POSTED ON BEHALF OF DOUG

I have lived in BC and have mny friends in education. There are a number of factors in decline but #1 is the declining birth rate and #2 critical in BC is immigration, primarily Asian immigration.

The western provinces in general seem to have more small Protestant sects and increasingly Muslim and Hindu groups that want religious funding although most of both groups are in public schools.

As we all know, BC will pay “up to” 1/2 the cost depending on adoption of Ministry policy/inspection.

There was a big surge of Hong Kongers due to the 1997 of HK to the peoples’ Republic of China. Almost the entire HK middle class has a private school tradition. The working class lives mainly in public housing and the public schools serve them. Many looks for a similar situation when they arrive in BC.

BC gets a lot of internal migration in Canada but again families are having fewer children. I think the classic reasons for some to seek private schools is in operation in BC. My guess in order:

1) Religion including polarization over Gay rights and abortion 2) A perceived advantage for my child 3) classed based snobbery for a wealthier group

Why is it bad for private to go up and public to go down? We believe in a certain amount of universalism in Canada for social programs and abhor the ‘means test’. We believe if more affluent people (middle class and up) don’t have a stake in public social programs then they turn on them and resist funding them.

The classic case would be the passing of the proposition in California that capped property taxes (the main way Americans still pay for schools) . This began a very rapid deterioration of the once famous and middle class public school system in CA. The PS system rapidly became the ghettto/barrio school system except in wealthy enclaves. There was a middle class flight away from the deteriorating PS to private schools if they could afford it.

It is a truism in politics that the wealthier you are, the more likely you are to vote. As large sections of the middle class no longer saw the public schools as ‘their schools’ they increasingly fought against funding the public schools which led to further deterioration. Now the once national leading CA public school system is a basket case because of the growth of private schools. This is why the advocates of a strong public school system view private schools as evil. They are tainted as selfish. “I’m all right Jack” the heck with you.

OK for them I suppose but what is the national objectve for the school system? We can no longer afford a basket case PS system in the USA with as they now call it “the school to prison pipeline.”

We need an increasingly articulate educated, trained “white lab coat” work force.

This is how the increase in private school enrolement destroys the public school system and as a result, destroys the entire society. America is following this route. Too many people think “what is best for my kid” and too few think “what is the best way to educate the whole nation”  that is how their individualistic ethos in America is killing them. Every year the nations with a more collectivist view of education (not just socialist, many cultures are more collectivist like Japan and northern Europe) pass the USA by.

Governor Jerry Brown (D) elected by the more public school oriented Californians, is trying to fight the trend but is swimming upstream.

As the USA increases its % of private schools it continues to decline. The too are totally intertwined.

Don’t know what newspapers Doug has been reading, but here are the facts.

From the BC teachers’ union web site - a collection of education stats ending in the year 2009-10. I highly doubt the figures have change much.
http://www.brentgranby.ca/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/2011EdFacts.pdf

The number of public schools versus private schools in the year 2009 to 2019 are respectively, 1631 to 345. The private school take is 21.5 % take and has been growing since the year 2000.

In a 2007 Tyee article - “This past year, the number of school-aged students enrolled in our public schools fell by 11,380. Since 2000/01, B.C. public schools have lost close to 50,000 students—more than nine per cent of the total…...............Falling enrolment is not a new phenomenon. B.C. student counts fell through much of the 1980s in the face of a sagging economy. However, in the years after Expo ‘86, with an improving economy and increased population growth, B.C.‘s public schools turned an enrolment corner.

Over the course of the following decade, provincial enrolment rose by a third, cresting in 1997/98. After that, provincial student counts plateaued briefly before resuming a downward trend.”
http://thetyee.ca/Views/2007/02/12/Schools/

Now that is has been established that student enrolment in the public schools began its declined in the year 2000, Two of the factors mentioned in the Tyee article, are private schools and on-line distance learning.

In April of 2013,
Private school enrolment is rising
An “ambitious” new strategy for the Nanaimo-Ladysmith school district aims to lure private school students back into the public education system.
http://blogs.ubc.ca/ices/2013/04/20/bc-schools-forced-to-market-public-education-to-stem-trend-toward-private-schools/

In June of 2013 - “Private school enrollment in B.C. just experienced its biggest single-year jump in 15 years, a movement some are crediting to the remarkable programs available for those willing to shell out big bucks.”

Read more: http://bc.ctvnews.ca/parents-turning-to-private-schools-for-posh-programs-1.1320029#ixzz2cMARFWRF

The comments of the last link are of interest - one of the themes - “Hardly “posh programs”, just what the hell IS a “posh program” anyway? Parents are sending their kids to private schools for 2 simple reasons: 1) that they get an education, which the public schools are not properly providing and 2) the private schools are not engaged in social engineering and political programming. We don’t want our kids programmed into the unionista pro-union mentality nor do we want our kids experimented on by a pack of wannabe social engineers.”

Of importance, is homeschooling is steadily rising as well, and another fact is that the BC government is getting around to tracking students to determined what are the factors concerning declining enrollment. Something that should have been done back in 2000, and not 14 years later…....

I see Doug has been reading straight out of the old USSR state grocery store manual. ” Too many people think “what is best for my kid” and too few think “what is the best way to educate the whole nation”  that is how their individualistic ethos in America is killing them. Every year the nations with a more collectivist view of education (not just socialist, many cultures are more collectivist like Japan and northern Europe) pass the USA by.”

