Advocate The

www.surreyteachers.org

LOOK FOR BARGAINING BULLETIN Coming soon to your school!

Dear Minister MacDiarmid,

Re: Overcrowding at Surrey schools As you are aware, there is currently serious overcrowding at several Surrey schools. Recently, media attention has highlighted overcrowding at two secondary schools. However, the problem is prevalent at elementary and secondary schools across the district. We are writing to request the Ministry of Education’s assistance with resolving this critical issue for our students and our community. The Ministry of Education must commit to fully funding the Surrey School District’s capital needs. The district requires several new elementary and secondary schools to accommodate the growth in student population. We also require additions at two secondary schools. These needs are immediate and pressing. We urge the Ministry to take action. These schools are needed today, but we understand that construction may take several years. In the meantime, the Ministry must also commit to funding a short term solution for these students. Surrey needs funding for additional portable classrooms to accommodate the student population until new schools can be built. The implementation of full day kindergarten at Surrey schools will require some of the district’s existing portable classrooms. Several school sites are already well beyond capacity. Notably, Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary and Earl Marriott Secondary are twenty percent over-capacity. Kwantlen Park Secondary and Sullivan Heights Secondary are also overfull. Surrey, as a growing school district, is in a unique position. The Ministry must address our needs. This two-part plan would lessen the overall impact on the school community and ensure that the impact on the education of students, in the meantime, is minimized. That is why we see only a solution where both the short term and long term needs are addressed. Yours truly, Denise Moffatt President Surrey Teachers’ Association

March 10, 2011 In this issue: • Leadership in Education? NDP candidates in their

words • Continue to boycott FSA marking • College News • ED Camp Vancouver 2011 • Transfer timelines • Surrey Children’s Festival • Character Education for the digital age • Letters to the editor • Prevention and remediation of mould contamination • Anti-Poverty Ad Hoc Committee

Denise Moffatt STA President

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As you are aware, the NDP is also in a leadership race. Do you know where these contenders stand on education? Here are some snipits from the media Adrian Dix Adrian was the executive director for Canadian Parents for French, BC-Yukon Branch, a non-profit organization promoting language education. Dix led the successful fight to save Sir Guy Carleton and other Vancouver schools from closure due to provincial education funding shortfalls. “The Fraser Institute’s annual school rankings draws attention once again to how the Foundation Skills Assessment test is no longer useful and needs to be replaced. We need to develop a comprehensive approach, which incorporates teachers’ daily observations in the classroom, and then provides schools the necessary resources needed to help students.” Mike Farnworth [Proposed] to strike a provincial commission on education for the 21st Century. “We need to move past buzzwords and haphazard policies, and bring the experts together,” says Farnworth. “The goal of the commission will be to provide both short-term fixes and a long-term vision for BC’s education system.” Farnworth says there are six key themes the commission would address: 1. Funding, fees, and affordability; 2. Class size, class composition,

and the role of assessment; 3. Changing technology and its

role in learning; 4. Connecting early learning to the

K-12 system; 5. Ensuring young graduates can

access the post-secondary, skills, or training program of their choice; and,

6. Preparing students for the realities of modern life and careers.

“We know that education is key to unlocking BC’s full potential, but the BC Liberals have spent their time in office focused on cutbacks, not strategy,” said Farnworth. Farnworth notes that education commission will not prevent his government f rom making immediate inves tments in education. “Educators and school districts have been telling the BC Liberals for a decade that the system is underfunded,” said Farnworth. “We need to provide Boards of Education with adequate, stable, and predictable funding so that they can meet the needs of students.” John Horgan Former Education Critic “I am also pleased that a champion for public education like Larry Hayes is backing my bid.” John genuinely cares about people and makes them feel listened to. I am confident that he will help us ensure that the public

