Realwomen of BC - Archives - February2007 - The Changing Face of Public Education

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THE REAL NEWS The R.E.A.L WOMEN of BC Newsletter February 2007, P.O. Box 39068, Point Grey RPO, Vancouver, BC V6R 4P1, Tel/Fax: 604- 463-1611, website: http://www.realwomen.bc.ca
The Changing Face of Public Education Back in June of 2006, the Ministry of Education signed an agreement with Peter Corren and Murray Corren, wherein the two homosexual activists were granted the right to create a new elective course for Grade 12 students called social justice in which the topic of sexual orientation was a focal point. The two men would also be permitted to recommend homosexual consultant organizations to review other Kindergarten to Grade 12 course material and meet with the deputy education minister on a regular basis in the earliest stage of drafting of new curricula in every subject area. The agreement was signed by the government to end a discrimination case brought by Peter Corren and Murray Corren before the BC Human Rights Tribunal claiming that school curricula in British Columbia was discriminatory toward people with sexual orientation other than heterosexuality. The two claimants wanted to see materials in the BC schools that were “gay friendly” and would teach children about the contributions to society of people from within the homosexual community. Parents and pro-family organizations were concerned that Peter Corren and Murray Corren and their recommended consultants were given an unreasonable say in the review of current curricula and the drafting of new school curricula. They demanded that parents, students, and organizations be included in the consultation and the creation of new material to ensure a balanced approach. For months now parents and organizations have been in touch with the Ministry of Education, asking for clarification of the agreement and, in particular, the alternative delivery policy that is in place. This policy allows parents to remove their children from certain classes where sensitive topics are being discussed that are against the religious/moral teaching of the parents. Some groups, such as Canadian Alliance for Social Justice and Family Values organized rallies and petitions which were signed by thousands of individuals. Concerned Parents of BC managed to meet with representatives of the Minister of Education. REAL Women of BC joined several other groups and hired a law firm, which sent several letters to the Ministry of Education requesting specific answers to the concerns outlined in the letter. After 10 weeks of waiting for a reply, the lawyer finally received a letter which was unsatisfactory as it did not answer any of our questions but just tried to placate us with meaningless phrases. Also, the Ministry of Education pointed out that it was up to the individual School Districts in British Columbia to come up with their own alternative delivery policies. Focusing on this, the Catholic Civil Rights League wrote to every school district in British Columbia asking if they would ensure that parents would continue to have the right to remove their children from classes that discuss sensitive matters. Some school districts wrote back in a favourable manner, others were not very accommodating and some did not respond at all. The School District in Abbotsford passed a motion at one of their board meetings, backing parents’ authority in education, and the Maple Ridge School District seemed to indicate in a letter that the prior right of parents to control the education of their children would be respected. The whole debate over the agreement, the power that was given to the two homosexual men, the lack of ability to have input by other groups and individuals, and the right of parents to remove children from class rooms, continues. Some groups feel that they have received some satisfactory answers from the Ministry of Education and parents would still have the right to remove their children, while other groups believe that the Ministry has simply placated the public and that ultimately, parents’ rights have been stripped away. What this means, then, is that NOW is the time to get involved in the education of your children. Know your childrens’ teachers. Know their School Principal as well. Get involved in the CPAC and the DPAC, and attend School Trustee meetings in your community if you can. If your children are no longer in school, or perhaps your grandchildren are in school now, you can also be involved at the School Trustee meetings or in the development of new curricula or regular review of currently-used curricula in all subject areas!