Ford’s schoolyard scrap repeats a destructive past
With the first day of school around the corner, the Ford government made some sweeping education announcements. In addition to the promised consultations on The Health and Physical Education curriculum (a.k.a. sex-ed), parents are also being asked to weigh in on, “… math and science lessons, job skills, financial literacy, the legalization of cannabis, ways to improve standardized testing and cellphone use in the classroom.”
However it is the Fortheparents.ca website “where parents can report any concerns about what their children are being taught” that is garnering the most debate. By including what seems to be a snitch line in the announcement, the government is sending a message they think teachers and parents should have an adversarial relationship.
This government action follows the recent announcements of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation to defend teachers who choose to use the now repealed 2015 curriculum instead of the interim version that was just released.
The back and forth evokes a game of chicken and brings back memories of the toxic atmosphere in schools during the Harris government. The adversarial relationship benefited no one, especially the students everyone claims are their main priority.
When that government appeared to be pushing through Bill 160, it resulted in a two-week province-wide protest strike. It affected more than 2 million students and the legislation passed anyway.
It also left very negative feelings that lingered for many years.
Since this latest announcement, parent groups on various social media sites have been abuzz with comments. While some parents support the idea of a snitch line, others seem to be planning to use the website to complain that their children aren’t being taught the 2015 version of the curriculum. If this happens, the snitch line will essentially be overwhelmed. And more adversity will be the result.
As a teacher, I have never seen so much interest in curriculum documents. I re- member one time a parent questioned what I taught. During an information meeting, he asked why I was wasting time teaching geometry to the gifted math class. In his view, there were much more rigorous and important topics that should be taught. I replied geometry was in the curriculum and he was disappointed but satisfied.
Curriculum documents used to be in the background — professional guideline used by teachers to create lesson plans. But the sex-ed curriculum has become symbolic of power struggles on multiple fronts.
As a parent, I have had concerns about some of the teaching in my son’s classrooms. Most of the time, these were resolved by speaking directly to the teacher. A few times, I needed to consult the principal. However, I always strived to maintain cordial relationships and never skipped a step in the process.
No matter the outcome, my son was the one who had to be in class everyday. As he got older, if problems arose, I would discuss what steps he wanted me to take with him and eventually encouraged him to talk to his teachers himself. They have always been professional.
I also didn’t hesitate to let my son know when I didn’t agree with what his teachers were teaching. There have been times I have had to tell him that his teachers were incorrect about math questions. I taught him he could bring it up in class if he felt comfortable but to be respectful.
And for the more controversial, value laden issues I have been known to say. “Some people think that but our family doesn’t.” Or, “I don’t understand this issue but everyone should be treated with respect.”
During the announcement Ford stated, “We will not tolerate anybody using our children as pawns for grandstanding and political games.” But they almost inevitably become pawns when adults can’t disagree constructively.
I remember a 12-year-old Mike Harris Jr. being sent to school to sit in the school cafeteria on the first day of the 1997 protest strike. Schools were closed by 11 a.m. so he was home in time for lunch but not before being photographed and quoted as saying he was supporting his father, “So we can have the best education system in the world.”
While some parents support the snitch line, others are planning to use the website to complain that their children aren’t being taught the 2015 version of the curriculum