Stay up to date on news, events and special features.
Dianne Flood appointed teacher regulation commissioner
The Vancouver Sun
January 16, 2012. 5:47 pm • Section: Report Card, STAFF
The B.C. government has appointed Dianne Flood as acting commissioner for teacher regulation until a permanent commissioner can be found.
Flood will handle reports about teacher conduct and competence and will decide whether to order investigations.
The Education Ministry announced the appointment Monday, saying Flood has extensive experience in administrative law. She was an executive director in the Attorney General’s Ministry and a former chair of the Property Assessment Appeal Board. She has also served as an assistant deputy minister with the Manitoba government and vice-chairwoman of Manitoba’s Municipal Board.
The commissioner will play a key role in the new teacher regulation branch, which replaced the B.C. College of Teachers this month. It’s responsible for regulating 67,000 B.C. educators who work in public, independent and First Nations schools.
While on the topic of appointments, I need to correct an earlier post that said Theo Vandeweg is B.C.’s new independent schools inspector. In fact, he has been acting inspector since the unexplained departure of Ed Vanderboom. The competition for the full-time position closed Dec. 20, and the ministry said it’s received applications from a number of very qualified people.
Including one from Vandeweg, my sources say.
By Janet Steffenhagen, Vancouver Sun
jsteffenhagen@vancouversun.com
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun
About DataBC by the BC Provincial Government
Use DataBC to search data and make informed decisions, inspire change or develop ideas that will improve government policies. DataBC isn’t just data – it’s access to data that drives our province forward. The data is here for you – to answer questions, to improve decision making or to help build government services that matter most to you.
Find data from across the province in DataBC’s data catalogue. Access various types of datasets and tools designed to help you conduct your own research, analyze statistics, develop apps or satisfy your curiosity. You might like to know:
What is the government spending money on?
Have sustainable changes impacted carbon emissions? Find out what’s working and what needs improvement.
Which schools have the highest student scores on tests? Does that impact which schools I consider for my children?
What do municipal tax rates look like across the province?
There are minimal system and licensing requirements so you can easily access what you’re looking for. In fact, we’ve even developed apps to help organize and translate some of the data for you. Check out what DataBC has to offer and get started on your project. As you do, keep in mind that others are interested in hearing about your experience – contact us, blog about your findings, or join an online community.
This type of information sharing is governed by legislation and policy that makes provision for the release of public information.
-from the DataBC website
THIS JUST IN: New Book at Education Library
Connecting Kids to History with Museum Exhibitions
“Kids have profound and important relationships to the past, but they don’t experience history in the same way as adults. For museum professionals and everyone involved in informal history education and exhibition design, this book is the essential new guide to creating meaningful and memorable connections to the past for children. This vital museum audience possesses many of the same dynamic qualities as trained historian—curiosity, inquiry, empathy for the human experience—yet traditional history exhibitions tend to focus on passive looking in the galleries, giving priority to relaying information through words.”
– Left Coast Press review – Read more here.
Principals and vice-principals to administer provincial tests during teachers’ job action
Vancouver Sun January 11, 2012
Provincewide tests of reading, writing and math will proceed as planned in B.C. elementary schools next week, with principals and vice-principals reluctantly taking on the work that’s usually performed by teachers.
The B.C. Principals’ and Vice-Principals’ Association asked government to cancel this year’s Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA), which is administered annually in Grades 4 and 7, so as not to increase the workload for administrators who are already exhausted from the effects of the teachers’ job action, president Jameel Aziz said. But the ministry insisted the tests must go ahead.
As part of their job action, which began in September, teachers are refusing to write report cards, attend staff meetings, supervise students outside of instructional hours, complete paperwork, communicate with administrators or administer provincial tests.
That means principals, vice-principals and other excluded staff will also be responsible for delivering and marking provincial exams in Grades 10, 11 and 12, despite the fact they may not have the necessary expertise in the subject being tested, Aziz said.
By Janet Steffenhagen, Vancouver Sun
jsteffenhagen@vancouversun.com
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun
B.C. education newsmakers in 2011
The Vancouver Sun
January 2, 2012. 3:01 pm • Section: Report Card, STAFF
My picks for the top newsmakers in B.C. education 2011:
1. George Abbott. Re-appointed education minister in March, Abbott received a surprisingly warm reception from all stakeholder groups, including the BCTF. But relations with the union have cooled since then as a result of difficult contract talks and discussions at another table to settle thorny issues of class size and composition. His biggest accomplishment in 2011 was winning unanimous support in the legislature (and quiet acceptance everywhere else) for legislation creating a new B.C. Teachers’ Council to replace the dysfunctional B.C. College of Teachers. We should know later this year if he has found a winning formula. Eyes will also be on Abbott as he creates a plan for so-called 21st century learning in public schools. (Add your views: www.bcedplan.ca)
2. Susan Lambert. She was a force to be reckoned with in 2011 as BCTF president, but her real test will be this year as she continues efforts to win a wage increase for teachers despite the government’s firm commitment to its public-sector wage freeze. The union has been involved in a work-to-rule job action since September but that’s unlikely to be sufficient pressure to win the kind of deal her members are expecting. The question now is, when will the BCTF move to a Phase 2 job action? And will that be a full-scale walkout? Lambert is also facing a showdown with government over Bills 27 and 28, which ended the union’s ability to negotiate class size and composition. The court declared the bills unconstitutional and gave the Liberals until April to resolve the issue. Government and the union do not agree on what sort of action the court ruling requires.
3. Patti Bacchus. While she didn’t have the same profile in 2011 as she did in 2010 when she went head-to-head with former education minister Margaret MacDiarmid, Bacchus continues to be the most recognizable and outspoken trustee in B.C. Whether you like that or not, depends on your politics because she isn’t Liberal friendly. That said, Bacchus topped the polls in Vancouver during trustee elections in November, as she did in 2008, and was once again elected chairwoman. Her challenge this year will be the same as it was last year: leading the board as it cuts millions in spending without closing schools.
By Janet Steffenhagen, Vancouver Sun
jsteffenhagen@vancouversun.com
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun