Letter - Peter Fassbender - Minister of Education

Neil E. Thomson

nthomson2@yahoo.ca

Hon. Peter Fassbender
Minster of Education
Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC
V8V 1X4

E-mail: peter.fassbender.mla@leg.bc.ca

Dear Sir,

This letter is in response to the Globe and Mail Article “Pushing for a 10 year teachers’ deal” published June 21, 2013.

It is stated in the article that it is an intention of your government, as stated by Ms. Clarke, to seek 10 years of stability in the education system.  The article also states that your focus is to secure said stability by garnering an employment deal with the BC Teachers Federation. This “mission” seems to hold as a presumption that the only challenge facing the education system is teacher’s wages and benefits; I am concerned your tenure as education minister may have already been defined by the box handed you, rather than a vision of reinvigoration for our schools, our children and our province.

Our system is grossly underperforming, perhaps not by benchmarking, wherever the rankings put us – whether it is 10^th or 20^th, it is still under performing, because most of the world's education systems are hampered by the same conventions as ours. We are seeking to excel, to use the education of our youth to foster regional advantage, to move us up the intellectual capital food chain – most importantly to close the productivity gap that exists between us and the US and the rest of OECD.  A decade of status quo will never help us achieve the above.

There are fundamental and structural challenges with the education system as it now exists; unless they are addressed, we will be looking back in ten years saying we’ve fallen further behind. The very last thing we want in the education system is “stability”, what we need is disruption. The present flow of funds and system access for new participants is stifling our ability to bring the exchange of information up to speed with the world economy and knowledge growth in general. There is decadence in the system as it now exists; the monolithic nature of the BC Education System is grossly retarding the overall absorptive capacity of the system to utilize new techniques and technologies.  

I would, if I may, encourage you to; firstly, read my suggestions for reform at http://nthomson2.blogspot.ca/2013/06/education-system-reform.html, and secondly, go to the premier and cabinet, and chart a more adventures course than “stability”. Chart a course of modernization, of progress, of an increased tempo of information exchange – to do otherwise robs British Columbia of our best opportunity for a productive and prosperous future.  While I supported Mr. Campbell and support Ms. Clarke, the education system has been stagnate, as opposed to stable, under their leadership.  I understand the political realities associated with change in the system of this sort, I suggest, however, reform is wanting; political capital and leadership must be invested.  

Sincerely,

Neil E. Thomson