November 3, 2009

The Journal Pioneer

Editor,

It stuns me that a program such as the passport to employment program would be considered a viable solution to both the shortage of Early Childhood Educators on Prince Edward Island due to the move to full-day kindergarten and the shortage of qualified staff to work with young children who have been diagnosed with autism.

Clearly it is time for the P.E.I. government to rethink many of the approaches that are being made with respect to Island children.

The policies, decisions and actions of the P.E.I. government are no longer even remotely close to acceptable. Suggesting that people with four weeks of training is a quality solution to educator shortages in the fields of early learning and early intervention is ridiculous.

Yet somehow these programs were allowed to move forward. Even worse; they have been viewed by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development as a viable option to addressing staffing shortages and to supporting Island families.

I ask this: How much does the future of Island children really matter? Does the future of Prince Edward Island even matter?

If children were truly valued on Prince Edward Island then we would be seeing sound and strategic decisions being made and implemented. Quite plainly, Island families and children are being put at risk due to the bureaucratic carelessness and inappropriate policy decisions.It appears that many of these policies are being made up as we go along. Solutions are being implemented based on desperation, not research, best practice or long-term strategy.

Prince Edward Island needs a comprehensive, broad based early childhood development strategy for all young children. Prince Edward Island needs an autism strategy. We need this today, not tomorrow.

We are getting to the tipping point on these issues. Islanders recognize that children are our future and will no longer be tolerant of policy decisions and programs that are clearly not in the best interests of children and families.

Please contact your MLA today and voice your concern. The future of Prince Edward Island deserves much, much better than this.

Jane Boyd, President,
Parents for Choice Quality Society,

via www.journalpioneer.com

The following information has been posted on the Government of BC website:

As Government announced in the 2009 Speech from the Throne, British
Columbia is making full day kindergarten available to all
five-year-olds in the province.

Schools have offered half day kindergarten for years.  Many schools
have also offered full day programs for specific groups of children; it
has been up to boards of education or individual schools to decide
whether to include full day kindergarten in their education programs.

Now,
the Ministry of Education is phasing in universal access over 2 years.
Full day kindergarten will be available for up to half of B.C.’s
eligible students in September 2010. By September 2011, full day
kindergarten will be available across the province. It is still up to
parents to decide whether to enrol their children in kindergarten, but
by the 2011/12 school year it will be available to all who want it.

On
October 2, 2009, the Ministry of Education held a forum for education
stakeholders to discuss the implementation of universal full day
kindergarten in British Columbia. A summary of the discussions and ideas is available online.

When are children eligible for kindergarten in British Columbia?

• Children
  who reach their 5th birthday within a calendar year are eligible to
  enrol in kindergarten in September of that year. For example, a child
  whose birthday is between January 1 and December 31, 2010, can enrol in
  September 2010 in kindergarten.

Do children have to go to kindergarten?

• It’s
  up to the parents or guardians. Kindergarten is optional in British
  Columbia. This will not change with the availability of universal full
  day kindergarten. Parents can choose to enrol a child in kindergarten
  in September of a given year if the child’s 5th birthday is in that
  calendar year. Or parents can wait until the next year, in which their
  children turn 6, to enrol them in Grade 1, in September of that year.
  Parents are encouraged to discuss enrolment with their local school
  district.

Don’t some students already go to full day kindergarten?

• Yes,
  but only in communities where boards of education or independent
  schools offer it. The Ministry has funded kindergarten for certain
  groups –children with special needs, those whose first language is not
  English and Aboriginal students – but again, only when boards or
  schools have chosen to offer it.

  The Province’s new policy will make full day kindergarten available to
  all children, not only those currently funded groups. Boards of
  education and independent school authorities will be required to offer
  full day programs to all kindergarten-eligible children by September 1,
  2011.

Who decides where full day kindergarten will be available in the first year?

• Boards
  of education and independent school authorities will advise the
  Ministry which schools are ready to offer full day kindergarten
  programming in September 2010. The Ministry will use the information
  districts submit to determine where full day kindergarten will expand
  first.

  As a result, some schools in your
  community will offer full day kindergarten in the fall of 2010, and
  others not until the following year. The Province aims to offer full
  day kindergarten to everyone by 2011.

The
Ministry has asked boards and schools to think about a range of
possible considerations as they plan for Year One including:

• recruiting kindergarten teachers
• using available space for program expansion, including re-organizing the current use of classrooms and schools as needed

What if school districts do not have enough space for all their kindergarten students?

• The
  Ministry expects schools to use surplus classrooms for kindergarten
  expansion. They are also expected to preserve StrongStart BC programs
  and existing child care programs that use school space, as these are
  also important to early learning.

  The Ministry is working closely with school districts regarding space
  requirements for Year One, but cannot currently provide any new capital
  funding to build or purchase new classrooms. The Ministry has initiated
  an analysis of capital needs for full implementation in the second year
  of expansion (2011/12).

What if school districts don’t have enough teachers for full day kindergarten?

• The
  Ministry and the British Columbia Public School Employers’ Association
  are working together to provide support and tools to help meet
  recruitment needs.

How will full day kindergarten be funded?

• Schools
  are funded on a per-pupil basis.  Half day kindergarten is funded at
  half the basic full-time student allotment. Full day kindergarten is
  funded at the basic full time student allotment, or twice as much as
  the half-day kindergarten rate.

  Government has committed $151 million over two years in support of full day kindergarten.

  Plans are underway to address the need for resources, such as furniture
  and equipment, in classrooms that have not been used for kindergarten
  before.

When and how will we know which schools will have full day kindergarten in September 2010?

• Many
  school districts have been discussing and even planning activities
  since February 2008, when government initially announced it was
  studying the feasibility of full day kindergarten.

  Boards of
  education and independent schools were asked to submit proposals for
  the first year of expansion. Decisions should be made by the end of
  2009, in time for kindergarten registration early in 2010.

  Educators and parents who want to know about implementation in their
  district should contact boards of education or independent school
  authorities.

Where can I find information about the benefits of full day kindergarten?

• The Early Childhood Learning Agency report
  (PDF, 107KB) on the feasibility of expanding early learning in British
  Columbia provides information on the importance of quality kindergarten
  and pre-kindergarten, and includes research associated with these
  findings.

Will there be new curriculum for full day kindergarten?

• A
  longer instructional day will enable kindergarten teachers to provide
  more opportunities for learning and success. The expanded kindergarten
  program will be play-based and designed to address all areas of child
  development: physical, social, emotional, language and cognitive.

  The current Prescribed Learning Outcomes (PLOs) for kindergarten (PDF, 650KB) will remain in place for full day kindergarten.

  The ideas contained in the Primary Program: A Framework for Teaching
  (PDF, 4.6MB) will support teachers in designing and delivering full day
  kindergarten programs. The Primary Program reflects an understanding
  that children learn through active engagement and play.

  Note: The Primary Program document does not refer to the most current
  PLOs; an up-to-date listing is available at:
  www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/grkcurric_req.pdf (PDF, 650KB).