education system has the resources to allow every learner to be the best that they can be,” said Hayes. Dana Larson “Our public assets for the Common Good. BC Hydro, BC Rail, BC Ferries and our public schools all belong to the people of our province.” “I propose a modest income tax increase for the top 0.6% of earners. Income over $250,000 would have an additional 11% tax. This would generate $1.3 billion annually, covering the remainder of BC's deficit and leaving $500 million for investment in education.” Nicholas Simons “Post secondary education should be available for all who wish and are eligible to attend.” and “Stable government funding will enable BC’s post-secondary institutions to support continued improvements in their respective t e a c h i n g a n d l e a r n i n g environments.” “It is crucial that provincial allocations to boards of education reflect provincial settlements and true costs so that past funding shortfalls are rectified. I am incredibly distressed by the constant stresses created by the nickeling and diming boards of e d u c a t i o n h a v e b e c o m e preoccupied with because of inadequate provincial funding.”

LEADERSHIP IN EDUCATION? NDP CANDIDATES IN THEIR WORDS

Educators and school districts have been telling the BC Liberals for a decade that the system is underfunded

At a recent New West District Labour Council, four candidates spoke about the importance of supporting the public education system. (Nicholas Simons was absent.)

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Marking and scoring must be completed by March 18, 2011 and individual results, including the test booklet, must be sent home to parents by March 31, 2011. We are asking you to Just Say No to Marking FSAs! BC teachers have taken the position that FSA testing should be administered on a random basis or eliminated. The BCTF has raised teachers’ concerns about the FSA with the ministry, education organizations, the academic community, parents, and the general public. The campaign has included information about the professional and ethical concerns r egard ing FSAs and has encouraged parents to withdraw their children from FSA tests. Part of the campaign is to advise teachers not to volunteer to mark FSA tests.

You may be offered release time, a day off or extra pay to mark the FSA tests locally this year. But there are good arguments for not accepting these offers: 1.Volunteering to mark FSA

undermines the collective efforts of your colleagues to persuade the government to eliminate, or significantly change, the FSA program.

2.Marking FSA produces results that are misused by the Fraser Institute to create their annual ranking of BC schools. These rankings have been condemned by many educational partner organizations and discredited by educational researchers.

3.Marking FSA produces data for American-style accountability schemes.

4.Marking the FSA involves you in marking processes that are the

subject of serious professional concerns. The ministry no longer provides time to do double marking of the open-ended writing tasks. A single marking of open-ended writing tasks is a very low marking standard and will reduce the reliability of the results. In addition, the ministry estimates a marking time of 10 minutes per student booklet. That’s only 10 minutes, on average, to mark one open-ended reading question, one short piece of writing, one longer piece of writing, and two open-ended numeracy questions.

Charlie King resigns Resignation/by-election The public council meeting started with elected councillor King moving to amend the agenda to add that the registrar provide full information on the three certification cases cited in the Avison report. Councillor King articulated that the Avison report casts aspersions on the college and the council had an obligation to i n v e s t i g a t e . W h e n t h e recommendation failed, councillor King made a statement that he was being prevented from carrying out his oath of office, and that in good conscience, he could not serve as a member of the council, and he resigned effective immediately.

Budget/fee 2011–12 Prior to the February public council meeting there was an agreement to set the fee and address the budget at the March 2011 council meeting. An attempt to increase the college fee for 2011−12 from $90 to $110 was moved by appointed councilor DeRose, and supported by elected councillors Walker and Grain. As the council had an agreement to address the fee at the March meeting, they had not engaged in any discussions of the budget proposed by the staff. The motion to vote on the recommendation b e f o r e t h e l u n c h b r e a k failed. Many elected council members raised concerns about the future of the college, the size of the contingency fund, and the fact that council had not examined

the proposed draft budget. After going into committee to receive legal advice, the college moved the fee discussions to the April 2011 meeting. Two additional staff positions were approved by the council. An

amendment to increase staff by four was defeated. The proposed guidelines for the newly created general contingency fund were referred back to the finance subcommittee for report back to the next meeting.

