‘Heavy’ conversations at Teachers’ Think Tank
Conversations at the virtual Teachers’ Think Tank on Friday, Feb. 23, were “frank” and “heavy at times,” said Education Minister Krista Lynn Howell.
The event was held to help inform recruitment and retention initiatives.
Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers’ Association (NLTA) president Trent Langdon said teachers were open and emotional.
“We heard from teachers who were violently attacked on the job. We heard from teachers who were threatened, and we heard from teachers who were just so overwhelmed, they felt like leaving the profession,” Langdon told reporters gathered outside the House of Assembly Friday afternoon to hear about the event, which was closed to the media.
He said the education system is hurting.
“Our system is weak right now, and there’s been a deterioration in our education system through the years,” Langdon said.
MENTAL-HEALTH SUPPORT
As a result of the think tank, the Department of Education said the following changes will be implemented immediately:
• The province will give a $450,000 grant to the NLTA to help expand mental-health supports and initiatives for teachers;
• An extra 125 hours per day will be added to the total allocation of student assistant hours in English public schools for the remainder of this school year;
• An additional two floating teacher positions will be assigned within rural schools of the Conseil scolaire francophone provincial to ensure coverage during teacher absences;
• Beginning in 2024-2025, one professional learning day per school year will be added to focus on mentalhealth issues affecting teachers. This will continue for the next three school years;
• The formation of a committee to address recruitment and retention, led by the deputy minister of education and president of the NLTA, which was a commitment made in the new collective agreement.
Prior to the one-day think tank, more than 2,200 teachers and administrators completed an online questionnaire related to recruitment and retention. This informed the topics discussed at the virtual think tank.
For the think tank, seven teachers were chosen from around the province to share their experiences.
Howell and Premier Andrew Furey attended a portion of the event in the morning.