, we went to the planetarium in Winnipeg twice; now it makes sense. : )
I am shocked at the commentary regarding trying to personalize the education for each and every student. The purpose of education at this level (K – 12) should be to prepare the students for life, not prepare life for the students. If Little Johnny doesn’t like math, will he be exempt from doing his taxes, will the banks forgive his over drafts, how will he manage his finances or will taxpayers have to hire him an accountant? I was in a retail store and neither the cashier, nor the manager could calculate %50 of $40! The world is a complex demanding place. Because my peak productive time is between 5 and 9 am does not mean that I can see or call my clients then! I’m a tactile learner but I still have to listen to lectures and pass written exams to maintain my credentials. Yes, we should be exposing students to as much as we can but ultimately the job of the educator is to guide these children’s learning the basics, the parents have a role to play here. You decided to have kids, you take them camping, you pay for their ballet and hockey! If you can’t afford the time or money for a puppy, don’t get one! Don’t ask the over burdened taxpayers to take on your responsibilities. The student protest was darkly humorous.When these youngsters have to live on a pay cheque, pay rent, buy groceries, contribute to rrsp’s, etc, and see how much tax comes off their cheques, then I will listen to their opinion. How much classroom time is being dedicated to teachers drumming up support? That’s not the right venue. I think the kids that went to Dairyqueen are a more accurate representation of their understanding of the situation. It’s great to be passionate and vocal, but if you told those students that they could have all the demands met and that giving up their iPads, iPhones and X Box’s would cover the costs, how many do you think would have been protesting and turning in their toys? It’s time to be realistic. Yes, smaller class size, but more focus on what is being taught in those classes. Yes, “The world is your oyster”, but the taxpayers are not your servers. We’ll teach you how to calculate bus fare, but you have to plan the trip and catch the bus!
I would agree that our Education system needs improvement, but I don’t agree that simply throwing money at it is the best approach. I’m sure that the vast majority of Teachers deserve a raise(but don’t we all)? I can see why the Province does not want to offer financial incentive in a contract; it would open the floodgates for all members of the public service to demand more money, and none of us wants to (or can afford to) pay higher taxes.
Of course, the dispute is about much more than just pay, though sometimes better remuneration can make a demanding job easier to tolerate. Legislating the Teachers to work or imposing a contract is a form of disrespect, and all of us need to show MORE respect for our children’s teachers, not less.
Let’s think outside the box for a moment.
Has anyone thought about offering a tax credit to Teachers, based on the extra-curricular activities that they take on? Certain projects or activities could be assigned specific point values or hours, and the tax credit could be based on the number of points signed off by the Principal or the PAC. The idea of paying for “volunteer” work may be unpalatable, but at least there would be some reward or recognition for extra tasks taken on by these highly qualified individuals.
What about other types of recognition, like featuring outstanding Teachers in articles in the local newspapers on a regular basis? Or maybe on the School Website or School District website, or even the PAC website? For Middle schools and high schools, write-ups could be solicited from the students (maybe online during computer/Internet class?), and for Elementary schools, if the Principal sent out a request to parents to help their kids write a quick note about their favorite Teacher, I doubt that there would be any shortage of material. This sort of initiative should not be solicited by the Teachers, but by the Administration or by the PAC.
Regarding extra help in the classrooms, I’d like to propose a fairly simple, practical and cost-effective solution. How about requiring more Practicum hours or even a full year of Praciticum for Student Teachers, using them act as Assistant Teachers or SEA’s, and paying them an entry-level wage? This would give them more real-world experience before having to manage a class on their own, it would be good source of income for these University Students, and it would provide extra bodies/resources in the classroom without bankrupting the system. Many industries require a certain period of apprenticeship before certification is granted, so why would there be any objection to this idea?
Perhaps the Local School Boards could approach certain retailers or businesses (like Groupon)and ask them to offer “coupons” or incentives that can be made available to Teachers periodically as a form of recognition for their contributions to our society. Or how about promotional, inexpensive weekend vacation packages (like those that you get when you buy a car or attend a timeshare presentation, or attend a trade show), which can be awarded to the “Teacher of the Month” or when a certain amount of positive feedback is received by the administration.
Has anyone thought to ask the Teachers themselves if there are any sort of non-monetary recognition that would be meaningful to them?
There has to be some sort of win-win solution, and the sooner we figure it out, the better.
Great ideas. I believe that many of these things would really help to motivate me as a teacher to continue going above and beyond.
