'Non-essential' French immersion, music classes get little support, teachers say

What do you do if you're a music teacher and one of your students runs away during choir practice?

It's only one of the problems described by Newfoundland and Labrador teachers who tell CBC News there is little support for those who work in subject areas outside the core curriculum.

St. John's teacher Kelly Ann Marshall said she can have 60-plus students under her supervision in music classes on any given day.

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They come to her choir with a variety of needs and exceptionalities. Marshall said behavioural disorders are not uncommon, and children running away from class is a major concern.

On a "lucky" day, Marshall said she will have one student assistant in her music room.

"Let's say the student assistant is assigned to two kids, and one student is a runner," she said. 

"If he or she runs — which happens daily — the student assistant, who is two-on-one, chases, leaving Child 2 in my care."

Despite class size caps being in place throughout the province, those caps are not enforced for specialist areas, Marshall said.

Most kids don't get learning support for music, as it is deemed not necessary or unavailable.- Kelly Ann Marshall, music teacher

As a result, her music classes will sometimes be a combination of two classes from the same grade, with as many as 35 kids on her watch.

While she gets help from student assistants at times, Marshall said she cannot get instructional resource teachers (IRTs) in her classrooms.

"Most kids don't get learning support for music, as it is deemed not necessary or unavailable," she said.

French immersion students 'not on radar' 

Marshall's comments were echoed by Ann McCormack, a French immersion teacher in St. John's.

Following budget cuts last spring, and the implementation of full-day kindergarten, McCormack's Grade 5 and Grade 6 students went from four classes down to three more crowded ones.

As a result, there is one Grade 5 class with 28 students and a Grade 6 class with 29 students. The third class is a combination of the two grades — five fifth graders, 13 sixth graders.

A ratio of 33 students to one teacher should not be considered sane, safe, or acceptable.- Ann McCormack, French immersion teacher

When the Grade 5 students go to music or gym class, the kids from the combined class join the bigger group, meaning the teacher has 33 students to instruct.

McCormack said the changes made to her school were hasty and short-sighted on the part of government.

"A ratio of 33 students to one teacher should not be considered sane, safe, or acceptable at any time," she said.

"These cost-saving, short-term, budgetary measures are placing heavy burdens on our students and educators."

Since existing resources are distributed based on the demand of students throughout the school, the kids in her French immersion classes are "not even on the radar" for receiving support, despite having problems like attention deficit disorder and below-average reading ability, she said.

"Due to the nature of French immersion as being considered as an optional program, IRT support is pretty much non-existent," McCormack said.

"The classroom teacher is supposed to meet the needs of all students without a glimmer of hope of getting any support."