CONTINUE TO BOYCOTT FSA MARKING

College News

Si vous souhaitez soumettre un article en français au sujet de l'enseignement à Surrey, il nous fera plaisir de l'inclure dans l'Advocate

An attempt to increase the college fee for 2011−12 from $90 to $110 was moved

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ENT I recently attended the 22

annual WCET (WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies) conference in S a n D i e g o o n t h e International professional development fund. The conference was held over 5 days and included many sessions on e-learning, using technology to enhance learning, innovation vs. repetition, to name a few. As an industry, distributed learning is experiencing a high demand as students look for a flexible learning format. It is estimated that over 70% of today’s college/university students (US based) are over 22 and are balancing part-time work and

family commitments. What do students want from an online course? I attended this session and was quite surprised by the data. Students want a lot of short assessments with multiple attempts (like an athlete who trains by repetition). They also want more discussion time with other classmates (as well as the instructor) to help synthesize content/meaning. Video sessions with the ability to view multiple times. The list is quite long and specific. Speakers included people like Mark Millron, from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Rhonda Epper, Chair, WCET. There

were poster sessions, daily tweets, email stations, group dinners (the food was excellent) , and many giveaways. Overall, this is one of the best conferences I have ever attended. I want to thank the Surrey Teachers’ Association for the opportunity to attend the conference and would highly recommend the future WCET events to others involved in distributed learning.

Dwight Siebert, Mathematics Teacher

Earl Marriott Secondary

If you are interested in presenting at the BC Teachers of English Language Arts Conference, which will be held at Johnston Heights Secondary on the October PSA day, please contact Shelley Moore at smoore@sd38.bc.ca for an application.

INTERNATIONAL LOTTERY WINNER

To be held on April 15 –16, 2011, at the Radisson Hotel Vancouver Airport in Richmond. This conference will focus on emerging social and human rights issues in o u r s c h o o l s a n d communities. Topics will include Aboriginal issues, peace, antipoverty, women’s rights, env i ronmenta l i s sues , antiracism, international issues, and many more. While the conference is of special interest to social

justice contacts, Aboriginal education contacts, BCTF social justice and Aboriginal e d u c a t i o n w o r k s h o p facilitators, and Social Justice 12 teachers, it is open to all teachers and members of community groups. Workshops, networking, and strategy sessions. For more information, go to bctf.ca.

BCTF SOCIAL JUSTICE CONFERENCE

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Registration for the Surrey Teachers’ Association May 6, 2011 Convention will open soon. This year we have three sites to offer options for your Professional Development needs. We are pleased to work with SFU Surrey to host the main Secondary convention. Queen Elizabeth Secondary will host specialty and all day workshops requiring labs and the gymnasium. Lord Tweedsmuir Secondary is h o s t i n g t h e E l e m e n t a r y convention. The three keynote speakers include: Paul Shaker is a career educator who has served as teacher, teacher educator, and dean internationally

and in Canada at Simon Fraser U n i v e r s i t y , where he is p r o f e s s o r emeritus and immediate past dean.

An alumnus of Ohio State, Shaker has sought to advance the progressive legacy in public schools and higher education through scholarship, leadership, and media activism. He has

developed independently funded projects such as Friends of Simon, an outreach to immigrant and refugee children that provides university students as after school tutors. Shaker also hosts Your Education Matters, a television program widely cablecast in British Columbia that is a venue for qualified educators to speak on

