The community held its second all candidates’ debate here on Oct. 7.
Candidates for the Upper Grand District School Board led off.
Kathryn Cooper, who is challenging Ralph Edwards, explained her qualifications as a teacher, businesswoman, and mother. Her goal is to introduce progressive measures to the board’s policies, copying the best ideas introduced in other jurisdictions.
She desires an increased level of interaction between the schools and the communities they serve, and proposes to introduce a wide range of eco-friendly policies, both in curriculum and in the board’s management of it’s facilities.
Incumbent Ralph Edwards mentioned his 10 years of service and experience on the board, and his work with Erin’s Centre 2000 committee. He described himself as an advocate for solving bussing issues, and believes that more can be done with the all-day kindergarten program. He stated that he is the trustee who “gets the job done.”
In response to a question on the accessibility of schools for community uses, Edwards said that boards are constrained by provincial policies that required outside users to cover all costs associated with their rental of facilities. He said the policies are still evolving. Kathryn Cooper’s position is that the board must find ways to offer facilities at reasonable rates.
Several questions related to the future and the best ways to prepare students for it. Kathryn Cooper stated that children must be better prepared on a practical level, and must develop a better ethic toward the economy and the environment. She is in favour of a wide range of programs involving practical education, including the use of volunteers in schools, work terms, apprenticeships, and co-op programs.
Ralph Edwards regretted that decisions over the past generation, largely to save money, had gutted the shop programs in schools, and that skilled tradesman now have to be recruited outside Canada. He is a strong advocate of co-op programs, and would like to see the schools take the lead in training machinists, mechanics, electricians, and plumbers.
Environmental issues came up several times during the sessions. Both candidates took a dim view of the use of bottled drinking water in the schools. Edwards stated that the board had looked at the issue, but had decided to wait for a promised provincial policy that was never announced. He favours reopening the issue at the board.
The candidates were in agreement that the board could do more to make their schools more environmentally friendly and efficient. Cooper thought that improvements in schools should involve teachers and students, not just staff and trustees, and that the exercise could be a practical experience for students. Edwards believes that roof panels, grey water re-use, and retrofitting could save taxpayers a great deal of money.
Both candidates indicated some support for standardized testing, with some reservations. Cooper stated that other measures should be used in conjunction with the tests. Edwards admitting that the testing can point to weak areas in the teaching of the curriculum, but noted that it puts unreasonable pressures on staff and students. He thought that a major change in provincial policy must come from the lobbying of teachers.
