Almost two weeks ago, Alberta’s Minister of Education announced that talks broke down between the province, the Alberta Teachers Association and the Alberta School Board Association in regards to a proposed deal that would mean less days of school for children.
Because those talks have broken down, Alberta teachers will now get a 4.3-per-cent pay increase effective Sept. 1. The discussion between the three parties was a year in the making, but an agreement was not in the forecast.
It’s difficult to say what would be better for the education system. Would a pay hike for teachers really be better than students having another 10 days off from school? Granted, our teachers are overburdened with the responsibilities of teaching our youth.
Teaching today is nothing like it used to be when our teachers were students themselves. The world has changed in so many ways, and it has had a significant impact on the way our teachers are able to provide quality education. Not that they are incapable of providing that education. On the contrary; there are just so many more obstacles in place today than our teachers had even 15 years ago.
They say advancements in technology will bring the entire world to the fingertips of our students. And, while that may be so, it also means teachers have to weed out the information students obtain over the Internet to teach them fact from fiction.
The province, the ASBA and the ATA have to come to an agreement that will best benefit students. Teachers are an invaluable resource, and so many of them actually care about their students and their education. Teachers who get into the field because of any reason other than shaping our youth into future leaders should perhaps think about a change in careers.
In Barrhead, there is a great deal of teachers who go above and beyond the call of duty. For example, Lorna Hiemstra spends countless hours with her students outside of the classroom to make sure they are learning and keeping fit. She coaches basketball teams, and she even referees those games, and she has taken a group of junior high students and shown them the fun of robotics through the First Lego League. Lorna is a shining example of teachers who truly believe in the welfare of their students. Does she do it because she wants a pay increase? Likely not, but unfortunately there are teachers out there who can only see the bottom line.
Pembina Hills Regional Division No. 7 was preparing to find out just how a proposed extra 10 days off for students would affect the quality of teaching for the board. Superintendent of Schools Egbert Stang eagerly anticipated a meeting with the minister on Jan. 28, and they were left in the dark following the announcement that talks had broken down.
Stang said the board is expecting some direction from the province about what is to come next, but PHRD has yet to receive said information. What he stressed is the fact everything from this point on has to be done with the students in mind. After all, they are the reason teachers are teachers.
