Teachers' Strike in Ontario - There is a Good Reason

Many, if not most, of Ontario's high school students, are home for the day. It is a bit unusual for the teachers to all take a day off in the middle of the semester- but it is probably a good way of reminding the Ontario government that the teachers are collectively committed to winning at least some of their bargaining points in their negotiations. At this point, I suspect that for most of the parents in the province it is only a bit of an inconvenience, if the elementary system was shut down there would be far more concern - particularly over daycare issues for the day. The apparent lack of interest on the part of parents and the public, in general, is unfortunate and it is dangerous.

If I were a parent, I would be particularly concerned about the proposed classroom sizes and by the fact that in a year or two - all students will be required to take four (out of 30) of their courses on-line. According to various media sources some classes already have up to 42 students in them. I suppose that is a manageable number if all of those 42 students are highly motivated, reasonably bright, without any specific learning needs and well behaved. I have to wonder if in any public school - one could find 42 students with all of those attributes. In subjects such as math which build on previous learning (if you don't understand one of the steps - it is hard to proceed to the next) and may require more detailed explanation and longer learning times for some of the students - such large class sizes seem to accept that some students will be unsuccessful. While increased class sizes may save money in the short term - an under-skilled and frustrated workforce will add costs to the social support system when those students are adults. It is a false saving. In courses such as English or the social sciences that require dialogue between the students and the teacher, the absurdity of trying to have meaningful conversations should be obvious even to the Conservative government. The thought of having 40+ students in a chemistry lab or in a wood-working shop is just too frightening to think about.

It is, however, the concept of mandatory e-learning that concerns me the most. There are a number of professional educators - many of whom have their graduate degree in education who like the concept of e-learning. They like it because they earned their graduate degree at an online university. They argue that their MA is exactly the same as those who went to university. They are wrong. It may be a valid degree, they may have covered the same type of topics - but being in a classroom for a three-hour seminar every week is different than looking at a screen. Doing the readings and having to discuss/argue what one has read is profoundly different than looking at a computer monitor. It develops a whole set of skills (and relationships) that one can't develop when learning in isolation.

Mandatory online courses assume that every student will have access to a relatively current computer and software, a high-speed internet connection and a home setting that will ensure both the space and the support are available to complete the course work. Almost as important - it will require young people to be self-motivated -a characteristic that is not always obvious in teenagers. Such expectations are absurd, even worse, they are discriminatory. The effects of such a policy will negatively affect students from low-income families, immigrants and those with different learning abilities. It demonstrates a profound disconnect between those who create policy and those who have to bear the consequences of that policy.

Online learning is a poor substitute for face-to-face teaching. For a number of students it will help them fast track their education, for thousands of students it will limit their learning opportunities. The government is potentially creating a whole sub-class of people who will not graduate from high school and who will only be eligible for the most menial jobs - jobs that no longer exist outside the poor paying service industry.

If I were a parent of a school-aged child - I would be out there marching with the teachers.