Make full-day kindergarten optional say candidates
Chilliwack Times
November 14, 2008
By: Mike Chouinard

If the province goes ahead with all-day kindergarten, parents can expect their next board of education to push for the program to be voluntary and that families are not penalized if their youngsters do not attend.

This was the common view among the eight school trustee candidates during the district parent advisory council's second and final forum for board hopefuls Wednesday night.

… Most candidates think the idea for full-day kindergarten is worth exploring but add it would need to be voluntary for parents to send their children, that it will need to be fully funded by the province, that will be overseen by teachers, that it remain play-based and not tied to expectations for students to meet learning outcomes.

"I'm worried that the prescribed learning outcomes will be shifted down," John-Henry Harter said.

Silvia Dyck said she had spoken to some teachers who liked the chance to spend more time with children during the day but she, too, was concerned about which direction the program might take.

"Let's not write curriculum for four- and five-year olds," she said.

Louise Piper brought up many of the same questions, also saying the issue of physical space for all-day kindergarten remains a question. She said she has reservations about the program for three- and four-year-olds but supports the idea for five-year-olds, though she was not sure about the provincial government's level of commitment.

"I hope it's not just an election promise," she said.

Others still had questions about the basic idea of full-day kindergarten.

"I still believe in children being children," Martha Wiens said….