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page 6 = April 14, 1976 - North Shore News

- SPIEKERMANN: Persorially,” I think the Value ‘schools -

By Shane ‘McCune

-Ciaus Spiekermann, is now in his second year ‘as

_. principal of Boundary Community School on East *

26th in North Vancouver. One of four such schools in North

Vancouver (there are two in West Vancouver ‘and 35 in’

B.C.), Boundary has 265 students. and 13 teachers”

(‘Thirteen — point six including ‘the community | school
co-ordinator,” says Spickermann).

“My experience has been that the only one strapping |
helped was the person: ee the strapping. It’s. beating: of ©
children, nothing more.’’: .

:
NSN: When did Boundary become a dommanity school?

SPIEKERMANN: First it was an annex, first at Queensbury
School, then it was part of Westover School. When I was

. appointed principal, one of the things that I ‘have always _

believed is that if. you’re going to make. changes. in
education, you: “have ‘to: ‘change the structure, ‘not just. ‘do.
some: ‘gimmickry - - work and add.team teaching, . open. areas -
and” so on:.To.1 me those are all gimmicks.

“When I first came ‘here, I met with’ parents: We’ had a.
discussion, and out, of that a study group was formed of

eight parents and myself. We studied the whole concept “of | |
community . schools. a became a. ‘community . school | in
January of: "75. aa .

"NSN: Why is it called. Boundary Conimunity School, a s

opposed to Boundary Elementary?

SPIEKERMANN: Because ‘the: community ‘decides what’
happens. in the schooi, and not the. professionals. : The:
community meets, through its executive, once a'month, and: -
~ discusses the programs and directions of the school. It looks

at the curriculum and areas. such as report cards; family Jife
in education and so on. They. make recommendations to the «
staff on what direction the school. should BO.

The significant. thing that’ s happening here. is. 5 that. our -
teachers are part of that community executive — and there’s -
even a student. council: -representative:on it, so it’s.a

4

from the “‘value ‘schools’? that have been. gaining so much
popularity lately. ne

wouldn’t exist if the school system had been more

responsive to people, and I also ‘believe that i in ‘some: ‘cases oS

it’ s too late to turn back. the clock,"

“This is deimocracy i in action; rather. than: being. imposed.

u on. I find it-completely appalling that 24 parents out of ©
parents in a school: say, ‘This. should be: a@ value:
schon *” in Surrey this just happened — and they have
their way. And the rest of them said ‘‘no.’’ This is-the’

. antithesis of democracy — quite. frankly, ‘it’s fascism. |
. NSN: What sort of parent participation do’ you have hero? ,

| SPIEKERMANN: We have up to’100 people ‘working as ‘
volunteers, working. with programs,’ etc.,)., ‘during. the -

‘daytime. That’s not the people who participate in programs |
ome there are. any. number. of ‘people who. are: in’ night |
programs — and in the decision-making process, we have of |.

course the association council. The executive is made up of |

. eight parents, two teachers and myself, .

NSN: So‘ you feel that the parents: aro Involve to a- ably
representative degree? .

SPIEKERMANN: Oh yes, absolutely. Ic can ‘tell you 1 of one |
particular parent, who is part of the value school. movement,
who lives in this area and has been putting those pressures - a
on the school, and has been derogatory to some teachers:
and.to myself. I’ve had to’spend.an’ inordinate, amount of

time with her, more thas. anyone else,

. So it finally came to the crunch when 1 said to her, “Look, |

- we can't help you. You've had ample opportunity to’ go to 7
| the: conned and. change, thelr views: and “they; ‘haven't.

— where you, ‘start.. ed

: you. wind Re either boring the ‘bright
in: the

a 7 The one thing w we “have to do in. ‘school :
life and. how. to use the skills they have’ acquired for survival. °

- expense of each other. as ®:

uo Activities., All ‘boys and girls play together,

Up.

" the concept by not.

fe , ;

‘At six feet, three. inches and something over 200 pounds,

- Spiekermann, is an imposing figure, as befits..a former,
basketball: and‘ football’ player. On. the wall. of his office
hangs a poster. depicting a massive ape,. with the. caption,

*“When I want your opinion, ri beat it out of you.’

“His size. “and . forceful personality notwithstanding,

Spiekermann i is totally dedicated to a completely. democratic
approach to education — an 1 ApprSack that ager
‘school officials i in B.C.

a Spiekermann, 34, lives on 1 Bowen: Island’ with his wife |
two children. He is: a | trustee on n the: Sechelt School Be

changed, so ‘maybe. you should move your child.” _
And she says, “‘No way,’’ and I said, ““Why?’’ She said,

“Because at least you listen to me, and I find the answers
‘ honest.) ©

NSN:: What problems come e from this system of planning?

SPIEKERMANN: It. takes: longer. It’s much more efficient:
for one person t to make decisions, but it’s not better. |

NSN: You say y the students have a voice in matters?
SPIEKERMANN: We're held to account. They'll say, “Look,

last year you promised so many things and you didn’t come
across with them. What assurance: ‘do we have that this
- won "t happen this year?”’

NSN: They're learning collective bargaining! a
SPIEKERMANN: ‘Last year, they. ‘said, “we ‘don’t like the

”

‘way this particular person is treating us. And that teacher
“then had to go in front of the student: council and explain.
- why this-had happened. After the: expianation came qut,
everything was all Tight, they: ‘understood it. :

NSN: How do you feel about streaming — — dividing students ,

_ into bright classes and slow classes: in a given subject? |

- you move from that point "P- Where every ‘student i is, that’s.

