Parents In Terrace, Kitimat , Hazelton And Stewart Seek Return To 5 Day School Week

By 250 News

Terrace, B.C. - A petition is being circulated in Coast Mountains School District to return to a five day school calendar after the District initiated a program of a four day school program throughout the region.

On March 15^th ,2007 the School District  #82) approved a motion to go to a four day a week school calendar and in collaboration with the partner groups, develop implement a budget plan that will return Coast Mountains School district to a standard five day calendar as soon as practical.

Parents from throughout the region, which includes Kitimat, Hazelton, Stewart and Terrace, are circulating a petition to have the School Board return to a five day school week.

The Board had introduced the four day as a cost saving measure in the School district ,which according to reports, would save School District 82 about two per cent a year on their budget.

The Petition reads

We, the undersigned , request that the board of Education for School District #82 provide Terrace and Thorhill area schools with a 5-day a week calendar for the 2008-2009 School year. . We further request that the board do everything within its power to ensure educational services offered to students in this district are equitable to those provided to students in the rest of the province of BC.

Parents from throughout the district say  the School District needs to look to the provincial government for more funding or as one mother put it , "Get a single mum with children to show them how to make the budget work."

In the area of  Hazelton, over 350 signatures were collected to petition the School District to reinstitute 5 day classes.  Some parents say they are concerned the additional ,”holiday” a week has been leading to more partying by senior school students and may be contributing to an increase in suicides.

In the Terrace area parents say the result of the four day school week has meant many children are being left at home by themselves without supervision or parents are taking a sick day in order to be home with their kids. They say the four day week is simply not working and they fear school aged children will be the victims of a reduced education because of the new system.

The Superintendent of School District 82 , Coast Mountains School District, Rob Greenwood says the official position of the Board is that they want to return to a five day school week. "I personally would like to see District 82 return to a five day week. We are working on the budget  which was the reason we went to a four day week , we have a budget of about $49 million and still are short about $1.2 million dollars . That is our problem."

The people circulating the petition, cassiehalldpacred@telus.net and goodpeas@telus.net

 asking that people contact them to sign the petition.

Teachers say they fear a loss of education will result from the experiment in a four day school week.

The School Board has developed three possible calendars for the 2008 - 09  school year.  Public consultation meetings are  set to start in communities later this month.  Here are some of the highlights of the three options:

The Adjusted 5 day week would also see aditional days off on  October 10th, November 10th, May 15th and May 19th.

Hours of instruction for all grades are the longest on the 4 day week and shortest on the  standard  5 day week.

A special meeting of the Board will take place  Wednesday March 12th  to  make a decision on the  school calendar.

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