However, at some point it is is also reasonable to expect inflation-raises. The average private-sector worker in Canada is getting a 3% raise this year, which essentially matches inflation. Hmmm, that’s about half-way between 15% and 0%
The government does have the money to do this – it is just a matter of choices. Every day I hear announcements by Christy Clark trying to get votes by giving money to different business projects and “job plans”. Every day I drive past major construction projects that the government is pumping money into. Choices.
As a parent, I feel that the education system of BC is not up to par with the rest of Canada let alone the world. I also feel that our children’s basic skills are not of a high quality or standard. Why is the BC government letting our education system erode so baddly. This new plan is based on a solid foundation that is a myth. Our education foundation is not strong, nor solid. On top of everything else, there is no money to back any of this “plan” up. Why is the BC government trying to “sell” this lie to BC parents? Why can’t they be honest with the parents and try to get to the real problems of our education system? First, proper funding for education needs to be set up before this plan can even hope to move forward. Province wide education quality and standards have to be improved as well because they are not the same throughout the province and to say they are is a lie. BC needs to step up because our children are falling behind.
We don’t always agree on the same cultural ideals. If we did, there would be no violence against women, which is pervasive in our society, and racism and discrimination would be a thing of the past. Perhaps high school courses like Social Justice have inspired students to take action against the injustices in our society and in the world.
To effectively teach our children the skills they need, school time needs to be focused on usefull skills like math, english, welding and cultural ideals we all agree on. This bcedplan process is a perfect opportunity for training sessions in controversial issues contained in the BCTF’s Social Justice program to be removed from use on school property. Religion, gender issues, race issues and environmental issues are best addressed outside the realm of public schools. Those families/learners that find immersion in one or more of these topics important to their development should be free to enroll in a private school that provides such an immersion or to homeschool.
To support our children to be happy and successful, we need to support the choice in valuing intrinsic motivation vs extrinsic motivation (grades, stickers, cookies, peer pressure, trophies). The recent job action may illustrate that it is only due to extrinsic motivators that many students will choose to do “their work”, if grades are not sent to parents, children may not feel motivated to do the work for the pleasure or value it may intrinsically hold. the following video offers ideas how on schools/industry can support success and happiness
http://www.ted.com/talks/shawn_achor_the_happy_secret_to_better_work.html
I would still like further elucidation surrounding ‘personalisation’ in the BC Education Plan. Having come from the UK which is further down the road with this, personalisation was fraught with difficulty. It may have provided more options and expanded pathways, but it certainly didn’t personalise education for individual children. One cannot personalise a mass education system; it is a contradiction in terms. Nothing in life is personalised without a great commitment of time and resources – both in short supply in the education world.
The provision of more choice, flexibility of the curriculum, more pathways, greater differentiation in the classroom and more specialist teachers and a complete overhaul of assessment and grading would transform the system – but this would still be for larger groups of students (and will still be expensive). Personalisation or individualisation seems to be chasing rainbows.
I think we need to give more funding and support for privatized schools. I think the currently unionized model that the school districts currently have is a joke. Good teachers have to follow a seniority list and the bad teachers are protected by the union. In college most people I knew who were doing an arts degree fell back on teaching for no other reason than they didn’t know what else to do with the degree and they liked the idea of having the summers off. They are only there to collect a paycheck, don’t care at the end of the day about the kids, and their only concern is protecting the union. Now they are fighting for more time off, higher wages and they’re trying to tell us it’s for the kids. I don’t see it and I’ll be looking at a Private School to put my kid it when the time comes. I don’t understand why my tax dollars have to go into a system that didn’t do me any favors, isn’t doing many others in this community favors, and now we’re having to look into a larger private school to put our kids in. At least there they have the option to only hire good teachers who want to be there and care about the kids.
It sounds like you’re perpetuating a damaging stereotype that is disrespectful to a hardworking, professional body. It is obvious why teachers are undervalued in our society when people like you continue to slander them. As a parent of three children enrolled in the public school system, two who have graduated, and one who is completing his grade 12, I can honestly say that my children have received a quality education supported by dedicated quality teachers. Teachers were available in the morning, lunch break and after school hours to support student learning. After school and on weekends teachers would regularly volunteer their time for extra-curricular pursuits for students, from football, basketball and volleyball to badminton, drama club and art club. My husband and I both received our education at different private schools in BC and believe me, the teachers were not as accommodating or caring as our children’s teachers. In private schools, profit is the bottom line not students, but I don’t purport that there are better teachers at private schools. Good teachers exist in both the public and private sector. Teachers in private schools have received their degrees from the same universities as “most people you knew in college.”. And, they too get summers off. By the way, public eduducation teachers are on a 10 month salary. I believe private educators are too. It’s just that they are paid less, but you’re willing to pad owners and administrators salaries.