t h e i r p r o f e s s i o n (www.youreducationmatters.ca). Shaker has been honored for his leadership by the Association of BC Deans of Education, and the BC Teachers Federation. He has been particularly active in defending the professional integrity of educators and their institutions against abuses in accountability and through so-called market reforms. Shaker advocates for evaluation that is comprehensive and analytic, drawing on developmental and depth psychological perspectives. He works toward education renewal that honors the democratic social contract at the heart of our public schools. See his work at www.paulshaker.com. Ken Clarkson has been married 35 years, father of two, grandfather of two. He has 33 years teaching K - 7 experience i n c l u d i n g : Coquitlam (1), S u r r e y ( 1 1 ) , Scotland(1) and Maple Ridge(20). During his teaching career, 20 years were as staff rep and at least 12 years on MRTA executive including professional development and convention chair, communications representative, and BCTF Local Representative. In June 2008, he retired from teaching but then ran and was elected as School Trustee in Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows in Nov 2008. Currently serving as Board Chair. Ken will bring a perspective of what is happening in education currently through the lens of his wealth of experience teaching and

supporting teachers. Most recently his board passed the following motion: That the board support the expansion of bargaining on a local level and that the board direct staff to meet with the MRTA early in March to explore local bargaining protocols.

They went further and also passed a motion urging the BCTF and BCPSEA to get on with expanding the scope of local bargaining and to submitting this letter to all other school districts to encourage the same. Laura Thomas is a writer, parent and professional children's storyteller. As Agent Story, Laura leads audiences on theme-based, interactive storytelling missions tha t promote literacy, reinforce c u r r i c u l u m objectives and encourage the p r a c t i c e o f storytelling at home and in the classroom. Laura also works with elementary schools as writer-in-residence and mentors writers and storytellers of all ages both live and on the web. Laura is also the writer, director, producer and star of Money and Me with Agent Story, a YouTube show that introduces children (K-7) to the basic vocabulary of finance. For more information please visit www.agentstory.net. You can follow Laura on Twitter as “AgentStory.”

SURREY TEACHERS’ ASSOCIATION CONVENTION MAY 6, 2011

He has been particularly active in defending the professional integrity of educators

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WHEN IS A PORTABLE NOT A PORTABLE? a) when it is called a modular b) when the cost is double c) when it still doesn't come with a washroom d) when it doesn't have internet e) when it is designed to fit together with others but doesn't f) all of the above

TRANSFER TIMELINES FOR 2011 –2012

March 31 Deadline for applications for long term leave for September 2011

April 4 through April 11 Entitlements, Assignment of teachers, Staff Committee Consultations, Internal re-assignment opportunities, postings to Human Resources, Forced transfers if necessary

ROUND 1 April 19 Tuesday Catalogue available on-line April 26 Tuesday Applications close at 4:00 p.m. May 3 Tuesday Positions awarded May 16 Monday Closed Report available on-line May 20 Friday Closed Report in schools

ROUND 2 May 31 Tuesday Catalogue available on-line June 07 Tuesday Applications close at 4:00 p.m. June 14 Tuesday Positions awarded June 24 Friday Closed Report available on-line June 27 Monday Closed Report in schools “Round 3” – ongoing staffing process including placements, recalls, Special Bulletins and Regular Staff Bulletins for the 2011-2012 school year.

Looking back in Surrey Teachers’ Association History The STA Convention is very, very old. I went to school in this province, beginning grade one in September of 1950, and there was a "Teachers' Convention" that year and every other year in Chilliwack District, where I attended school. I believe other districts held conventions on the same day as District 33 did, because I also recall a Norris cartoon from long ago that satirized the types of people at Teachers' Conventions. The STA Convention was well-established when I began teaching here in September of 1967, because I remember talking to other teachers about it. The usual convention format was a compulsory sign-in, followed by a morning of milling about looking at publishers' displays and other wares, like maps, globes and charts offered by Rand McNally and other makers, and then an afternoon of speakers on various arcane topics that interested no one. I recall a Surrey Convention held at UBC, probably in the spring of 1968. We had to sign in at the front doors of the UBC Armoury, and we could not leave! The whole Armoury was a warren of publishers' tables and other displays. Having recently attended UBC, I knew that one could get out the back doors, so I worked my way back there. Oops. Sitting tilted back on an old wooden chair against the double doors, arms crossed, and glaring, was Murray Sandford, Director of Instruction, Secondary, glaring at anyone who approached. (The superintendent was Earl Marriott, a gentle, benign man, but real power was wielded by Sandford, a former principal of Semiahmoo, and Jack Beech, who was, I believe, Director of Instruction, Elementary.) After some time, we were allowed out and went up to the Education Building (now called the Scarfe, after Dean Scarfe) for speakers, and the crowd thinned very significantly.

