By IM McD WELL
> “We wanit to keep the
winners in. our teaching
group,”
Vancouver - School
Board trustee Carl
Hunter at_last—week’s
board meeting.

“The problem is,”
noted board chairman
Audrey Sojonky, “how
these people are
selected.”

~ And one _gentleman
in the. audience’ said:
“Eyeryone’s getting
mixed up.” °

The West Vancouver
Board has a pool of 82
temporary teachers on one
year’ contracts.
teachers get. every
spring, spend their summer
hoping for a new temporary
contract, or look for em-
ployment .elsewhere. Some

ince |

_ Superintendent Ed Carlin

has suggested 20 to 25 of -

these teachers be given
continuing contracts for two
reasons: teachers ‘have
recently ‘left the system
faster. than enrolment ‘has
declined, and he'd like to
give. some of the “better”
teachers more job security.

Carlin claims it won't Gost:

the district more money to
¢ make this switch in status.
“This board has more pupils
per teacher than any ‘district
in the metro area,” boasted

Carlin. “We have the highest

elementary class size in the
province with the exception
of Courtenay. The key is to

maintain quality teaching, -

because the research doesn’t
show that class size affects
achievement.”

“The Public Schools Act
permits dropping teachers
on continuing contracts if
enrolment declines,” Carlin
noted. These teachers would
be fired on the basis of
seniority.

AGAINST TENURE

“Continuing appointment -
_. doesnot Bive™ lifetime em-
ployment,” said Sojonky.
But she’s concerned about
how to promote the 25

temporary teachers, and no

one had clear solutions.

“{ don’t care whether you
call it lifetime contract or
tenure,” said trustee Mark

, ‘Sager.

Said West.

These-

“it's basically “a
philosophical ‘question, and

I'm: against’ tenure for all

teachers. If ‘an’ employee
can’t measure up then he
shouldn't be retained.” But
Sager’s concern with_
competence or com-
plicates the issue, because
competence is a “no-no” as
Sojonky was quick to > point

- out.

“We're not talking about
competence,” she said.

-“We're looking at-.teacher

skills.” And she promised
that the board -would_..
develop criteria for choosing

the 25. teachers soon. She did |
not set a date.
But trustee Norman

Alban, personnel committee
chairman, asserted: “Of
course we have criteria for
selecting the teachers,”
seeming to _ contradict .
Sojonky’s statement that
guidelines are still being
worked up. Alban did not
specify. the criteria.

aid-he’d be ready
to make Staffing decisions in
about three weeks, yet he
didn’t say whose standards
he was following.

The board has been
swamped with letters of
concern about the — issue.
When a- woman in the
audience asked, ‘Isn't
‘anyone on the board against
this plan? I'd like to hear the
other side of the issue,” only
Sager _answered diréctly,

coming out against “tenure.”

“DEMORALIZING”"

i. Hunter took a “wait-and-
see” stance ‘saying: “The
téacher’s Association and
the board are working
together to try and mitigate
the upset— among the tem- .
“porary teachers.”

The board seems to think
it can treat all the temporary
teachers as if they. were -
being interviewed for the
first time, follow some sort
of selection criteria, but
overlook seniority if
necessary.

Meanwhile the 82 tem-
porary teachers-

“winners” will be.

“It's hard to imagine
anything more demoralizing

than the frustrations of
temporary assignment,” said
Hillside teacher Patty

Boyle. “The board is abusing
people on temporary

wait”
~enxiously to see who the

contract. They 1 have. at least
28 people on leave they can’t.
explain.” Boyle says these

people should be replaced
by temporary teachers.

Jim Cook, president of the

“West Vancouver Teacher's

Association, claims at least
32 such teachers are. on
leave, and the association is
pushing -for. 35 temporary |

teachers to be advanced to .

continuing assignments.

“Our temporary - téachers.
are insecure,”
“They've been left hanging ~

long enough, and we. still

don’t have a clue as to when. —

staffing for next year is going
to be done. The board has

drawn up at least. four

selection lists, and 70 per

‘cent of the same names keep

. showing up. So why worry.

_ about who's best?

“We've got lots_of good
though district
needs and certain special

eacn 5.

. skills need to be considered,

much more weight should be
given to seniority.”

“I hope our temporary
teachers don’t think their
association. feels  they’re
expendable,” said Cook.
“We don't see them as.
cannon fodder. We expect to
be able to give them a
rationale for who _ gets
selected.”

The pressure of declining
enrolment is likely to
continue fueling the long
unresolved debate over
quality teaching. -

1979
International Year
of the Child

Unicef Canadas

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Page A7, June 7, 1979- Sunday News

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