One wouldn’t normally think that the upcoming school year calendar would be the source of controversy, but that was certainly the case at the recent Pembina Hills board meeting on Dec. 12 at Busby.
As seen in our story on Page 3A, trustees were debating two major changes: the elimination of early dismissal days and changing two days offered in lieu to staff for parent-teacher interviews to teacher-directed professional development days.
Prior to making this decision, the board had directed Supt. David Garbutt to gather input from staff on these changes.
Although we weren’t privy to those staff responses, we got the impression that PHPS employees weren’t crazy about the changes.
Nobody strenuously objected to the elimination of early dismissal days, mind you. Most parents found those to be a giant pain, and judging from Garbutt’s comments, PHPS staff also found them to be a waste of time.
What staff wanted and needed were full professional development days that they had control over, not a day chopped up and distributed throughout the year. That led to the recommendation to eliminate the two days in lieu offered in exchange for parent-teacher interviews.
This was the REAL source of controversy, as staff apparently saw the recommendation as the division dissolving two holidays off and giving them more work.
This is perfectly understandable. Once you’ve gotten used to having something like that, your natural instinct is to resist any attempt to change it.
But staff weren’t really losing days off, as the calendar without those days in lieu is shorter than the one with them. No instructional days are added.
Although it probably hasn’t endeared them to some teachers, Pembina Hills trustees made the right choice to change those two days in lieu to teacher-directed PD days.
But now a new conversation needs to take place around parent-teacher interviews, and whether Pembina Hills should continue to follow the tried-and-trusted model used now or switch to something else.
If you’re a parent and you’re not involved in your school council, you’re probably loath to join their discussions.
But if you also hate burning a night off to take part in parent-teacher interviews, that’s where discussion is likely going to take place around a different model. Ideas for a new format will certainly be welcomed.
On the other hand, maybe you find PT interviews to be extremely valuable and the prospect of a replacement is very unpalatable. In which case, you should also join those discussions.
In any case, if you’re a parent with a child at a public school, you should start thinking about what side you fall on.