Printed with permission of Fred Calhoun

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ED CAMP VANCOUVER 2011

STA NEW TEACHERS’ CONFERENCE AT BEAR CREEK PAVILION

February 3, 2011, twelve new Surrey teachers attended the second Surrey Teachers’ Association New Teachers’ Conference this school year. These conferences are an opportunity for new teachers to learn more about resources available in Surrey, rights as members of the Surrey Teachers' Association, induction into the BCTF and receive a free Provincial Specialist Association (PSA) membership.

One forum that enables educators to engage in meaningful and re levant profess ional development is the Edcamp model. We are excited to announce that the popular Edcamp model of professional development is coming to Vancouver. We have a vision for what professional development can look like. This vision is driven by a movement which started in the United States and could transform professional development for teachers. We would like to take the best part of conferences, which in our opinion are the conversations between the attendees, and turn these into the focus of the conference. We will still have

presentations but the process for setting up who presents will be more democratic and the presentations will be more interactive than a typical conference. We would like everyone to be expected to share what they know. We would like to run a conference for everyone interested in education. Our conference will include students, parents, teachers, adminis t ra tors , professors , graduate students, media, and anyone who feels they have something to share about education in today's world. The theme for this year is Creating Connections so this is not a technology conference, or a teacher conference, it is a

conference about creat ing connections in education. This year’s Edcamp Vancouver will be held on April 16th, 2011, at John Oliver Secondary in Vancouver. For more information, please visit the website at http://edcampvancouver.org

Special General Meeting Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Eaglequest Coyote Creek Golf Centre

7778 - 152th Street, Surrey 4:00 pm

Agenda items:  • Election  ­  to  elect  2 members  to  attend  the 

Canadian Labour Congress Convention May 9 ­ 13, 2011. 

• Amendment to STA Budget: THAT  the Convention budget be  increased by $25,000  with  $5,000  coming  from  the Contingency  Fund,  $15,000  from  the  New Teachers budget, $1,000  from  the Food Bank Fair  Start  budget,  $3,000  from  the  Officer Expenses budget,  and  $1,000  from  the Union Education Training Fund. 

• Bargaining Update • THAT  the  Surrey  Counsellor's Association  be 

recognized  as  Local  Specialist  Association  of the Surrey Teachers' Association. 

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Report card season. I’m bored and searching for distraction as I punch in the term’s PLOs. Skimming the Fine Arts section, I daydream of spring field trips and look forward to our yearly visit to the Surrey Children’s Festival. What shall we see this year? I’ve heard that the “Story of Faces” is fantastic. One woman, Horta Van Hoye (from Quebec), begins the show with only a length of newsprint and some rubber bands and clothespins. She proceeds to create and animate a cast of giant characters on stage. Then there’s the Scottish production of “The Man Who Planted Trees”, the classic environmental tale. The British Theatre Guide describes it as an “… extremely entertaining, enchanting piece of theatre for children and adults”. That looks great, too. Maybe our buddy class would like to see Charlotte Diamond or Ann Glover and we’ll meet up later to eat lunch and build clay pieces for the massive

community sculpture table. Then my students can roam and take part in all the other onsite activities. Learning stilt walking and juggling are always favourites and this year I’m looking forward to meeting “Cirque Surrey”, a new student performing troupe from Kwantlen Park Secondary, who’ll teach on site. We’ll finish the day listening to live music at the community stage. This will be my fifth year attending the festival with classes. For the princely sum of $8.00 per s tuden t , we’ l l a t t end an i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y a c c l a i m e d performance, try walking on stilts, have our faces painted, and revel in the ambiance of a day in the arts. Fabulous. All in Bear Creek Park, no need to even leave Surrey. This year, join me at the Festival and get active in the arts. For complete information and to request study guides and library links to related resource materials, or to purchase tickets and

wristbands, head to the newly l a u n c h e d w e b s i t e a t www.surreychildrensfestival.ca. or phone the box office at 604 501 5566.