Or we could meet the government “net-zero” mandate by decreasing funding to private schools from 50% to say 40% and put the difference into the public system.
My daughter’s learning does not seem to fit the current education system. I know many children ( an astounding number actually) who would also benefit from a greater variety of learning styles. At present for my daughter to assessed through the school, the wait is 2-3 years. This is appalling. How much damage will be done in the meantime?
The one good thing about the lack of services for my daughter is that yes, as her parents, we are very involved, but it would be very helpful to understand exactly what style of learning my daughter would most benefit from.
If the Liberals are offering to fund more special education teachers and learning assessments then I am all for it. When I watch this latest commercial I feel very defensive and do not believe that any change will actually filter down to my daughter and speed up the assistance she needs. I feel as if the government is simply trying to attack teachers. I will wait and see if anything improves for my daughter.
My daughter’s current teacher has gone above and beyond in trying to address my daughter’s needs this past year. Just because the teachers took action didn’t mean they don’t care for their students. I know this first hand and I am so grateful for what my daughter’s teacher has done and I feel sad now that we are now stalled waiting for funding that is not there, to help my daughter.
I applaud that you are involved and I mean you no disrespect when I say that is the way it should be. Public school cannot accommodate every learning style and personality type. The plan needs to be to prepare these student for the world, not the world for the students becasue they will be severely disappointed to find the world will not change to suit them. If they are to succeed, they will have to understand that there is a rigid reality out there. Society used to, and in some cases still does teach boys that the sun will rise and set at their whim and I have seen many fail to adapt when they are hit with the reality that they are just another human being. We need to be doing the best for most with the resources that we have.
If everyone in the province cared about education there should be thousands more comments on this sounding board. If 85% of British Columbians use the internet frequently, (as stated in the earlier literature I read) how can a rate of 1300 comments for a topic be seen as a significant interest in education, or as a representative sample of what all British Columbians think. As always with any issue, you mostly get the hardcore ends of the spectrum who are interested because they have some kind of a vested interest. (Ex.Teachers, have special needs kids, or have had really good or bad experiences with the education system.) Meanwhile the common person is too busy at work trying to make ends meet to have the time to comment, but are probably the people who should be talked to. When you solicit information it is usually biased in some way, when you go out and get a random sample, you will get a more truthful picture.
Here are some questions to ask yourself before reading people’s responses. How many people are actually contributing to the discussion, or are some people making many comments? Are there people from around the province giving information, or is it centralized from the lower mainland? What are the socio-economic levels of those contributing? Are people who are contributing to this discussion thinking about the greater good, or are they focused on their children/job/personal agendas?
Time for my personal agenda. Does the education system need an overhaul? Yes. Should you, to quote an old phrase, “Put the inmates in charge of the asylum” No. I let the teachers do their job for my kids. I don’t want someone from outside coming into my place of work and telling me how to do my job. I give my kids teachers the same respect.
More choice in school…good. But when my son wants to build an ASA Late Model Stock car, at a cost of $100,000 and go racing because that is his interest I wonder where the money will come from. Will the school district give him some sponsorship money too? Doubt it. Words are just words, and rhetoric is just rhetoric and dreams need to be realistic.
This new plan will end up failing because school districts and teachers will only be able to do what they can do with the money they are given from Victoria. Of course that would mean that I, the taxpayer, may have to provide many of the necessities for my kids to succeed in this new system based upon their personal learning plan. Might as well just homeschool them. Oops don’t have the time, too busy working. In the end, I wonder if the government will pay for my time off of work to go in and see my kids teachers to help develop their learning plans?
From a parent of two B students.
By all means ask questions and try to better understand the ideas presented by others. But I wouldn’t let fear and speculation about personal motivations get in the way. Let’s keep this project about the ideas themselves, not about individual people and personalities.
In the end, ideas are independent of the person or people who contributed them. Ultimately an idea can stand or fall (or be scavenged for its best parts, or somehow inspire new ideas in others, etc) based on its own strengths and weaknesses, regardless of the person or people who contributed it.
I think that if we focus on the ideas, not the people; if we focus on the common interest of improving our education system; then we will be less distracted by personal issues and be more successful collectively.
Regarding the number of people participating in this project, I am very interested in this as well. I think that the numbers will continue to grow the longer the project continues, the better it is marketed, the easier it is to use, the more it influences decision-maker’s actions, and the more effective it is.
