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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1997-10-08, Page 28PAGE 28. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1997. St. Anne’s meeting informs students about Bill 160 By Trish Wilkinson Clinton News-Record In the midst of talks, protests and walk-outs, one group of students has taken a different approach to show their teachers support. About 400 students from St. Anne's Catholic Secondary School gave up their lunch hour Friday to hear first hand what the provincial government’s new bill, the Education Quality Improvement Act, will mean to both teachers and LDSS hosts forum On Saturday, Oct. 18 from 8 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. an historic event will lake place at Listowel District Secondary School. School Councils from Wallace, Central Eastdale and Elma Public schools and Listowel District Secondary School will host the first Huron/Perth Joint School Council Forum. School councils are a recent invention by the Government of Ontario. Due to the downsizing and amalgamation of Ontario school boards school councils were established at each school. The members of these councillors are volunteers and are made up of: six parents/guardians of students enrolled in the school, one community representative, one student (mandatory in secondary school), the principal, one teacher from school staff, one non-teaching staff member. The purpose of this joint forum 4 S to bring school councils from these two counties .together in anticipation of the amalgamation of the Huron" and Perth school boards in January. It was felt that the school councils from both counties should share information on school council activities and responsibilities, and to see how such councils operate throughout the world. The theme for the day's forum is "School Councils: a Global Perspective". Some workshops to be held in the morning will include "So You're a New Member of the School Council"; "The New Ontario Curriculum - Grades 1-8", "Anticipating Secondary School Reforms"; and "A Question/Answer session with the senior administration and Board Chairs or Vice Chairs". Teachers waiting Continued from page 6 will not back down." With continuing daily protests at Johns' constituency office, Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Feder­ ation representative for Huron John Clarke said little has happened since the federations' Friday meet­ ing with the MPP. "She was told (strike) action will be taken if Bill 160 is not with­ drawn," said Clarke. "We will wait for the outcome of the meeting Wednesday between provincial representatives and the govern­ ment." public education. "The students don't really have a lot of information behind them," Trish Jansen, co-president from the school's students' cabinet, stated. Jansen said as a cabinet, they wanted to answer questions students might have about the legislation, as well as pushing them to find out more information on the bill through the media or internet. "We want to encourage students to use their own time to find out what is going on," she said. "Without an education, we don't have a future." The meeting was held in place of a walk-out that had been organized the day before by some students. However, Jansen stated that after considerable discussion, the cabinet, principal and person in charge of the protest decided that It's Here, Canada! On Display At This RadioShack Authorized Dealer Television entertainment like you’ve never seen or heard before. Star Choice Digital Satellite TVdelivers super-sharp digital picture and sound on over 75 channels. Everybody’s looking to the Star! 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Heather Bettger, the cabinet's Minister of Social Affairs, added that until the bill is passed, the students really don't have anything to protest. "We're not saying that a walk-out is totally out of the question. However, at this point, it isn't necessary," Bettger stated to the students. Still, despite the more peaceful approach, the organizers made it quite clear that their support lay with the teachers. "Bill 160 plans to remove over $1 billion from the education system," Chauncey Brown, a St. Anne's student who has researched Bill 160, told the group. "What the ® 1996 Paramount Pictures © NBC, Credit: Chris Hasten StarChoice offers over 75 channels including: PPV channels CBC CTV-East ATV ABC East CBS East NBC East FOX East PBS East ABC West CBS West NBC West FOX West PBS West ASN City TV TSN MuchMusic CMT TNN WTBS WSBK WGN CNN Discovery Life The Learning Channel (TLC) government has failed to see is that we, the students, are the future." In his summary of the legislation, Brown talked about the bill's implementation of a longer school year, increased class sizes and the effects a cut in preparation time may have on extra curricular activities. "I believe our teachers need our support ... they need to know we support their decision, whatever that may be," he added. The students asked the cabinet questions regarding many issues, including what effect the bill would have on class sizes and about the possibility of a student petition. Gerard Creces, co-president, noted that a petition wasn’t something they had thought about, but could do, providing it didn't interfere with their school time. fa • A&E • Showcase East • Showcase West • Bravo! Canada • YTV East • YTV West • The Family Channel East • The Family Channel West • TMN-The Movie Network • Superchannel • MOVIEPIX • MovieMax • 30 24-hour digital music channels "Right now we are trying to keep education and politics separate," Creces stated, adding that is why they were having this information session at lunch. Principal Ray Contois also made note of the significance of the students having the information meeting during their own time. "The intent of this was to show the public they are interested in their classroom time and they are interested in their education," Contois said. He stated that he was very pleased with the way the student cabinet and the original protest organizer handled the situation, noting their maturity was "admirable." "They took something that might have been unruly and made into an information session," he said.