Elimination of school boards not the answer

Regional and ethnic communities do not want more ‘Educrats’ running education from Halifax

Education and Early Childhood Development Minister Zach Churchill has been discussing nine different “silos” in public education. By this he is referring to the eight school boards and the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.

Educational leaders in our province did discuss “silos” with Dr. Glaze during her consultations, and asked for this to be a focus of her inquiry so there could be more interagency collaboration among various government departments in support of students.

One example would be the Nova Scotia School Board Association’s work with government and law enforcement to help reduce school bus red light violations. Other examples include supporting and advocating for initiatives such as SchoolsPlus, which brings together multiple government departments to serve students.

Contrary to opinions expressed in the Glaze Report, the school boards in this province get along very well. I must say that I have enjoyed working with members of the eight school boards during my time with the Nova Scotia School Boards Association. I have also come to a better understanding of the needs of our regions and our indigenous and African Nova Scotian population through our shared efforts on behalf of Nova Scotia students.

The truth is that there are two silos: school boards and the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. The criticism around the lack of clarity of roles and responsibilities is wrought with irony. Due to the government reducing the powers and autonomy of governing school boards, we have had questions about our roles and responsibilities - and so did the auditor general in his 2015 report.

The Nova Scotia School Boards Association started working to strengthen the role of governing school boards, with the support of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, but that work has been shut down. With the government’s decision to eliminate the seven English regional school boards, there will be no need to clarify roles and responsibilities. The government’s solution to the question was simple - eliminate one of the two actual silos!

There is a strong minority voice on regional school boards in Nova Scotia. Of the 88 English board members, seven are Mi’kmaq (eight per cent) and nine are African Nova Scotian (10 per cent). The voices which will remain if the impending legislation is passed are almost entirely advisory. With the exception of the elected Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (Acadian school board), the Council for African Canadian Education, the Council on Mi’kmaq Education and the new Advisory Council on Education will “advise” the minister on education related matters.

In addition, there will be some 370 School Advisory Councils concerned only about their own schools. Those are a lot of silos. What elected voice is holding the system accountable? None!

Finally, let’s look at high performing provinces based on standardized tests. These are provinces with stronger economies, more urban regions and less child poverty. What about the “silos” in the higher performing provinces? Well, British Columbia has 60 school boards, Alberta has 65 boards and Quebec has 69 boards. Ontario, with 72 elected boards, performs at the same level as Nova Scotia.

Based on some dubious premises, it is presented to the public that our seven English boards do not provide good governance and instead the province as a whole needs a “razor sharp focus.” The reasons for these recommendations are political not educational. These are not the issues of families. Families want a steady hand the helm, educational peace and an empowered voice for their students and communities.

It is my belief that regional and ethnic communities do not want to trade that democratic empowered voice for more “Educrats” running education from Halifax.

“What elected voice is holding the system accountable? None!”

Hank Middleton is the president of the Nova Scotia School Boards Association. He lives in Bridgewater.