Too bad Doug, the very nature of people are to think what is best for them and in their best interests. The world could used a bit more individual rather then ‘collective’ thinking that makes the bottom people pay the price for the poor decisions and policy making of others. The public education system is one such beast, but is not alone, if one considers the global economy versus the domestic economy.  As Geoff Johnson concludes in his article - ” Say what you will, it seems that an economy in transition and choices made within families are the real culprits in recent declining public-school enrolment.”

I would change it slightly to add the global aspects that still works within the 19th century political ‘knowledge’ matrix without paying any attention to the dynamic shifting values of the 21st century. Who pay’s the price? The people at the bottom in some shape and form where their needs are no longer being met by the 19th century political and in some cases economic knowledge matrices. As for families being culprits, I would disagree, because they are doing what is best for their children and their futures. More so when the public education fails their children by shutting the doors of their children’s futures. 

POSTED ON BEHALF OF DOUG

http://bc.ctvnews.ca/parents-turning-to-private-schools-for-posh-programs-1.1320029

Should public schools provide equestrian programs or charge huge fees on top of tax money? Of course not? Between posh programs and religious schools we have the vast majority of private schools. Public schools should offer neither ‘equestrian extras”  nor religion.

If elitists or religious people want schools they should pay all of it themselves.

Academics is hardly the problem in the best educated country on the planet and BC is well above the Canadian average.

2/3 of BC residents oppose public money for private schools.

http://www.news1130.com/2010/04/23/poll-finds-most-want-more-funding-for-public-schools/

So are the so called elitists a set of parents who would like their children to be educated that enables their children to be reached their full academic potential?

The 2012 report by the BC Teachers’ Federation
2012 BC Education Facts
http://www.bctf.ca/uploadedFiles/Public/Publications/2012EdFacts.pdf

Some of the elitist private schools that serves the special needs students in BC.
http://www.ourkids.net/special-needs-schools-bc.php

The vast majority of private schools in BC have waiting lists, including the special needs schools. I cited private special needs schools, because of the ongoing struggles parents have in BC, to have their children received education services that enables their children to reached their full academic potential.

The fame Moore case has brought attention to the education quality and education services within the public education system. In February of 2013 - “A mother has filed a human-rights complaint against the Delta school district and two senior officials, alleging they discriminated against her learning-disabled son by failing to provide him with an appropriate education program.

In her complaint, Lisa McWilliams claims her boy was denied meaningful access to education due to the lack of a specific program in Delta for LD students who are unable to function in a regular classroom setting.

The district wouldn’t comment on the case but says it provides LD services in every school, rather than having a district program in one location.”
http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2013/02/15/delta-mom-says-schools-discriminated-against-learning-disabled-son/

On the same day - “On Friday, Bakan wrote to the tribunal again to express her “extreme concern” about my story and to ask for an order requiring McWilliams to “cease and desist dissemination of information about this matter to anyone.”

No word yet if the tribunal will act on her request.

Bakan had also asked the tribunal last month to reject McWilliams’ complaint because it was filed more than six months after the alleged discrimination occurred. But in a letter Thursday, the tribunal declined, saying it had accepted the complaint based on the allegation that it was a “continuing contravention.”

It has not yet set a date to hear arguments.”
http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2013/02/15/delta-school-district-seeks-gag-order-in-human-rights-case/

A few days later - “The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal has issued an order prohibiting the publication of any information that would identify a mother who has filed a human-rights complaint against a school district on behalf of her learning-disabled son. It also prohibits the publication of any information that would identify the school district – as requested by the district’s lawyer Laura Bakan.

The order was approved Monday on an interim basis. The tribunal says it will decide whether to continue with the ban after the parties have made submissions on the matter. The complainant told me last week that she does not support the ban.”
http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2013/02/18/b-c-school-district-wins-sweeping-publication-ban-in-human-rights-case/

School districts would rather pay the large costs of lawyers fees, rather then to provide educational services that allows students with learning difficulties to access and take advantage of the educational opportunities in any school, and nor do school districts would want to provide public funds to send the special needs children to a private school to addressed their learning difficulties that enables them to returned to the public education system, to take full advantage of the education opportunities once the students’ reading, writing and numeracy problems are addressed by the private schools.

One will see in BC, the school districts favourite ploy is to ignore their legal responsibilities towards special needs students, but BC is not alone. School districts across Canada are ignoring their legal responsibilities towards ensuring each and every student have the tools and skills to access the educational opportunities at the public schools. In June of 2013, “Spending cuts in B.C. school districts feed worries about special education (UPDATED)”  http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2013/06/05/spending-cuts-in-b-c-school-districts-spark-worries-about-special-education/

The so-called elitist parents, are simply parents whose children have been failed by a public education system that is loathe to change to the 21st century ‘knowledge’ matrix. Private LD schools would certainly save the public education districts a ton of money, including the legal fees being paid out to fight each and every human rights complaints filed by parents.

Finland,

1.  Teachers determine the curriculum at a school level and then deliver it. 

2.  Teachers have an union.

3.  There are no private schools or charter schools as the population does not need them - they are well served.

4.  The country rates very high on the happiness criteria from the United Nations.

5.  Finland consistently rates in the top three on any international education parameter.  Canada sometimes joins the group.

6.  Britain and the US never rate in the top percentile and seldom even make it over the average line on the graph.

To effect change you need to follow the data and the countries that are getting it done.

cheers.  Mirka