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Home My WebLink AboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1986-10-29, Page 2PAGE 2—GODFRICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 1986 EVERYDAY AFFORDABLE Perms ........9 .......... . : ....from 66®00 haircut Only ...... ........ .' -...from `�°`� O'0 with .Shampoo..... Haircut �`�� •®® Haircut, Shampoo fror�fr and Mow Dry or het.,....... Separate Prices for Jose rater 48 East St., Goderich vin r 524-4781 WE USE THEY DON'T., Expect, a difference. .•• ... ... ......... ... .....• ... ... ... ... SSS ... .....• ••• • ...• ••• ••• •••• •••• .......••= •SSS SSS ••• ••• .•• ... •••• ••• ••• • ••• S•S •S• SSSS. SSSSS •S• •••••S• 'SSSS' S•• :SS • • photo service ltd. Education 1 Dave Kendall (left) first vice president for the Ontario Public School Teachers' Federation (OPSTF) visited Huron County recently to meet with local teachers and to discuss the underfun- ding for elementary education. Mr. Kendall and Goderieh teacher Doug Yeo (right) studied the OPSTF brief that is being presented to the provincial government. (Shelley McPhee Haist Photo) Underfunding of schools studied. By Shelley McPhee Haist The poster shows the photograph of a young boy. A question above it read "The Underfunding of Elementary Education WHY?" Below the picture another question asks, "Why am I worth $879 less?" Why is the elementary aged pupil worth less than the high school student? Why do financial inadequacies. exist in the govern- mentfunding structure for Ontario schools? When is the provincial government going to to steps to rectify the situation? These are questions being posed by members of the Ontario Public School Teachers' Federation (OPSTF) and these are the main issues being discussed by first vice president Dave Rendall as he makes his rounds throughout the province. Mr. Kendall was in Huron County last week to visit area schools, and to meet with local membersrof the teaching federation. His stop in Huron County was one of many visits he makes through Ontario each year, visiting more than .74.various districts in the province. •r,, 3r . n 1 =MA ‘o,Arig0 lf� Wool, Wool Blend and Acrylic SWEATERS An exciting selection of Bulky Knits, Patterns and Plains. Men's, Ladies' & Junior Sizes. FF 'v rrrl'///"tr�' ! •!%r :lir •r /ri .% •ig,Wl' "1/ .". /i/G%/IN 7, l��;ysi� / Am, ..... LITTLE BEAVER BROOM 2O" CURLMASTER BAUER CONCEPT CURLING SHOE Leather/Nylon Upper. Right Foot Slider/Left Foot Gripper. Unisex Sizes Reg. 459.99 Sale $1999 $4999 4/.///7 ! a, ACTON BROOMBALL PADDED SHOE With Spider Sole. Reg. $54.99 Sale LAVIOLETTE BLUE BROOM , e4 0 'mei% /46o�A We are your Complete Hockey Outfitters with Quality, Service, Selection, Price and the gest Fit Around! 41. $4499 $1099 4 The Square, Coderich ph: 524-2622 SALES & SERVICE :f0.7f,Iff .6091 We honour. VISA & MAS1[1 CARD These tours offer Mr. Kendall the oppor- In Huron County, for example, a 1984 tunity to meet with teachers, to see survey shows that elementary per pupil classrooms in operation and to discuss the costs took up 90.8 per cent of the cost of main issue of concern for his organization - operation, while at the secondary level the underfunding of elementary education. figure amounted to 86.5 per cent. Opera - Underfunding is not a new issue. From ti3nal and maintenance costs amounted to 1970 to 1985 the gap between spending ceil- 8.7 per cent at the elementary'level and 11.5 per cent at the high school level for a, dif- ference of 2.8 per cent. "Clearly," the OPSTF brief noted, • "elementary boards have, in relative terms, as great or greater costs than their secon- dary counterparts. The problem is that elementary boards are struggling from a lower base for expenditures." In 1985 financial ,statistics from Huron County saw the per pupil ceiling set at $2,448.37 and the per ,pupil expenditure at $2,599.75. Like 97 per cent of the other public elementary boards in Ontario, the 'Huron Board of Education operated over ceiling. Mr. Kendall further noted that equipment and program costs at elementary schools have risen at such a rapid rate that many schools are looking to raising additional money by holding their own fund raising drives. "We surveyed 1,600 schools and 96 per