Suggestions that might help education system

According to Nova Scotia Teachers’ Union president Liette Doucet, the education system is broken and needs to be fixed.

Here are a few suggestions that might help:

1.Put together and implement a discipline policy with real consequences.

2.Implement an attendance policy that can work.

3.Get rid of the present inclusion model and develop one that is realistic.

4.Give back the final decision to pass or retain a student to the expert – the teacher!

5.Go back to report cards of one page in length – not five pages of educational jargon – that parents can clearly understand.

6.In elementary school, use math books from primary to Grade 2 that students do their work in and textbooks from grades three to six that explain concepts with examples on one page and ask students to do related exercises from the next page.

7.In junior high grades seven to nine have classes of about 25 with schools of about 500 whenever possible. Bigger is cheaper but not better!

8.High schools grades 10 to 12 should have classes of about 25 and schools of no more than 1,000 students. Again, bigger is cheaper but not better!

9.In Grade 10, all high school students can take a regular academic program. Then it is decision time. Students, with the help of their parents, teachers and guidance councillors, decide to either stay in the academic program in grades 11 and 12 – university preparatory – or choose to go into vocationaltechnical training or general non-university preparatory program.

10.Last and most important: Students – try to do your best everyday. Parents – help your child with their schoolwork all the way to graduation. Teachers – keep fighting for quality education in Nova Scotia! Greg MacInnis Sydney