P.E.I. Opposition goes school-by-school with teacher cuts

P.E.I.'s Official Opposition came up with a list on Thursday of proposed staffing reductions at various Island schools as the latest move in its bid to force government to reinstate 28 positions it had planned to cut.

Government says it's collaborating with principals and the English Language School Board as it decides over the next month whether to reinstate any number of those positions.

The list came from the P.E.I. Teachers' Federation, which received the information from Island schools. The federation says the list is incomplete.

Repeatedly during question period, different Progressive Conservative MLAs stood up to ask the Minister of Education Hal Perry about particular schools. The responses they received were all largely the same.

"Can the minister confirm to the teachers, students and parents of Spring Park Elementary School that the 1.88 teaching positions being cut there will be reversed?" asked Opposition House leader James Aylward.

"The principal at Spring Park Elementary School has an opportunity to submit regarding allocations to the school board, responded Perry. "The school board will then send recommendations to the department."

Later it was PC MLA Brad Trivers's turn. 

"Can the minister confirm that the 3.3 teaching positions being cut from Bluefield High School in North Wiltshire and the 5.1 teaching positions being cut from Westwood Primary School in Meadowbank, can you confirm that those cuts will be reversed?"

'Opportunity to beg'

Perry responded, "Again, we are working collaboratively with the school boards, with the P.E.I. Teachers' Federation, and with the principals to ensure that the staffing is in place for this fall. The principals of Bluefield and Westwood have an opportunity now to submit to the board and the board will send recommendations to our department."

Some of the other schools facing the biggest cuts to teaching positions, according to the Tories' list:

• Charlottetown Rural losing 4.4 positions
• Southern Kings Consolidated losing four positions
• Greenfield Elementary in Summerside losing 4.85 positions.

"It's wonderful that this education minister is going to give the principals here across this province the opportunity to beg — to beg — to keep their staff positions in their schools to help educate our children," said Aylward.

One thing government did not make clear Thursday is how any final decision will be made on whether to reinstate some or all of the positions, or if there is a set number government is prepared to put back into classrooms.

"We're listening to the principals and to the administrators at the schools," said Perry when asked to clarify. "And depending upon the recommendations that come back to us from the school board, we'll make a decision at that time."

Question of the day: What do you think of the teachers' cut debate in the legislature?