cent of them raised funds," Mr. Kendall reported. "However, it is really the board of education's responsibility to provide .the funds, to buy the equipment." He said that costs for basic educational tools and equipment has risen dramatically in the 1980s. "For library books, the cost increases over the past few years haye raised by hun- dreds of per cent. A primary textbook can cost up to $30 and in most cases the libraries suffer because there's not enough money to go round." In its plea to the government for addi- tional funding, the OPSTF has stressed that elementary costs should not be dismissed as less important than that of the secondary counterpart. Mr. Kendall said, "The elementary school is where children receive their early learning." • Laurier LaPierre in a 1977 report prepared for OPSTF further reported, "I am of the opinion that the allocation for young children should be equal to the sub- sidy provided for high school students. I see no valid reason at all why it would be lower. In fact, in many instances it would be more. The young years of a child's life are those which prepare him for the fullness 'of his life. Our resources should be placed there in a degree greater tin elsewhere." ings for elementary and secondary pupils has increased from $500 to $879. An OPSTF brief suggests that if this current rate of in- crease is allowed to continue, the gap bet- ween the ceilings will reach more than $1,000 by 1989. Mr. Kendall explained that the cost dif-- ferences between elementary and secon- dary schools were established some years ago. At.that time larger salaries were paid to highschool teachers because they re- quires nigher teaching qualifications. As well, .operational and program costs for secondary schools were set at a higher rate than that of elementary schools. Since then the scenario has significantly changed. Today not only secondary' school teaching qualifications 'demand university education, but elementary teachers must also have bachelor of arts degrees. Along with the changes_in_qualifications for elementary teachers, school buildings have developed from small one room facilities to large, modern, more complex institutions. Thus, the funding differences that were established in the 1970s are invalid in the 1980s. . A comprehensive brief put together by the OPSTF explains, "The nature and average size of elementary 'schools have also dramatically changed over the last 10 to 15 years. The consolidation and growth of elementary schools, which began during the 1970's, included the • building of libraries, gymnasiums, music rooms, French as a Se- cond Language rooms, kindergarten rooms and special education facilities. It is recognized that the building of the physical facilities came out of capital allocation, but the maintenance support and administra- tion costs must be borne through the per pupil grant. These larger school units also required increased services, such as secretarial assistance, custodial support and supplied to carry out their programs. As well, with the implementation of the reorganization of schools into county and designated city boards, school board bureaucracies and centralized services ex- panded, requiring much greater expen- diture at the elementary level." A survey of per pupil expenditures has shown that in 73 per cent of the cases; the Mr. Kendall says the OPSTF has made elementary board spent a larger amount of this issue a top priority item and the federa- money on instructional costs, than did Turn to page 3 • secondary boards.11 OPEN DAILY 9 A.M,-6 P.M. Fridays till 9 P.M. CAN -ANN STEEL FABRICATORS Structural Design and Engineered Assembly •Build anything out of steel • Long & short span open web joists • Floor grating - made to order Pt ''AOL: SERVICE TIM PISKORSKI 524-9067 Twin Cit School of Hairstyling Waterloo, Ont. •Hairstyling • Barbering •Ear Piercing •Make-up 55 Erb St. East Monday to. Friday 8:30 am to 4:30 pm THINKING CHRISTMAS? THINK OFF BEAT and join our register today. From now until Christmas we invite you to come in and give us your name, size, style preference. We will keep it registered so that your family and friends can come and pick out the perfect gift for you, only at OFF BEAT Suncoast Mall Goderich 524-9500