Some serious impediments of this project so far include the arbitrary closing of discussions and the indented nature of the text layout. I can understand that staff may be required to create summary reports regarding the comments on this site, but I do not see that as a reason for closing down any discussions. The questions and comments should remain open for discussion; there is nothing to lose and everything to gain by remaining accessible and inclusive. And the indented format of replies needs to be addressed as it is also hindering discussion and participation.
One way to create more objective results and to stimulate more participation would be to make this website more interactive by allowing members of the public to insert their own survey questions into their own comments (all moderated still, of course). Users could read the comments and questions left by others, submit answers to survey questions that interested them, reply to comments with their own comments/survey questions, etc. Such a system would be more engaging and would generate more objective survey results.
Terry said, “…dreams need to be realistic…”. We climb a mountain one step at a time. We put people on the moon. I think it is realistic to expect that we can communicate and collaborate together using available online tools to continuously improve our education system one step at a time. It is not that much to ask and it is an excellent example for our students as well.
I am looking forward to seeing how this project develops. I think it could ultimately have a much bigger impact than many people expect. Time will tell.
You may be interested in some related threads here(1), here(2), here(3) and here(4).
Why don”t the teachers stop their whining for more money. More money isn’t going to make you happier. You will just ask for more as you will never be happy with whatever is your salary. Don’t be so cowardly and hide behind the fact that putting students first is your motto because you don’t want to advertise the real truth. Teachers just want more money. It you want more money, then go retrain into another profession and find a better job that pays better. Give up your position to other teachers who are willing to work and will spend their time to do a better job because the whining factor is eliminted. It is best to stop your whining and move on! Every parent (well over 200) agreed with my comment and are in consensus with that teachers jobs are already well paid enough for what they do.
Independent schools offer parents flexibility and choice so that they can select a programme that best suits the needs of their child. There is exceptional achievement and opportunity in independent schools – which receive only 5% of the Education budget although they educate almost 12% of BC’s children. Many independent schools offer bursaries to families that cannot afford to send their children to independent schools.
it is great that independent schools can offer flexibility and choice, but they can also pick and choose who they admit, as well as charge significant sums of money to parents. We need to support and strengthen our public school system to meet the need of students. Most families cannot afford independent schools and the few bursaries out there do not provide real possibilities for most families. Parents who can afford independent schools can already go ahead and enroll their kids if they choose. However we as a society need to make a choice about how we support the majority of our kids, and public schools will be the only way. We need to make them work better to meet those needs.
After suffering through a teachers strike and realizing that we would be faced with split classes for the foreseeable future, we made the decision to enrol our child in an independent school. We had to borrow the money to put up the bond and it is a struggle for us to come up with the tuition every year, but it is a sacrifice we are willing to make. To the folks that propose a reduction or elimination of funding for independent schools please remember that we also pay our share of school taxes, via our annual property taxes, and deserve to have money put toward the education of our children – or perhaps we should be able to opt out of paying school taxes. I am sure that would go over well!
I agree with “concerned parent” that parents need a stronger voice in the education system. Parents need to have a voice that is not about fundraising. We also need to have a voice that does not involve us constantly having to bring issues to a teacher or principal that is unwilling or unable to address them. Quality of education is lacking right now in our classrooms …why is my child spending school time shopping at the mall, watching the teacher play on an iphone, hearing about a manicure, making blueberry smoothies and having whole afternoons being taken up by school dances. This system needs an overhaul and needs some accountability.
I continue to experience a disturbing disconnect between the obvious enthusiasm of the Plan’s proponents and their ongoing inability/unwillingness to address any specifics about how the Plan will help the children who are falling through the cracks. Surely when we are talking about school reform we are trying to address what is actually wrong with the current system? I’m hearing so many TED.com buzzwords and so little of specifics and substance. They say they have a long way to go, but frankly I’m not seeing any interest or particular attention paid to the needs of these kids at all. When we fall in love with our own rhetoric, the ideas become more important than the people for whom these ideas will have profound consequences.
It’s going to take a lot more than flowery language, IBM-supplied computers and some underpaid EAs to really change BC’s educational system for those that need it the most.
Here are some links to school programs that use evidence based, best practice methods, and who, most importantly have a track record of success for underachieving children. The links are for Gifted/Learning disabled but the research shows that the methods are equally successful with those with only learning disabilities and for those who are underachieving.