THE SURREY CHILDREN’S FESTIVAL- MAR 26-28 AT BEAR CREEK PARK THIS SPRING PUMP UP YOUR ACTIVITY LEVEL, GET ACTIVE IN THE ARTS

Jason Ohler Excerpt from “Should we teach our kids to have two lives, or one?” Our current technological trajectory promises unfathomable, roller-coaster innovation with no braking system. While the ride is exciting, it moves so quickly that we typically don't have time to th ink about the poss ible

unintended consequences that might accompany it. The result is that we find ourselves unable to effectively respond to hot-button issues like cyberbullying and sexting because they seem to come out of nowhere. Our challenge is to find ways to teach our children how to navigate the rapidly moving digital present, consciously and reflectively. How

we meet this challenge depends on how we address the following fundamental question about teaching our digital-age children: Should we teach our children as though they have two lives, or one? More http://ow.ly/3On3S Jason Ohler has been a keynote speaker for CUEBC and CUE-Surrey.

CHARACTER EDUCATION FOR THE DIGITAL AGE

From a classroom teacher

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Here are my views on working in the Clayton Elementary Library Portable The Library should be the "heart of the school," the centre for literacy and the place to nurture a love of reading, but when the Library is in a portable, the school's heart is in need of life support. To get to their school Library, students must walk outside in all weather, without cover, through puddles, and across gravel and wet leaves that get tracked into the portable. Once inside the door they are assaulted by the foul, noxious stench of dampness, mold, rot, dust and old carpet on both the floor and walls. The lighting is inadequate, and the corner with the Picture Book area is very dark. It is bad enough for a 40 minute prep class, but as the Teacher-Librarian this is my workplace for the day. I keep the door open in all weather because without fresh air I start to cough. The Air Quality has been tested and deemed acceptable by people who don't work here. When teachers need resources to support their teaching, they wait to talk to me when I come into the main building, or leave a note in my mailbox, rather

than come out across the gravel in the rain or snow to see what is on the shelves. It is a chore for students and teachers to get to the Library portable; it is time-consuming, uncomfortable, and unpleasant when you get there. As the heart of the school, this Library portable is very sick.

Lesley C. Johnson, Teacher-Librarian

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Why do we have an elected school board if they only act as apologists for the provincial education ministry? It sounds good that they are looking for consensus, but who is looking out for Surrey? Education budgets have not kept up to inflation, yet our school board is silent, or only offers up a whimper. When faced with cuts and rollbacks of public education, we only hear about opposition from the Vancouver Board of Education. Our Surrey school trustees should be advocates for public schools, not representatives of the provincial government. When class size limits were first negotiated in Surrey, district wide averages were above those same limits. We have lost much

of our adult continuing education programs in the district. We are increasingly locked out of school grounds and facilities. We have growing numbers of students who face years in portables. We should have twice the number of post-secondary seats than we do. Students pay more tuition than corporations pay tax. We need school trustees to stand-up for Surrey students and their parents. If trustees have lost their willingness to fight to improve and enhance public education, they should step down. Grandfather rights for our incumbent trustees are not good enough for Surrey. The trustees call for political peace i s very se l f - se rv ing and undemocratic. The public should be forgiven when they believe politicians are all the same, - only interested in their own re-election.

