The education ministry is dents, and $15 per student 1977-78 expenditures, is too low textbook expenditures ($7.5 cate $17 per student for the going ahead with its new Credit beyond that number. The plan to allov/ that flexibihty. A million) by the province's first 1,000 students in each dis• Allocation Plan for textbook went into effect in April. BCTF study has also found that 500,000 students. "This, by trict in recognition of the fact replacement despite advice Ministry officials say CAP is the forrnula favors districts simple division, allows $15 per that, because of economies of from the BCTF to stop it or de• designed to allow more flexi• with declining enrolment and student as the expense of build• scale, per-student costs are lay implementation. bility in textbook purchasing handicaps rapidly-growing ing school inventories with re• higher for smaller districts. BCTF President Pat Brady than existed under the rental districts. orders and new prescriptions," The plan allows decentral• has told Deputy Education and free-issue plan with which CAP was first proposed in notes D.W.C. Huggins, the ization of choice of priorities Minister Walter Hardwick that the province has operated for 1976 and has been under study ministry's director of publica• within general province-wide teachers will monitor opera• 25 years. since then. tion services, in a recent letter guidelines, ministry officials tion of CAP, and publicize Critics of the plan fear that The funding level was to the BCTF. say. problems that arise. the funding level, based on by dividing 1977-78 The ministry decided to allo- BCTF Professional Develop• He has also asked Education ment staffer John Church, in Minister Pat McGeer for an analysis of the ministry's assurance that if the plan can• reply to an earlier BCTF brief not satisfy each district's text• on CAP, says the $15 per stu• book needs, more money will dent figure does not take infla• be allocated. tion into account. Under the new plan, school Church estimates that infla• districts are allocated credit to tion of at least 8 per cent per be used for textbook purchases year affects textbook pur• according to a formula that chases. "If $15 per student was gives them $17 per student considered to be a 'reasonable (previous year's enrolment amount' in 1977-78, then a figures) for the first 1,000 stu- 'reasonable amount' per stu• dent in 1978-79 would be $15 plus 8 per cent ($1.20) — $16.20 (and) a 'reasonable amount' I^r student in 1979-80 would be $16.20 plus 8 per cent ($1.30) ~ $17.50." Only the province's smallest districts, such as Kettle Valley, would receive credit alloca• tions for the next year close to The BCTF's administrative Continued on page 7 staff has been brought up to strength as a result of appoint• ments made by the Executive Committee at its April and May meetings. The staff has been function• ing with less than its budgeted complement of 26.9 persons throughout the year as a result of a combination of retirement resignation,,, termination, ill• Six of the 21 teachers who ness and accident. were candidates in the May 10 The hew appointments will provincial election won seats in bring the administrative staff the legislature. up to a total of 26.5 persons; Tony Brummet, principal at The staffing needs of the Bert Bowes Junior Secondary organization have been dis• in Fort St. John; was an easy cussed at ^ngth by the winner for the Social Credit /Management Conmiittee and party iii Nortli Peace River, the Executive Committee over and is One of two teachers who the last several months. will be newcomers to the PresidentPat Brady said the house. The other is the NDP's appointments are intended to Alan Passarell, whose narrow strengthen the staff in order to victory over Frank Calder in meet the growing demand for Atlin is still in doubt. services to the membership. They will join re-elected TTie increased demand results NDB teachers Eileen Dailly from such problems as declin• (Burnaby North); Lome Nicol- ing enrolment, attacks on the son (Nelson-Crestoh), Bob Continued on page 4 Skelly (Aiberni) iand Karen Sanford (Comox) in Victoria. Coileen Gasslen, , is one of 190 handicapped students at unique Simon Cunningham school One incumbent teacher, Lyle in Surrey. She is a regular Grade 5 and 6 class, one pf 17 handicapped students already Kahl (SO, was dumped by his integrated in the lasses at the schooL She's one of many success stories but the schooi constituents. stii! has problems Continued on page 7, > By RALPH ?TIAUR,EE....... last; and many more handicapped child• tion ministry made mainstreaming a 0) Next to the final day of classes, sports ren in the years ahead will lead fuller, policy — that handicapped kids would > day is the