To the Editor,
I am a kindergarten teacher in the B.C. public education system, and I am fed up hearing about how selfish and lazy I am.
This government pushed through full-day kindergarten as a means of solving daycare issues. It was not adequately funded to start, leaving classrooms around the province with grave shortages in materials to offer their programs.
I have had to purchase my own dolls, doll clothes, dress-ups, cars, car mats, provide my own books both for the classroom and for my home reading program – the list goes on.
When our kindergarten teachers ask about funds, we are told there are none and to approach our parent advisory council groups.
So this is how it is now? Parents provide playgrounds and kindergarten program materials? This selfish teacher has invested thousands of dollars in materials so that I can do my job.
And lazy?
I arrive at work well before the start of the school day and often do not leave before 5 p.m. I always have an hour or two minimum of work to complete at home.
This is the time when I prep materials I will be using during the week, make phone calls home to discuss my students’ progress and write up notes taken during the day.
It is when I do my planning for the weeks and months ahead, write newsletters and contact supports for my students. You can always find me at my school for at least one day of the weekend for three or four hours minimum. In fact, you can find me and several of my colleagues. I am rarely there alone.
Give me, and all of the dedicated public school educators, a break and start publishing the stories that reflect how incredibly hard working we are.
Wendy deGroot
Nanaimo