Pat O’Connor

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:

Teacher assistants work under the general direction of a teacher in the school, and under the supervision of the principal/vice-principal. Teacher assistants are supervised in regard to the employment relationship (e.g., evaluation reports, discipline) by the principal/vice-principal, not the teacher with whom the teacher

assistants work. The roles of both teachers and teacher assistants are integral to ensuring the success of students with special needs. This joint paper makes it clear that BCTF and CUPE BC have a fundamental role to play in supporting the development of good working relationships at the school level. It

should assist collegial teams at the local level to continue to develop working relationships and to address conflicts that may arise. The full document is available at http://bctf.ca/uploadedFiles/P u b l i c / I s s u e s / I n c l u s i v e E d /RolesAndResponsibilitiesTeachersTAs.pdf

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF TEACHERS AND TEACHER ASSISTANTS/EDUCATION ASSISTANTS

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Students at Panorama Park Elementary School raised more than $2,265 to help fund cures for cancer and provide help and hope to thousands of patients and their families, through the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada’s (LLSC) Pennies for Patients program. For three weeks, students collected spare change, gathered support of family members and the community in their efforts to raise funds. One student brought in over $150 alone. The program is especially

touching for the school, as two of their classmates are currently undergoing cancer treatment. The Society would like to thank the students and staff of Panorama Park for their enthusiasm, the leadership team for embracing the program, Principal Lam and Ms. Duncan for their leadership and the community and families of Surrey for their generosity and support of the LLSC to fund research and support programs for families affected by blood cancer.

The LLSC School & Youth program, Pennies for Patients is designed to teach children the value of community service in a fun way. For more information on LLSC’s School & Youth Program, please visit www.schoolandyouth.org/canada or call (866) 600-0567 to register. Jenny Soukphamuong S c h o o l & Y o u t h P r o g r a m Coordinator

PENNIES FOR PATIENTS PROGRAM

PREVENTION AND REMEDIATION OF MOULD CONTAMINATION Many schools complain of moisture problems. Moisture is an essential condition for mould growth. A primary objective in all mould remediation is to identify the sources or causes of moisture and eliminate or control them. Evidence suggests that flooding for periods as brief as 48 hours can lead to mould problems. Other possible sources of moisture are condensation and building leaks. Once moisture is brought under control, remediation activities can commence. The person responsible for remediation will need to use professional judgment and experience to adapt the guidelines to determine mould removal. In cases where a particular toxic mould species has been identified or is suspected, when extensive hidden mould is expected (such as behind vinyl wallpaper or in a ventilation system), or when the chances of the mould becoming airborne are estimated to be high, a more cautious or conservative approach to remediation should be considered. A health and safety professional with training and experience in conducting mould investigations and developing safe work procedures should be consulted in these circumstances. Please contact the Surrey Teachers’ Association to request the BCTF Indoor Air Quality Booklet.

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Tammy Neuman, Teacher at Boundary Park Elem. There are children living in poverty throughout Surrey. As teachers we all need to be aware. According to the 2006 census, 15.6% of families and 23.2% of children under the age of 6 in Surrey lived in poverty. There are 120 Public Elementary and Secondary Schools in the Surrey School District. Thirty-two of these schools have the official designation of "Inner-City." The District Superintendent’s office acknowledges that there are other schools in similar circumstances that have not technically met the designation criteria as Inner-City. As well, there are many schools that are situated in middle to higher income areas which have children who come from low income families. This means that it is likely in one quarter of our schools that a high number of our children attend school without having had a decent breakfast or an adequate environment to do their homework. It is not too difficult to spot the child from an impoverished home, if the school is assigned “Inner-City” status. Eighty-six schools in Surrey who do not qualify for this designation also have children who come from low income homes. It is incumbent upon us, as teachers to recognize these students in our own classrooms so

that we are better able to understand their needs. Possible indicators to help us identify these children include: · Often absent or late.

Consider that the older child may be responsible for ensuring their younger sibling arrives to school.