A Guidebook for Twice-Exceptional Students: Supporting the Achievement of Gifted Students with Special Needs, http://wrightslaw.com/info/2e.guidebook.pdf
The Twice-Exceptional Dilemma, http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/twiceexceptional.pdf
Twice-Exceptional Students, Gifted Students with Disabilities: An Introductory Resource Book, http://www.cde.state.co.us/gt/download/pdf/TwiceExceptionalResourceHandbook.pdf
Twice-Exceptional: Students with Both Gifts and Challenges or Disabilities, http://www.sde.idaho.gov/site/gifted_talented/twice-exceptional
To give an example of what it’s going to take, if we are going to do more than pay lip service to reaching these kids, here are the seven steps from the Colorado State program:
Seven Steps to Strategic Planning for Twice-Exceptional Students
1. Identify Stakeholders
The first step is to identify the stakeholders — those people who will be impacted by the resulting instructional plan or who will play a role in implementing the plan. Stakeholder groups for twice-exceptional education should include representatives from gifted education, special education (special education teachers, school psychologists, social workers, occupational therapists, speech/ language pathologists), classroom teachers, administrators, counselors, students, and parents.
2. Organize a Problem-Solving Team
The problem-solving team must include representatives from each stakeholder group. Identify a facilitator who will guide the process and ensure a supportive environment. This group will collaborate to develop an instructional plan for the student, monitor its success and measure student growth.
3. Determine Strength/Interests
Identify the student’s strengths and interests and determine specific data points to inform the decision-making process. In what areas does he/she excel? What data tells you so? What comes easily for him/her? What data tells you so? What are the passions and interests of the student? What does he/she enjoy doing during free time? How do you know?
4. Determine Challenges/Concerns
Identify the student’s challenges and concerns and determine specific data points to inform the decision-making process. What content areas come as a challenge for the student? What data tells you so? What are behavioral concerns?
5. Select One Strength and One Challenge for Focus
Choose one strength and one challenge upon which the instructional plan will focus. Decide if the problem-solving team has other questions and whether additional data needs to be gathered.
6. Develop an Action Plan
Having a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish unifies the commitment of the team. Develop an action plan that has specific measurable outcomes by: determining appropriate interventions, the length of the intervention, and establishing a review date when the team will meet again. The action plan should include: goals, interventions to achieve goals, interventionist (person who will be responsible for delivering intervention), frequency and duration, method of progress monitoring, materials needed, and necessary accommodations and/or modifications.
7. Implement Instructional Plan
Implement the selected interventions with the student being careful to record the student’s response and success or lack of success. Facilitator of the problem-solving team should follow up with responsible individuals to ensure the plan is being implemented as designed.
In other words, we will have to actually care, if we want to change things for the kids falling through the cracks. It will take money, effort and most of all attention: the one thing I see grievously lacking in all the current rhetoric coming from the Plan.
Based on the summary of ideas, I can see that one important piece is left off. I believe parents need to have a role on any school board or district administrative body that is in place. I think this should include a body of parents that become advocates for children and parents within the system. The positions should have parents from different schools rotating through the position so that these parents become representatives for their school and can bring the information back to their school. PACs are from another era, particularly district pacs. Most have very poor attendance, the government provides very little funding and they are merely a fundraising body. Parents need a voice that is ongoing in the education system, I would argue as strong as the of the government and the union. This piece is missing. School Boards no longer have the power to act as this voice (due to the evolution of their power in system and the declining enrollment – and thus lack of population to hold them accountable (through voting)). The entire system will needs to catch up with todays reality, this includes school boards, pacs and district pacs and bc pac.
I am interested in the range of choice offered but also in the type of approach to education that is taken. I’ve recently heard about a charter school in the States called High Tech High, somewhat mislabelled as it is not really about high tech, but its’ approach has been unconventional yet successful and deserve our consideration. I have included the link to an informative UTube video about them below. The school selects students by a lottery, ensuring a mix of children from different socioeconomic backgrounds and learning abilities, and teaches them in a way that integfrates the students together and engages them creatively, with hands on learning. The video really demontrated this well. I would really like to see opportunities like this in our system.
High Tech High: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rv_rmJYorE
I know this one will get ignored this government gave themselves a huge pay raise and tries to gouge the taxpayer for their pet projects eg Pamela Martin communication officer never heard a word from her mouth. Why sholdnt teachers get a raise. Cut back on some government workers This government could not run a kool aid stand
Yesterday the section titled, “What Happens with Your Comments?” was added to the BC Education Plan website, but commenting is turned off for that new section so the public cannot comment on it.
Would you please turn commenting on for the “What Happens with Your Comments?” section so that everyone can comment on it?
HI there and thank you for bringing this to our attention. We are working on it right now and hope to have it fixed quickly.
