To the Editor,
Re: Teachers’ union wants more, but offers less back, Letters, Feb. 25.
The above letter requires a reply as Randy O’Donnell takes my position out of context.
He accused me of using politicized language then proceeds to label me an activist and a socialist. However, I am just a citizen exercising my right of free speech.
As for socialism, O’Donnell advocates public funding of private schools and laments they are not funded more.
He cites the increase in student funding to prove taxpayers are paying more, yet getting less.
Economic factors such as inflation increasingly challenge school districts trying to balance budgets.
In real terms, there has been a net decrease in funding. Liberals choose to underfund health care, courts, child welfare, and public schools resulting from overspending on the convention centre, the stadium roof but most importantly, huge corporate income tax cuts by the Liberals.
I admit that independent schools perform better on the FSA, and so they should; many private school students are privileged and face fewer of the challenges of lower socio-economic jurisdictions.
Meanwhile, public school teachers face a broad spectrum of learning disorders, which grows annually.
We are expected to accommodate the digital economy yet have no support. We are social workers, role models, coaches, caregivers and defacto police.
It is not sound policy to overburden classrooms with unmanageable numbers of special needs students; thus we bargain this collectively, something the Supreme Court acknowledged is our constitutional right.
Perhaps the constitution is too socialist for O’Donnell.
Daniel Companion
Nanaimo