According to CTV News, approximately 300 students from Smiths Falls District Collegiate skipped school on December 10th, gathered in the school cafeteria to protest a lack of extra curricular activities because of a labour dispute between their teachers and the Ontario government. The students plan to skip classes again on December 11th and possibly for the rest of the week.
In their argument with the government, teachers around the province have withdrawn their volunteer time to supervise soccer, football, clubs and similar out of class activities. One student is reported to say that ‘students are stuck in the middle of the labour dispute’. That same student started a teacher-supervised Friendship Club, last year, for those who feel bullied and alone at school. Of course, that club has also been cancelled. How ironic is that? Sadly, the students are bullied by a powerful teacher’s union and a government buried in deficit. Students play the wait-it-out game, sometimes silently, sometimes vocally with the hope that school will soon be a happy place again with a return to normal activities. Bravo to the students in Smiths Falls for making their voices heard. No one should be a silent victim of bullying. Mary Carver, P.H.Ec. - Ottawa Ontario Home Economics Association © 2012
2 Comments
Jane Smith
4/7/2013 05:30:54 pm
As you are from Ottawa, perhaps you are ignorant of the kind of students that attend SFDCI. I am sure that some of the students that left school definitely believed in the cause. However, I am sure that the majority of the students were just happy to be out of class. Class absenteeism has been and continues to be a major problem at this school. It is difficult to get students to even go to fun activities that are organized specifically for them. For example, some teachers from the school went to a lot of trouble to organize an entire house system, which was very well done. It failed from lack of student participation (students were allowed out of class; about three quarters of the school population simply skipped and either went home or went to the nearby mall). Perhaps you should put a little more effort into researching the background of your next tirade against teachers.
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7/24/2013 10:28:45 pm
Extra curricular activities are a must for the overall development of the students. This will help to make them confident and ready to face situations. I extend my full support to the students of the Smiths Falls high school.
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