~

~ NSN: But some ‘teachers argue that it makes teaching more »
~ difficult when yeu ! havea homogeneous mass in a a classroom

panennenc ple group of,

“people woes ‘with. you hehe ow. And you have to deal -

with: those people: évery day of. your, life... ~

Yet in ‘school, where: we. ‘would: éreate: one. evel” here,

© another level there, we somehow feel that after they. leave.
that ‘classroom, they can associate with each‘ other socially.

~ intellectually and so on.. They haye. to live wi each other. ;

And _ survival ‘depends. on each other, rather. than, at: ‘the:

oy t nk’ that we ‘should. Jay ve.in our classrooms —_ - if the
classes ° are small’. ‘enough 1 ome the’ ‘special :child;:: the
_- intellectually: bright-and the intellectually slow:.We: should:
_ have handicapped children in the classtoom, we should have:

the deaf and the blind. But obviously, for.a. teacher. to work": .
in that. situation, it has to bea ‘small class. _

_ democratic partnership. deciding -what will happen here. By
That's why it’s a community. school. .

NSN: This seems to be at the opposite end of the: spectium’ tee Z
SPIEKERMANN: ‘We have. a. totally. integrated | phys « ed

NSN: Are you taking any y stops to break down the teadidonal *

7 roles for boye and girls, BBY, in sports?

program for extracurricular activities as: well as School

‘school?

NSN: Do you foresee the advent of a community secondary, | .

- SPIEKERMANN:. There's : “one going. in: the - Easteris.

‘'Secondary School. All'the: itd went into it; and it was -
» Supposed, to, whe a commun ty school wight from the grotind
Now 1 know the district bucked out of its commitment to’

roviding the funds that were necessary.
. But you don't necc a building to have a community. school.’

‘you?

-°SPIEKERMANN: vés, 1 do. 1 ‘firmly believe in’ atstigtine”
~ but the best. discipline. is self-discipline. 1 do not belleve in
. the strap, I don't believe that strapping does ; any Bood - —_ vine
fact, Ie: upsets me.

{believe that the way: to ret atudenta ta reach ie to find out..

where the problem is, and

have to. involve parents sometimes, ;

down together: m aybe even ‘a counsellor:

~ Pal resent if that’s what's nbeded i
wild resentment in the student. OR

Af you look back through the records, it's always: the sam me. to read. a

" ones gett still there: My experience has been that the: ee rs

ones! getting ‘strapped, so: obvidualy: it ‘didn’t: holp; p;: the.

‘orice it helped was the, Eng elt doing the. strapping: It
beating of children, noth ng | else, a

_NSNt You nat t have met with ‘ lot of trans son, he

cownys

, *§ SPIEKERMANN: Yeah, I do.
NSN: From where? From what at partis? ;

___NSN: School béards? ~

- doing that are frills. So it’

_SPIEKER ANN: ‘believe: in ‘continuous. progress. You
oe acquire a certain skill; you. identify i it, from. year to year, and

NSNt How do. you adminitor Alsetpline in this school, or nde.

t takes: ass rere foo of tine, ‘You, os . of time on that student to make
wit: } a

_ tn the school who, in. kindergarten: ph ,Brade:cnie. was,

s ‘came, righ ht Into may eg:
2 wen ai and sat down bouide: me. pu Recline and.”
story fo mer: a 77 _

SPIEKERMANN: Um... mo

-SPIEKERMANN: Ye&, to some , extent; but 'I-find ‘that the:

-* school board has + Ree very. “Supportive of the community -

~ school concept. .

NSN: Victoria? |

SPIEKERMANN: No,. Victoria’ 's: left n me. 5 alone. Completely
alone. They haven’ t given: us-any. financial: -assistance,. but
then they haven’t given: financial.assistance'to school:boards
such as this orie which has encouraged growth in ‘community:
schools which they should. And now ‘Victoria's. ‘poing'to-cut”
back on its funds, and class: size will: go ‘up and‘

schools may have to. go. RES,

The public i is very upset, they. want this kind of schooling, ~
y.

_and yet their: representative _ over. here, whom
elected, says that .it's one of. the many: th

area will have to decide the: :
vote.

wen happen this yout?

“NSNi Are. students taught a any values in school?

-SPIEKERMANN: Of course: They're ‘taught ‘the: values of”

- materialism. You ask any student," Why are you in schoolt"” |
To get a job; ;

: NSN: So what t Boundary bool doing about ‘thai?

- SPIEKERMANN: Well, what we'te tr ying:to.do is. present
everybody's. point ‘of view: in our. syatem,,-We, are still
_ Propounding middle class values, but the’ avenu ee
Poor to get: nvolyed is there, 2 |

“For instance, there | are many’ single parent familtes,. and
» eye poor. These childret -come! into’ the ‘system: and -
. they're culturally deprived, We hing an: lnbrdinate: amount
im function I aoclety.

-was.a.student:’

'
Hayy ,

‘We’ ve got a classic ‘example of that, Th

thought: to be’ probably : ilies. fo:

life.."We
» tremendous amount of time; on that:

student,'to on

wh
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a
ble: hing:

4

fh month ago ‘that siindiet vii yooffleg: ‘a re

sald, “I'd like to read ees: to: an ” And, he.noad: the: wole,