All students deserve to be safe and secure while at school The Manitoba government intends to improve how it handles teacher misconduct. In a recent news release, Education Minister Wayne Ewasko said his department is consulting with key stakeholders about this issue. It’s about time the province tackles this problem. The latest report from the…
School trustees must approve budgets, hire key personnel, determine policy priorities, and ensure proper transportation for students
Manitoba trustee elections take place later this month. While some candidates have already been acclaimed, voters in other parts of the province have quite a few candidates to choose from. We should not take this election for granted. At this time last year, it looked like there wouldn’t be any trustee elections at all. However,…
A secretariat to oversee equity officers won't empower students from disadvantaged backgrounds
Earlier this year, a group called Equity Matters asked the province of Manitoba to establish an education equity secretariat to oversee equity officers working in Manitoba schools. Equity Matters wants to ensure that all Manitoba students are reflected in the curriculum and at all public education system staff levels. They don’t want any student to…
New legislation will allow Manitoba to follow the lead of Canada’s biggest provinces, creating clear lines between management and staff
Principals and teachers shouldn’t be in the same union. That was a key recommendation of the Manitoba Commission on Kindergarten to Grade 12 Education report. Clearly, the Manitoba government has taken this recommendation to heart. Bill 64, the Education Modernization Act, proposes to remove principals and vice-principals from teacher bargaining units. This is a significant…
Ignorance is the surest path to misunderstanding. And if it’s not addressed, misunderstanding quickly descends into intolerance
“Amen and awoman.” This was how a U.S. congressman concluded a prayer recently in the House of Representatives. No doubt he meant to be inclusive of both men and women. However, he sounded ridiculous. That’s because the word “amen” comes from Hebrew and means “so be it.” Amen has nothing to do with gender. This…
It’s time the provincial government took over taxation decisions, merged school divisions and put a lid on spending
On Oct. 24, Manitoba voters head to the polls to elect school trustees. But citizens are increasingly disaffected by school board politics and the turnout may be low. Many wonder if it’s worth voting at all. There are, however, good reasons to get involved. In August, Manitoba’s premier shuffled his cabinet and appointed a new…
What can be done about it?
Dear Ian Wishart, Manitoba Minister of Education and Training: As someone who has taught history at the University of Manitoba for 25 years, I’m deeply interested in learning more about your government’s plans for post-secondary education in the province. Having read both the mandate that the premier gave you on May 3, 2016, as you…
Why is the university pretending indigenous knowledge and science are the equivalent of our written knowledge base? Why are they allowing this farce to unfold?
I recently listened to an interview of the new head of the University of Manitoba’s Indigenous Knowledge department on CBC radio. She articulately explained that “traditional knowledge” and “indigenous science” have been vital to the survival of the aboriginal culture. A hunter-gatherer culture depended on information about the movement of animals, weather changes and the…