Broken promises, worse to come
Vancouver Sun
BY IRENE LANZINGER, president of the B.C. Teachers' Federation.
APRIL 17, 2009

In 2005, teachers across British Columbia went on strike to improve learning conditions for our students.

The Campbell government responded with the Learning Round Table, and new legislation imposing class size and class composition rules. However, the new limits didn't even come close to meeting those stripped from collective agreements just a few years earlier.

Ultimately, the round table failed because the legislation was never strong enough to adequately protect learning conditions, and the government never provided the funding to get the job done….

B.C.'s teachers hoped the round table would lead to a concrete plan and new funding, but after three years of meetings, nothing has been done and conditions will only deteriorate. After the January 2009 meeting, when the government once again failed to bring a concrete plan, it became clear that the round table was just another one of the B.C. Liberal government's broken promises.

Not even a month later, the government brought forward a new budget that completely ignored class-size concerns and support for children with special needs. The Liberals then tried to spin that the education budget was protected. However, the 1.26-per-cent increase to public education is less than inflation. It will not cover salary increases or rising costs like transportation and utilities. In addition, 34 school districts have had their budgets frozen.

Those districts are spread out across the province, and they include North Vancouver, Quesnel, Kamloops and Prince George. Students, teachers and parents should brace for more cuts when the 2009-10 school year begins.

This government tries to blame declining enrolment for all the problems, but it is the one that moved to a per-student funding formula that ignores regional differences. The declining enrolment argument becomes hollow when you look at two key facts.

First, the government's own data show kindergarten enrolment is back on the rise. … Second, school districts like Surrey have had increasing enrolment since this government came to power, but that district has been forced to make significant cuts. This year, Surrey is facing a $7-million shortfall because government funding has not kept pace with downloaded costs.

On his blog, Keven Elder, president of the B.C. School Superintendents Association and superintendent of the Saanich school district, has said there will be "necessary and dramatic cuts." His district is facing a $3.6-million shortfall because of this government's underfunding. Other communities, including Vancouver, are facing similar shortfalls. There will be cuts.

Since 2002, the government has forced the closure of 177 schools. Will B.C. lose more schools? Will the waiting list for children needing special needs assessment and support get longer? Will school districts be forced to close more libraries and cut even more special education assistants? ….

B.C. also has the worst child poverty rate in the country, and during times of economic difficulty, poor families get hit the hardest. Already one in five students lives in poverty. B.C.'s teachers see the impact of that poverty in our classrooms every day, but there were no specific targets in the 2009 budget to reduce child poverty.

…Our public education system can't afford more cuts, but that is exactly what will happen in September unless teachers and the public speak out.