highlight of every elementary happier lives than would ever before have benefit greatly from an education in a 8 student's spring term. During the week been possible for them. school of "normal" kids. • e leading up to their recent sports day, stu• "The local community r;aised quite a dents at i^urrey's Simon Cunningham But Simon Cunningham is just a start in the proper direction. Ken Robinson, the fuss about retarded kids coming into the Elementar^: School were alive with an- school," Robinson recounts. '^That took . ticipation and excitement. Young athletes school's tough and not always tactful- principal, wants niore help and more some years to die away, and qiiite the I. practiced theu* skills in Phys. Ed., and money for the school, but he can't con• q)posite lias now happened." Parents of im bragged about them in recess. the regular children are discovering that OQ vince people that Simon Cunningham isn't tn the handicapped kids aren't alone In ft What makes Simon Cunningham liiiique already fulfilling all its goals. After eight CM is that half of its pupils are severely re• years of growth and improvement, Simon benefiting from the atnaosphere created tarded, autistic, epileptic, blind or brain• Cunningham is in danger of running onto in the mixed school; the experience is good for their own kids too. S damaged; suffer from cerebral palsy, the same reefs that threaten the rest of • im spina bifida, tachycardia, hydroencepha- the school system: a weak economy, and "They grow up with quite a different •s litis, brittle bones, muscular dystrophy or the taxpayers' reluctance to spend more attitude toward handicapped people," Q severe allergies. money on something Uiey are satisfied Robinson says. He tells the story of a blind student who drbpg^d a counting US Those handicaps would have kept all with, no matter how unsatisfied the people m directly involved are. stick on th^ floor. One of the regular > but a few of those children out of the children sitting near by, not by a long shot school system even a few years ago, and Simon Cunningham is located on 140th a model pupil, wai^hed as his blind class• UJ for many of these kids, it was their first Q Street near the Fraser Highway in the mate groped for the stick, unaware thatit sports day ever. heart of Surrey. It has grown rapidly had rolled well out of her reach. '*He Unless the lessons of Simon Cunning• since the district's school board decided didn't pick it up and hand it to her; he ham are lost on all of us, it won't be their eight years ago — long before the educa• Continued on page 8 • for many countries: reduced North Vancouver teachers Van trustee, and Ted Archi• The main problem facing ^^ree miMion. class size. are part of a community ef• bald, as. lead-in shows to the teachers in all industrialized Braconnier has been coming (The BCTF has been arguing fort in taking the schools to half-hour series that begins in Differences of opinion over comities, accordmg. to Andre ^ ^^^^^^ 1^5^ tliis that declimng enrolment offers the public through a TV series September. and most members of the task an opportunity for smaller the appropriate curriculum force." BracoMuer, is declimng enrol- ^^^^ l^lg ^^^^ ^gjt to B.C., to be shown on community An 11-member committee classes.) materials for immigrant child• Executive member Doug ^f^l\ , , ^ iLt- . mainly because he teods to television this fall. overseeing the project has re• Braconnier says teachers in ren were evident at the Execu• Steinson supported Brady. He . "Wot many have lost tbeir deal directly with the Canadian The programs will stress ceived financial assistance Europe have been active in tive Committee meeting May said the task force's proposal jobs but there is a worry for Teachei-s' Federation, the quality of teaching and from the Young Canada protecting jobs with demon• 11. would make adjustment to the future, he said m a recent variety of learning styles Works Program to hire six strations in the streets, strikes, The differences arose during Canadian society more diffi• interview at BCTF l^adquar- He says that declimng enrol- taking place in different university students to work and pressures on governments, discussion of the program cult for immigrant students. ters. ment will be discussed by the North Vancouver schools as on filming, editing and Braconnier is the secretary- Organization for Economic Co- particularly in Belgium and graphics. statement of the Task Force on Brady said the curriculum well as Capilano College. Racism. * general of the International operation and Development Francfe. He foresees an al• The North Van School should make students aware of One of the evaluative criteria Federation of Free Teachers' (OECD) in September.