Thanks, Moderator Chrysstena. But is commenting actually broken on that forum, or is it simply turned off? It looks like commenting just hasn’t been turned on yet; look near the top right corner of that forum here and it actually says, “Comments Off”.
Hi Richard,
Thank you for bringing this to our attention. The What Happens to your Comments infographic was created as a reference tool to explain the process we use when analysing data shared on our blog. Although initially posted in the comment section, it was intended to be used for reference purposes. As such, we have now moved it over to the right sidebar with other reference items (link to PDF http://www.bcedplan.ca/assets/pdf/infographics/what-happens-to-your-comments.pdf).
If you have questions or comments about this infographic, please feel free to post them in this thread, or to send us a direct email at bceducationplan@gov.bc.ca.
Moderator Joanne said that the “What Happens to your Comments” PDF document “was created as a reference tool to explain the process we use when analysing data shared on our blog. Although initially posted in the comment section, it was intended to be used for reference purposes…”
When I saw the message “Comments Off” on the “What Happens to your Comments” forum section it was clear that discussion was being discouraged about that new and critically important PDF document.
Removing that PDF document from its own forum and simply replacing it with a link to the PDF document just further discourages clear communication and discussion regarding that PDF document.
Burying comments about that new and critical PDF document in this Question 7-9 Snapshot page just further obscures any associated conversation about it.
That new PDF document tells us, after this website has already received almost 4 months worth of contributions from the public, that our contributions are reduced to “themes and examples” and that it is those themes and examples that “are shared across the ministry and back through our website”. Furthermore, that PDF document goes on to say that it is the summarized comments, the “themes and examples”, that “helps further the development of BC’s Education Plan.”
If the Ministry of Education and the BC Education Plan is only being informed by the watered down “themes and examples” that we see on this website then I am very disappointed in this project. In that case I think we are wasting the sincere efforts of a great many contributors, and likely discouraging further participation in projects that claim to be online public consultations.
Decision-makers need to hear directly from the front-line. Decision-makers need to read and consider the actual comments that have been contributed by people, not the watered down “themes and examples” because, as we say, “the devil is in the details”. Giving politicians a bunch of watered down summaries like the “themes and examples” is like showing them a Rorschach inkblot drawing… politicians will see what they want to see, spin what they want to spin, then do what they want to do, feeling justified by how they interpreted the “themes and examples” that were shared with them.
Rather than have Ministry staff create watered-down “themes and examples” for the use of their political bosses, I suggest that we use 21st century tools that will allow the contributors themselves (students, parents, teachers, the public, etc) to prioritize, synthesize and otherwise directly communicate their ideas to the decision-makers.
In addition to online forum tools for discussion, online survey tools are available that enable higher quality, more precise, more trustworthy feedback direct from the participants to the decision-makers and we should be using those tools to achieve more precise, more accurate, more trustworthy results. And the thumbs-up/thumbs-down buttons as currently used on this website simply don’t cut it.
It is obvious that there is not a lot of trust in the education system in BC right now and that fact must be successfully addressed as part of any attempt (like this website and the BC Education Plan) to improve the situation.
It is a step forward to create this website and invite everyone to contribute their comments toward improving the system; however, if politicians simply use watered-down “themes and examples” to justify their decisions then we will have not just missed a great opportunity to actually bring people together toward a common interest that we share; we will have further damaged any trust and hope that might be out there. And the last thing we need is for the situation to get any worse than it already is.
As we proceed in our efforts to improve the education system in BC I think we would be very wise to keep in our minds an expression that has successfully guided the practice of medicine for some time: first do no harm.
How our comments will be used is critically important to whether or not people will want to comment at all. Therefore I think it is very important that the new PDF document have its own forum (with commenting turned on) so that people can discuss it. This column is already getting too skinny to read comfortably and any replies will be thinner yet.
Richard, you’ve raised some interesting points. What do others think? Should the PDF document have its own forum with comments turned on? Other ideas?
I’d agree with Richard. Why not have “comments on” for this? A great number of people, both teachers and parents have spoken very eloquently and passionately about their concerns. Let the politicians and M of E people read what they wrote.
First of all thank you Richard for tracking this so precisely. I have raised a similar question, but have not followed up to your extent. I thank you for your time and efforts.
The fact that this question is asked concerns me as of course we expect to see the report and comment on whether it addresses all of the concerns in a way presented. If not the worry is it will become a public relations effort for the government and not create the change that is actually promised. I want to believe that the intentions are to incorporate what has been put forward. Otherwise, I am concerned about being asked for my input, time and expertise and then having this wasted. We are all very busy people and it is a testimony to the passion we all feel for our education system that we are prepared to take the time to comment on this blog. I am so impressed with a number of the recommendations made. I am also excited that this input could be utilised in improving our education system.
