The Charter for Public Education project: Reflections from a parent on the panel

Perspectives is an opportunity for Fellows and others to share their ideas in short, accessible essays. IPE/BC Fellows hold a range of views and interests relative to public education.

The Charter for Public Education project: Reflections from a parent on the panel

By Kathy Whittam

My experience as a panel member for the Charter for Public Education was a crash course in how public education works in BC and the many ways in which each community in this province is unique.

It now seems like our Charter journey was a lifetime ago. My stepson was in elementary school at the time. Later, as he was graduating from high school, my daughter began kindergarten. So, my partner and I got to engage with public education all over again. With my daughter now only a few years from finishing high school herself, I can say that public education has been a vastly different experience for each of them. But the big picture perspective I acquired while serving on the Charter panel certainly helped me as I navigated the school years with both.

The Charter experience was profound. I still reflect on all that I learned from the students, teachers, parents, trustees, principals, and community members who participated in the hearings. From a school library in Gibsons, to an auditorium in McBride, to a community hall in Haida Gwaii, to high school classrooms in Fort St John, and many places and spaces in between- each session was highly engaging and deeply meaningful.

Inevitably, the dialogues began with frustration about budget cuts, and the ways in which those in public education system were struggling as a result. But the discussion quickly turned to the goals of public education, the characteristics of an educated person and community, and what our public education system should be providing to learners of all ages. For me, it was always affirming to hear participants describe the role of education as being much broader than simply preparing students to be workers.

I have heard the Charter, created from these rich discussions, critiqued as “motherhood and apple pie” statements, but I struggle to see the problem with that. What could possibly be wrong with developing a positive vision of the public education system with the learners at the center, supported by a broad commitment by all to work together to help all learners reach their full potential?

How can the Charter be used for discussion and advocacy today? I believe it is still a powerful and effective tool, especially when we think about the pressing issues now facing us.  The Charter includes the promise that, as a community, we will “prepare learners for a socially responsible life in a free and democratic society, to participate in a world which each generation will shape and build.”

For a truly sustainable future, we urgently need transformative action. It’s very important that all generations be involved in shaping and building a better “normal “than we have ever had before. This is a critical time, in fact, to explore the role of public education in preparing our kids for their part in creating that future.

The promises in the Charter are coupled with the expectation that government “be responsible for fully funding all aspects of a quality education”. What is meant by “fully fund” and “quality education”? Ideally, each community should have a community public school that:

  • is lead by a principal who is welcoming, supports the staff team, and partners with the community to build connections and opportunities for students.
  • has teachers and support staff who are passionate about helping their students learn and grow.
  • has a library in which students can relax, read, and enhance their literacy skills.
  • offers music, art, play & physical education to fully develop students intellectual, social, physical, and esthetic capacities.
  • supports families who are struggling so every child is nourished and able to learn and have fun.
  • is supported by trustees who advocate for the needs of their schools; and,
  • is provided with funding to meet those needs, so that staff and parents do not have to keep spending valuable time on fundraising and worrying about what is needed next.

It was clear from the engagement in the hearings that talking about what quality education means to us is time very well spent. This was true then and is still the case today. Equally so, the funding to give every student the support they need is money very well invested. Further, I believe that no single top-down approach can meet the needs of every district or community. Instead, it’s time for us to define the quality and support we’re looking for from the bottom up. Just imagine the potential in community members working together on behalf of the public schools in their district, collaborating to build a needs-based budget, identifying priorities, and defining the ways in which public education is key to the well being of their children and youth and their community overall.

As you can see, the Charter project had a significant impact on me. I feel certain that this was also the case for the many people throughout BC who took the time to engage and share their perspectives. I believe that the powerful process and outcome, the Charter for Public Education, have a great deal of wisdom to offer us today.

Kathy Whittam was a member of panel that conducted hearings in many communities around BC and drafted the Charter for Public Education document and report.  She is a parent in Vancouver and has a deep commitment to inclusive, quality public education and progressive community engagement.

 

IPE/BC Submission for BC’S 2021 Budget Consultation

IPE/BC has submitted its recommendations to BC’s Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services for the upcoming year’s budget. Our submission reflects IPE/BC’s basic values and focuses on the following:

  1. Recognizing that public education is in the public interest and a critical element of our democratic society.
  2. Focusing funding initiatives to support the most vulnerable students.
  3. Avoiding a return to austerity to be able to recover from the damage of previous austerity measures.
  4. Defunding private/independent schools.
  5. Planning to incorporate remedies for the climate crisis in all areas of public education.

You can read the submission here.

We welcome feedback in our efforts to support public education in BC.

Charter for Public Education

Decolonizing the Charter for Public Education

 

As stated in the post below, the Charter for Public Education was developed in 2003 through an extensive community consultation. The IPE/BC Board of Directors believes that the Charter has great potential as a lens for examining the values and commitments in place in each BC public school and is dedicated to a project that will provide tools to support school communities in using it.

The extensive Charter for Public Education report and the Charter itself were written by a dedicated panel of five who travelled the province in 2003 to hear from students, teachers, parents, administrators, trustees and community members about their perspectives on public education. There was tremendous engagement in the process and, at the end, the panelists drafted a thorough report on what they had heard in communities around BC and designed a charter reflecting the values, commitments and expectations expressed.

In crafting the Charter, the panelists used a quotation that they believed captured the importance of public education. However, the quotation is by Egerton Ryerson, who we now know was a key influence in the design of the “Indian Residential School” system and in the creation of separate schools for Black students. The remaining four panelists (sadly, panelist George Watts passed away in 2005), agreed that the quotations should be removed, and IPE/BC moved ahead to do so.  The Charter poster that you see with this post reflects this important change.  The Board of Directors of IPE/BC is further committed to a process of meaningful examination of its work with a decolonizing lens.

 

The Development of the Charter for Public Education

In 2003, British Columbians expressed their hopes and dreams to a panel travelling the province working to develop a framework for future decisions about public education. The panel members heard passionate dialogue about education from thousands of people in 42 communities around the province and received 620 written submissions. The full report from these consultations provided the basis for development of the Charter.

Although the Charter was an initiative of the BCTF, the panel represented a range of community interests. An Anglican priest, Rev. Margaret Marquardt, chaired the Charter panel. The other members were: Dr. John Moss, a former superintendent of schools; Kathy Whittam, a step-parent of a student with special needs; George Watts, former president of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council; and David Chudnovsky, past-president of the B.C. Teachers’ Federation.

The result was The Charter for Public Education, published in 2003, as a starting point for dialogue and change in public education.

These questions were posed at each hearing:

  • What is an educated person; what are their characteristics?
  • Which of these characteristics are developed through the public schools?
  • What is an educated community?
  • What are the principles of public education?

The Charter was an inspiration for educators and communities beyond the borders of B.C., as well as a touch point for ongoing efforts to strengthen public education in B.C.  Its principles have stood up well over time.