Students first

Proposed education changes raise concerns for students and parents

(L-R): Madison Colton, Erica Monroe and Sarah Johnson demonstrate their opposition to proposed changes to public education funding during a student walkout last Thursday.

Hundreds of students at Prince Edward Collegiate Institute (PECI) joined in a province-wide classroom walkout last Thursday afternoon to protest proposed changes to Ontario’s public education system. The protest was mobilized through social media after an Instagram post by Listowel District Secondary School student Natalie Moore went viral. Here in the County, Grade 10 student Talia Epstein picked up the torch and with a core group of friends organized Thursday’s walkout. The students are concerned that cuts to education funding will lead to a reduction in classroom opportunities for special-interest courses, loss of arts programming, and an increased reliance on Internetbased education that eliminates local teacher presence. The student protest was well organized and very disciplined. About 200 students, many carrying placards, marched from PECI to the cenotaph on Picton Main Street, where they made their displeasure known, loud and clear. With chants and cheers, they encouraged passing drivers to honk their horns in support. Epstein and fellow organizer Kayla Zacharia addressed the gathered students to thank them for their support, and reiterated the reasons for the protest. “Things that we value and rely on are in danger. Jobs will be cut, leaving schools understaffed,” said Zacharia. “Class sizes will grow exponentially, with little opportunity for one-on-one teacher and student interaction. More mandatory credits will have to be obtained through elearning, a message that is not compatible with a majority of students. These things will impact [us] directly.”

By coincidence, PECI teacher Rob Garden and some of his colleagues had organized an information session to be held at the Picton Town Hall that same evening. He had been fielding a lot of questions from concerned parents, and as a parent himself with a child at CML Snider School, he felt there was a need to get the information out to the community about what the possible impacts may be. And as evidence of that need, almost 100 people showed up for the session. The audience was a mix of people. There were a few students and a number of parents whose children were in special-needs classes and who were concerned whether those services would continue with the proposed reduction in funding.

There were also a few retired teachers, as well as one person who had negotiated to win some of these services that are now under threat. PECI teacher Matt Ronan started the session with a description of the current programming and activities at the school, and noted that it is a hub for the whole community with extensive afterschool events. He fears that cuts to staffing levels will result in the loss or reduction of specialized classes. “The proposed increase in average class size will have a negative impact on student achievement,” said Ronan. “Our team of 37 teachers and support staff work together because we know that a student engaged in school becomes a graduate of the school and a strong member of Prince Edward County. What we have here in our community in PECI is too good to lose.”

PECI students take part in a province-wide walkout to protest changes to the public education system. About 200 students marched to the cenotaph on Main Street in Picton to express their displeasure.

Former councillor Lenny Epstein spoke as a parent and as an emergency supply teacher about his experience with the school system. He said that reducing the teacher to student ratio will have deleterious impact on the learning that goes on in the classroom, particularly among special-needs students. “There aren’t enough adults in the classrooms right now, and what the provincial government is showing by these cuts is that it does not value education, does not value our children and does not value the potential that they hold,” he said. “We are not going to take cuts to our students’ education lying down and we have to push back, because if we don’t push back we will get rolled over.”

Some of the details of the proposed cuts and the impact it may have on County schools were outlined by Scott Marshall, president of Local 29 of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation. He said that over the four-year time frame approximately 60, and perhaps more, teaching positions would be cut from the seven high schools in the local school district. This is far greater than the number of teachers expected to retire in that period, and it could lead to tense contract negotiations since the district school board would be expected to honour a number of contractual provisions regarding class sizes, in spite of a reduction in provincial funding. He had harsh words for the government’s plans. “This is not modernizing education,” he said. “This is not making our students more resilient. There’s no research that suggests we need to start pulling supports away from youth to help them down the road.”

Rob Garden was pleased with the turnout for the evening and was impressed by the level of engagement he saw, particularly in the question and answer period following Marshall’s outline. “There’s a groundswell of community support, and it’s amazing to see that and the power we have in our small community,” he said. “I hope that through Scott’s message and through the other speakers tonight it will be a really clear set of facts about what is proposed and it will allow people to have an informed choice. There’s no political agenda here. It’s just a matter of getting concrete, factual information out.”