POLITICAL MEDDLING IN EDUCATION HAS DESTROYED OUR SYSTEM
The strength of our Ontario system prior to the 1970's was based on wise guidance from the Ministry, trusting local educators to adapt sound principles to local circumstances, local governance to ensure that the school and the community work harmoniously to serve the children, their families, and the community well.
Since the 1970s, the education system has been stolen from the community, taken over by the trade union mentality adopted by the teachers' federations (all about money, what is professionalism, anyway?), and big government acting like the bosses of trade unions.
The final stroke has been taken with the legislature, with the Liberals and the PCs combining to wipe out the final vestige of local governance, and the NDPers taking the side of the trade union activists. Nobody is left to give a damn for the children, the communities, the quality of the education system. Many school boards are taking their lessons from the government and ignoring the views and needs of the community. The communities care a lot but they have pretty well given up any hope of the return of sanity to the school scene.
Dalton McGuinty and the Liberals should be charged with being AWOL, but who is going to replace them? Can we really expect any thing different from the PCs who jumped into bed with Dalton on this latest grab for total centralized control of schooling? Can we expect anything different from the NDP who are on the big labour side?
It is a sad state of affairs. I hope someone comes up with a solution, but I don't think we can expect any solution from the Ontario legislature without a major change in the quality of political leadership, leadership that can put the education bureaucrats in their place.
Brock Vodden
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