· Often moves. The family who lives below the poverty line often lives in rental housing and it may be difficult t o f i n d s u i t a b l e accommodation or may face frequent eviction.

· Incomplete homework. Bear in mind that the family that lives in poverty may not have a quiet space in their home to study.

· Lack of attention to grooming Unclean hair, teeth and clothes may indicate that the student is reacting to the perceived futility of his/her situation.

· Food issues. The younger child may devour food whereas the older child may try to hide their poverty from friends by throwing food away.

· Relationship with the Teacher. If a student is very quick to introduce him/herself to you at the beginning of a new year this may indicate this child is eager to develop trusting and stable relationships.

· Toys and other items gone missing. A child who has few toys at home may covet classroom toys or other items belonging to classmates.

A few questions can help you determine which students in your class live close to the poverty line: · Ask the class “If you found

$100 and failed to find the owner, what would you do with the money?” The child who lives without extras would often want to spend the money immediately and in, what some would feel, a frivolous manner, e.g. rather than saving for a bike s/he would opt for candy.

· Ask the class “Who is most important in your life?” If the answer is, for example, their little brother or their dog, alarm bells should sound, because every child needs important adults in their life.

· Ask the students to write their “Future Story: Where will you be and what will you be doing 10 years from now?” The student who is living in poverty is less likely to see the vast possibilities a well-to-do student imagines.

Please watch for the article in the next issue of the Advocate on how to “poverty-proof” your classroom.

ANTI-POVERTY AD-HOC COMMITTEE

Did you know? • that the average compensation of Canada’s best-paid 100

CEOs in 2009 was 94 times the average salary of a teacher in BC? Or,

• that while 1 in 10 Canadian children live in poverty, among all of the provinces BC has the highest rate of child poverty.

• one in 5 children in this province live in poverty.

The semi-finalists for the 2011 national anti-racism video contest are posted on www.youtube.com/march21mars. Please view these and vote for your favourites. The STA Aboriginal Ad-hoc Committee would like to request that teachers consider entering this contest for 2012. Entries will have to be prepared before December of 2011. This contest is part of a national campaign to end racism in Canada. Students are asked to create a 45 to 60 second video sharing their thoughts on eliminating racism.

Surrey Teachers' Association Calendar - March , 2011

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5

4:00 Executive Committee STA office

4:00 AGM Delegates Bear Creek Pavilion

3:30 Mentorship

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

8:30 AGM Delegates Bear Creek Pavilion 4:00 Convention Committee STA office

International Women’s Day

4:00 Executive Committee STA office

4:00 Grievance Committee

Bottled Water Free Day

4:00 Economic Welfare Committee STA office

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 4:00

Executive meeting with committee chairperson STA office 4:00 International Solidarity Fraser Heights Sec.

4:00 Special General

Meeting Eaglequest

Coyote Creek Golf Centre

20 21 22 23 24 25 26 March 21 - International Day of elimination of racial discrimination

Schools closed for Spring Break

BCTF AGM March 19—22, Victoria

27 28 29 30 31 March 28-April 1, 2011 Local calendar closure days

Racism Stop It www.march21.gc.ca National Video Competition for Grade 4 to 12

Textile workers, all women, went on strike in New York on March 8, 1857, protesting their 12 to 14-hours workday and low wages and demanding the right to vote. It ended in a violent struggle with the police. In 1907, the strike was commemorated, with women demanding a 10-hour work day. Three years later at the International Socialist Conference, labour leader Clara Zetkin proposed March 8 become International Women’s day. In 1977, UNESCO proclaimed March 8 as the day to celebrate International Women’s Day around the world.

Sad News Sue Williams, librarian at James Ardiel and long time STARA rep. Sue was moved recently to a Delta Hospice. She has been battling a brain tumor since last Spring. If peo-ple wish to see her the hospice it is at: #115 - 1077 56th Street, Delta. Phone: 604-948-0660.