A proposed motion by the South Okanagan Similkameen Teachers’ Union to add two more professional development days to the school calendar is temporarily off the table.
Assistant Superintendent of Schools Jim Insley introduced the proposal on behalf of the union at a committee meeting held at the board office in January 2014.
Insley said the union wanted to add two more ‘Pro-D’ days to the calendar while maintaining the two-week spring break.
To compensate for the time lost, the union proposed that an additional four minutes be added to every instructional day.
The school calendar currently includes five professional development days and one school-planning day. Four professional days and the one planning day occur in the summer during the last week of August.
The motion was voted down by trustees at a meeting held on March 12.
Board chairperson Marieze Tarr said she believes in the intention of pro-D days, which, she noted, is to educate teachers, but based on feedback she received from parents she felt the proposal merits more research and input.
“I believe strongly in education and in the education of our teachers, but I also believe in gathering information,” she told the board.
“Too many parents have told me that we’ve gone through too many changes. And daycare has become a huge burden for some of our families. I think it’s too early to implement more pro-d days without more consultation. But they could be beneficial later.”
Tarr recommended the board maintain the school calendar as it currently stands for the 2014/2015 year and revisit the proposal later on. In the meantime, she suggested, the board seek more input from parents and teachers while focusing on educating the public about the importance and purpose of professional development.
Trustee Myrna Coates echoed Tarr. She said she found there were too many “misconceptions” surrounding professional development days and agreed that more input from parents was necessary.
Teachers’ union president Sylvia Slater said she felt there are more learning opportunities for teachers if Pro-D days are conducted during the school year rather than during the summer months but suggested conducting an online survey to garner feedback from teachers.
Osoyoos trustee June Harrington mirrored Slater’s recommendation.
“There are some great things that can come out of having these professional development days, as long as there is accountability,” she noted.
“The time we take for these days shouldn’t interfere with the students.”
Osoyoos Secondary School principal Mike Safek addressed the group on behalf of the British Columbia Principals’ and Vice Principals’ Association (BCPVPA).
He said the association didn’t support the implementation of the additional days for the 2014/2015 calendar but felt the proposal was worth more discussion.
“We could certainly discuss it more,” he said. “We just wonder if adding four minutes per day will really benefit the students? When you add those minutes up it doesn’t balance out. I think more conversation is needed before we make a decision.”
ERIN CHRISTIE
Special to the Times
