Here we go, the Government of Saskatchewan’s so-called parents’ bill of rights. First, let’s set aside the very fact that a lot of students don’t have parents in their lives because we’re using 1950s logic here. Now, let’s unpack this bullet-point by bullet -point….
• act as the primary decision-maker with respect to the pupil’s education; In what way? What does this mean in practical terms?
• be informed on a regular basis of the pupil’s attendance, behaviour and academic achievement in school;
Families receive this information ad nauseam unless they aren’t on Edsby which is usually a choice. Teachers do their best to support families who might have challenges accessing the online platform.
• consult with the pupil’s teachers and other employees of the school with respect to the pupil’s courses of study and academic achievement;
We have conferences a couple times a year. I regularly speak with parents, reply to messages on both Edsby and via emails. We often have meetings or phone calls outside these times to discuss matters.
• have access to the pupil’s school file;
Always do. Ask the school office. Families will find documents like report cards or registration forms.
• receive information respecting the courses of study available to the pupil, including online learning, and to make decisions as to which courses of study the pupil enrolls in;
Yes, we do a great job of this every spring when we have registration sessions for students. Information is on the registration forms and often on school websites. Just a note but why do we need to explicitly promote online learning? To prop up the government’s new distance learning crown corporation perhaps?
• be informed of the code of conduct and administrative policies, including discipline and behaviour management policies, of the school;
On school and division websites. Ask the office if you can’t find this information.
• be informed of any disciplinary action or investigation taken by the school in relation to the pupil’s conduct;
Families are always contacted if disciplinary action is taken.
• if the pupil has been expelled from school, request a review and reconsideration of the expulsion after the expiration of one year;
Already being done… this is from Regina Public’s administrative procedures.
And if you love reading educational policies like I do, here is a fun way to spend your day. https://www.reginapublicschools.ca/administrative_procedures#A300
• be informed and consulted in relation to the pupil’s school attendance problems;
Similar to point #2. Families are contacted for every single absence then again at 5 absences, 10 absences, and it goes from there.
• be consulted in or request a review in relation to the pupil’s capacity to learn;
We have 3-way conferences, parent-teacher conferences or celebrations of learning at least twice a year.
• excuse the pupil from participating in the opening exercises;
What are opening exercises? Examples please.
• be consulted before any medical or dental examination or treatment is provided to the pupil;
We do this.
• if sexual health content is to be presented to pupils in the school:
o at least two weeks before the sexual health content is presented to the pupils, be informed by the principal of:
the subject matter of the sexual health content;
the dates on which the sexual health content is to be presented to the pupils; and
if the parent or guardian so chooses, withdraw the pupil from the presentation of the sexual health content by giving written notice to the principal;
First, sexual health education is extremely important. That said, this reads as an opt out policy and I’m fine with that language. Again, unnecessary as this was generally being done already and it is part of the Saskatchewan curriculum created by, guess who, this government!
• if the pupil is under 16 years of age, provide consent before the pupil’s teachers and other employees of the school use the pupil’s new gender-related preferred name or gender identity at school;
Buried deep within Bill-137, we finally find the policy that was already being debated in the courts with evidence and due process. But that wasn’t good enough for a government who knows they are wrong and must win this fight no matter who they hurt (vulnerable trans and queer youth) to win political points. I haven’t had a lot of respect for this government because of how they have treated teachers and public education over the past ten years but did not think they would ever sink this low. A judge stated this policy would cause irreparable harm to kids. One would think an ounce of humanity might spark within at least one Sask Party MLA, but they have all shown who they are in the worst possible way. Irreparable harm? They don’t care.
• be a member of the school community council or the conseil d’école, as the case may be, of the school.
Yes, please do!!! This has always been an option and families are made aware of meeting times.
If you made it this far, thanks for hanging in there with me. My first reaction to Bill 137 was that we do all these things already and, after closer examination, this rings true except for the new pronoun policy. Why all the extra filler? To try to rationalize all this is new and novel and, once again, to cast doubt upon teachers’ professionalism and the quality of our public school system. Ten to fifteen years ago, I could say with certainty that Saskatchewan had one of the best public school systems in the world. In the past ten years, the Sask Party has done their best to undo what took decades for the government in collaboration with teachers (yes, this was a thing) to build. That said, please keep writing your MLAs, attending the rallies for public education, and supporting Saskatchewan’s hard-working and dedicated teachers who want the best for their students. Teachers deserve better. Saskatchewan kids deserve better. We all need to come together to make this message heard loud and clear.
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