What type of report do you feel would be beneficial? We have given some snapshots at this point. What would you like to see in the future?
I would like to see are port offered on this site of a final analysis and summary of the comments, with the subsequent recommendations for change that the ministry is suggesting. Ideally, there would be input again into these recommendations before the final report is concluded. This would provide contributors the final opportunity to ensure their ideas are included, but also an understanding of they would not be hopefully in the analysis provided in the document. This would give insight both into why government makes its decisions and would allow the public input process to be valued.
Notice how Moderator Chrysstena’s reply above (and this reply you are now reading) are so skinny and cannot be replied to any further because the Reply button is blacked out. Those factors make it very awkward, if not impossible, to respond to her encouraging questions, “What type of report do you feel would be beneficial?” and “What would you like to see in the future?”.
This problem exemplifies part of the reasoning for my request to have this important topic (What Happens to your Comments) moved to its own forum with commenting turned on.
Furthermore, we really need to migrate the important conversations on this website to a permanent online venue that has more suitable and efficient online tools for communication and collaboration.
We need a more suitable layout for the forums (the indenting on this website is hindering communication). We need registered user accounts for authentication and accountability. We need survey/polling tools built-in. I have much more to contribute regarding this but I am waiting for a more efficient way to collaborate.
Such online communication and collaboration tools have been around for a long time now and it is about time that we start using them to communicate, collaborate, solve problems, and otherwise develop and mature as a unified online education community in BC.
Regardless of which political party happens to be in power, this is an idea whose time is well past due. We need to use these freely available technologies to communicate and collaborate more efficiently and more effectively so that we can better leverage the amazing human resources that we have available to us (students, parents, teachers, the public, etc).
And if the current government should decide not to seize this opportunity and lead the way, then we will soon have an opportunity to vote for an aternative party that will.
You may also be interested in some of the comments and links found in this related thread.
There is a related thread here.
Our education system needs to find students strengths and help those strengths develop in a more personalized way.
In Germany, students are separated based on what TYPE of intelligence they have. Students who are hands on, practical thinkers will begin in a school for trades earlier on than they would in Canada because our curriculum is so standardized. Not everyone should have to study science 10 in the same format. Allow people who aren’t going to major science learn a more generalized curriculum in an easier-to-learn format like more videos; while students who are gifted to study science learn in a more difficult environment with more abstract reasoning and problem solving, so they will develop modes of thinking better suited for learning calculus and organic chemistry later on. Same for Arts students, etc.
We need to get away from the “one classroom fits all” mentality. People deserve equal rights, but that doesn’t make us all equal in every way.
On Question 7 . . .
One of the challenges to offering students more flexible learning opportunities has been categorized as “more work for already burdened educators”. Discussion points include increased teacher tracking of students (Shelly), increased pressure to and responsibility for including student interests in education (Jackie), teacher-student ratio (Sandra), and increased planning and preparation for already over-worked educators (Cody). Without question, each of these is a legitimate concern, grounded in the fact that many teachers give of themselves more than the job requires.
I feel it’s important workload issues are understood and discussed, as the BC Ed. Plan moves forward, rather than be forgotten or mistakenly reduced to mere complaints. One way of possibly avoiding this I believe would be to center workload discussions around the shifting roles of students, parents, teachers, the school, the community and districts, as indicated in the Ministry’s Personalized Learning in BC: Interactive Discussion Guide (http://personalizedlearningbc.ca/#/14-15). Basically, not only do we need to learn new roles in a new system, but also we will need to maintain portions of our old roles inside old models until we’ve transitioned to new, stable replacement models and systems that we first still need to create. Anyway you cut it there’s a great deal of work to be done! Keeping an honest focus on this issue while we support one another through it is essential to the Plan’s success.
Continuing to try and synthesize, I must admit that I, too, like Rebekah, found the discussion between Jamie, and Stephanie and Christina, interesting. I have taught for nineteen years, and periodically throughout my career can attest to having felt pushed (in the later part of my career, no less) almost to a break point by the diversity of needs and abilities in my classroom. That said though, personally, I’m not convinced that either I or other teachers are supporting students “in the best ways that they can.” For one, some of the “best” ways to support learners are still unfolding in the research. Further, for my students whom I’m always racing to try and understand (both as individuals and a community) “best” as opposed to “best fit” generally leaves me wanting more. Finally, I have all too often been humbled then inspired by the brilliance of some of my colleagues, their approaches and boundless giving. Fortunately or unfortunately, ours is a profession where I don’t believe there is one best way.
