Supporting Secondary Educators

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I’m not a student. I’m not a parent. I’m not an educator. So why do I still support the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federation (OSSTF), if it doesn’t seem to affect me?

I support the OSSTF because it does affect me. The education students receive today affects all of us in the future. These students are our future electricians, engineers, prime ministers and business owners; to name a few of the potential careers children aspire to pursue.

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I am so thankful for the education I received. With the official launch of the OYAP mobile skilled trades trailer, it made me realize how lucky I was to have “tech studies” at KTTPS; a program that has since been cancelled. I received both career counselling and personal counselling through my high school. My fellow pupils who needed that extra bit of help to stay on top of their schoolwork received that, and they’re doing amazing things now. I had a world of opportunities to choose from after high school due completely to programs that are now being cut.

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Less staff members, and larger class sizes just means less attention for children. I’d like to see Stephen Lecce try to hold the attention of 21 high school students all day, every day for three quarters of the year – let alone 28.

I remember a show that was on for a while when I was a child, where children were left with minimal supervision and asked to sustain a functioning community – as you can imagine, that didn’t go as planned. Fewer adults in a building full of the same amount of students is a safety concern.

Teachers are so incredibly important to children’s development. It’s important for students of any age to form strong connections with their educators, and have someone to look up to. I love seeing my past teachers on the street, or when I’m covering events at the school. I’m sure they’re proud of me, and all of their students, when they see us doing well years after teaching us.

To me, e-learning sounds a lot like the self-checkouts and self-ordering machines that I hear people complaining about every day. If you’re so concerned about taking away the jobs of minimum-wage workers, why aren’t some of you equally concerned with “machines” taking away the jobs of our educators?

Finally, when the Ford government refuses to even open up the table to bargaining for a mutual agreement, action must be taken. I completely support the staff members who spent their day “off” in the cold, wind and snow, to stand up for not just themselves, but their students. Your children aren’t losing anything from one day at home – think of it as a snow day, but a snow day that could make a huge change for their lives in the long run. Demonstrations like walkouts are a proven effective method when standing up against the provincial government, and I hope that this weeks actions bring the many issues back to a head for the Stephen Lecce, Doug Ford and the Ontario Government.