Charlottetown area to get 41 new educators

Forty-one new educators will be hired on P.E.I. for $2.8 million, in part to address more newcomers and reduce classroom sizes, according to a release from the provincial government. 

The new positions will be held in Charlottetown and Stratford to reflect growth in those communities, said the release. 

• Province adds 27 new teaching positions for the fall
• Influx of newcomers leads to some crowded P.E.I. classrooms

The new positions are in addition to the 27 teachers announced last spring who started work in Island classrooms this fall and the 15 educational assistants hired last school year.

Education Minister Jordan Brown said hiring will start as soon as possible. 

"I would suspect we'd see teachers in classrooms within a fairly short period and certainly within a couple weeks," he said in an interview with CBC's Compass.

Brown said hiring educators to work with newcomer students will give existing teachers more time to focus on the needs of all students. 

New unexpected students

"These new positions will address immediate needs and support the arrival of students throughout the school year with minimal disruption," he said in a news release. 

CBC reported earlier this month that schools in Stratford and Charlottetown had 375 students — mostly newcomers — sign up last minute that weren't planned for in the spring. The number of English and French as an additional language students in P.E.I. schools rose from 367 in 2008 to 1,882 in 2017, and more than 90 per cent are located in the greater Charlottetown area, according to the province. 

The funding is being provided by the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, which is responsible for immigration.

"Our growing and more diverse population bodes well for the sustainability of our province and our ability to succeed in a global economy," said Economic Development and Tourism Minister Heath MacDonald in a release. 

Integration and equitable learning environments 

"This significant new investment will help newcomer students to acquire academic language skills and integrate successfully into our schools and communities, while creating more equitable learning environments for all students."

Of the 41 new educators, there will be 10 class composition teacher positions to alleviate pressures on schools. Of those 10, seven have already been allocated to schools.

There will be two positions at Colonel Gray and one at Charlottetown Rural to add sections in large classes. There will be one position at Queen Charlotte to add homeroom support and support for English language arts classes. There will be two positions at Spring Park to add support for English first language students. Also, a there will be half position at Stratford Elementary and a half position at Glen Stewart Primary to add support in English language arts classes

The seven teachers already assigned to schools will be hired by the individual schools and the other positions will be hired by the Public Schools Branch. The three other positions could be added this school year if the need grows. Brown said the department anticipates more need in the next couple of months.

"That was a big thing that principals and staff and the teachers federation were asking for, was to have that flexibility to add without having to continually go back and forth negotiating for it," he said.

Breakdown of the rest of the new positions: 

• Eight EAL mobile teacher positions to add functional language programs at Birchwood, Stonepark, Queen Charlotte, Colonel Gray and Charlottetown Rural and provide ongoing language support.
• 20 EAL education assistant positions to support EAL students with high needs.
• Three EAL mobile youth service worker positions to support students with the transition to a new school and culture. 

Criticism from opposition

The money will also go toward materials and technology to support translation and literacy for new language learners and professional learning for teachers who are new to teaching new language learners. 

Opposition education critic Steven Myers was critical of the investment Wednesday in the P.E.I. Legislature. 

"There's lots of other needs in the education system besides what's happening in Charlottetown. Unfortunate that the minister from Brighton over there doesn't, can't see outside of Charlottetown," Myers said. 

Myers said he believes it will be "fantastic" for the Charlottetown area, but won't address overcrowding and large class sizes in Stratford schools.

Green Party Leader Peter Bevan-Baker was supportive of the investment, but said more needs to be done to address early learning issues addressed in recent provincial assessments. 

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