To end, beyond finding the whole social promotion-diversity-special education discussion interesting, I also found it quite revealing, philosophically and pragmatically. One thing the Ministry may need to consider inside of its Education and Personalized Learning plans is the notion of how we identify, plan for, and support students with special needs. As schools and districts throughout the province chart various courses to make the Ministry’s vision a reality, my fear is that shifting definitions and potential inconsistencies of approach regarding special education services may create significant problems down the road if we are not careful.
Great discussion everyone, thanks!
Many of these questions concern how teachers can change, but we have to remember that students need so much more than one good teacher in a big classroom. How are teachers supposed to address all the factors that make students at risk for learning challenges and academic failure? Child poverty is high in this province and that needs to be addressed. Funding the educational system at the same % of gdp rate as some of our provincial neighbours would help as well. Stop asking teachers to do more with less, and stop blaming us for the lack of progress when the resources have been lacking. We can clearly see that it doesn’t work. Look at the US. Let’s model Finland or another country that is doing fantastically and you will see support from everyone.
The following comment came in to our email account today. With the author’s permission I’m posting it here.
Thanks for setting up this opportunity for consultation. Please feel free to post this in whichever forum is appropriate for it, or to use it in any other way that helps improve our K-12 system.
The thing I would most like to see improved in our K-12 system is the quality of education that students receive. I don’t mean that teachers are doing a bad job; many students learn a lot and learn it well. But too many students are passed through high school, and graduate without having learned the basic skills they need: According to the International Adult Literacy Survey (in which Canada’s been an active supportive participant) and its results for BC, over 30% of the recent high school graduates who don’t go on to post-secondary programs have only level 1 or level 2 literacy. Many high school graduates who come to Kwantlen, for instance, don’t know their times tables, don’t know how to do arithmetic with fractions, and don’t know how to write a short essay. Ninety-five percent of the students in Kwantlen’s ABE programs already have a high school diploma – what does that say about the standards for that diploma?
No one should be allowed to receive a high school diploma unless they are at level 3 literacy or higher; no one should be passed in a high school course just to save them and their parents from embarassment and to save the teacher or principal from a hassle.
Both for the student’s sake and for the sake of our province’s social and economic development, and for the sake of small businesses who want to hire competent employees, we can’t afford not to insist that all high school graduates learn a high school level of skills. Those who don’t must be failed, and given the opportunity to try again when they wise up – hopefully soon thereafter.
Geoff Dean
Academic & Career Preparation
Kwantlen Polytechnic University
I see the merit in providing diverse programs in schools because they aid in addressing the diversity of skills, interests, abilities and learning styles of the classroom. I think that providing flexibility and choice to students is important if they are to find their passion and niche. Rigid school programs inevitably buffer diversity which result in assembly lines wherein schools pump out students who are all alike. Instead, schools need to embrace diversity and provide students with flexible learning opportunities. My concern, however, is the current lack of resources and funding to provide schools with the privilege of flexibility.
Trying to combat bullying is a major issue. Rhyme helps children to learn more easily. Perhaps teaching songs to help teach kindness to one another would be useful.
The intentions behind increasing flexibility are great; the reality of implementation remains to be seen. Unfortunately, I’ve been around long enough to have experienced other ideas that have been put forward (i.e. the Graduation Portfolio) and the support and resources are simply not available to see it through.
The flexibility and choice debate around personalizing or customizing learning as opposed to standardizing curriculum and instructional practice has waxed and waned(Cuban, 2012). Differentiating instruction with all sorts of groupings and methodologies as opposed to the value of uniform curriculum taught similarly to all students depends on whether people perceive one or the other as better for society and individuals. Such a dialectic is found throughout education as to its purpose or the degree of professional autonomy for teachers, and so on. My hope is that in a democracy we permit some freedom of choice of what types of schools we want for our students with specialties in various methodologies and curriculum emphases. Some would argue that parents may not be in the best position to know what is the best way to educate as most choices may not be well informed. Improved access to valid and reliable information, and a vigorous public debate on the purpose of education, may help us to make more informed decisions. Education does have individual and societal benefits. Both aspects need consideration and a realization that one size does not fit all in all aspects of the means of educating or what personal aspirations we have for it. Some agreement about the composite ends of education with choice of the means to those ends would be helpful.
Notes: Cuban, Larry. (February, 2012) Standards vs. Customization: Finding the Balance. Educational Leadership, ASCD.