Someone told me once, while waiting at a bus stop on my wheelchair scooter, that I should be dead because I cost the system too much money.
I am a polio survivor of the 1946 epidemic. I walk with a cane but I am still an active citizen and still volunteering according to my talents and abilities. I have special needs like some children in our public school system and I am still able to be a mom, a grandmother and a retired teacher.
It crossed my mind that maybe our present government is not interested in providing the needed paid support for special needs children in the classroom, by not limiting class size and composition.
Is the government acting like these children are dead (meaning no value now or for the future), because they cost the system too much money? By not providing adequate support for the education of special needs children in the classroom, by not limiting class size and composition, the government deprives the children of a chance for success in life.
As parents we always welcome help for our children from a neighbour, a sibling, or a grandparent when there is a temporary difficulty, like grammar or problem solving in math. If a bigger difficulty arises, parents may seek help from a specialist.
A family these days may have two or three children and help is always welcome. The same thing is true in the classroom where volunteer parents or grandparents lend a hand to a larger group of children; however, volunteers cannot replace the specialized teacher who has the expertise to address the individual difficulties of each child. If it takes a village to raise a child, I question the part our present government is not playing in our big British Columbia village.
After years of debate, the general public and the public education system finally agreed to have special needs children integrated in the regular classroom.
A teacher cannot give private time all the time to the children who need more support and leave the rest of the class on their own! How can these children learn if the needed paid support is absent or not enough to allow the teacher to provide help to everyone? Every child is entitled to quality time. Do we want these children to be able to live a full life as active citizens? If so, every child deserves adequate support in the classroom.
Wake up parents, speak up and act to support all the children in our province, by supporting teachers, who care for each of your children.
Wake up government and stop thinking dollars, but about giving a successful future to every child of this province to become an active and proud citizen!
Suzanne Bernard
Parksville
