The Beginning of Education in British Columbia
Since the colonial era in British Columbia, people have had something to say about schools. It is because schools are a great meeting place and easily the most accessible of all institutions, which serve as a ready forum for the expression of diverse ideas, cultural values, political views and agendas, personal sentiments and beliefs along with individual dreams and aspirations. We have all been to school, and therefore, we all able to express our points of view, wants and needs.
People's views and understandings about schools change with time - as well as their expectations for them. Changes are important in order to meet the demands of modern society, and have occurred since the first school was established in Fort Victoria more than 160 years ago.
Education in British Columbia began as soon as there were people on the land over 10,000 years ago. It began with parents or grandparents teaching youngsters what was necessary for survival. The many diverse native groups educated their children in an oral tradition rich in music, law, legend, folklore, ethics, and spirituality. They were also taught the dangers and resources of life in their environments, including the name of all things on land, in the water, and in the sky. They also learned inherited rights and privileges, and genealogical relationships going back for generations. They also understood "rithmetic" which made them keen and skillful with bargaining skills that astonished the first European traders on the coast.
Patterns of learning characteristics of aboriginal life changed with the first permanent settlement by Europeans. As the Europeans, looked to solidify economic control in the Pacific Northwest, the Hudson's Bay Company built a fort on Vancouver Island in 1842. With the construction of the fort came new and formal agencies for schooling. In 1849, the first boarding and teaching of students consisted of 17 boys and girls. At the same time, thee Hudson's Bay chief factor, James Douglas was also concerned about furnishing schools for the children of other settlers, which he described as the "laboring classes."
The role of the Board of Education
The level of education service goes beyond mandated provincial curriculum. It must include some allowance for local curriculum decisions. Parents, educators and trustees have many ideas about how education can be improved. However, the level of provincial funding will require deciding which level of service the province will support.
Setting the level of funding requires converting the recognized common level of service into the amount of resources that will be required. For example, the student/educator ratio for an intermediate program, the number of counsellors for a large secondary school, the energy required to heat school buildings, and so on.
However, there is very little consensus among educators on appropriate class size. Another concern is purchasing the required resources such as the cost of text books, and the cost of hiring a custodian. Because provincial funding is usually decided in anticipation of the school year ahead, and costs change during the school year as labour contracts are signed, and inflation pushes up the price of supplies.
All of this goes beyond a mandated provincial curriculum.
The role of the Board of Education
The Board of Education is responsible for public schools (K-12), early learning and adult literacy. They share these responsibilities as co-governors with the provincial Ministry of Education. Boards provide district-level policy leadership that enhances student achievement, hire and manage the senior district staff, and ensure the careful use and control of the district resources. Locally elected boards of education provides the local autonomy and work to increase community confidence in public education.
Boards carry out their work by keeping in touch with their local communities, meeting on regular basis, reviewing recommendations and reports from staff, and making decisions in the best interest of the students and the district. Trustees must work together to carry out their responsibilities . Individual trustees may not make decisions on behalf of the district.
People's views and understandings about schools change with time - as well as their expectations for them. Changes are important in order to meet the demands of modern society, and have occurred since the first school was established in Fort Victoria more than 160 years ago.
Education in British Columbia began as soon as there were people on the land over 10,000 years ago. It began with parents or grandparents teaching youngsters what was necessary for survival. The many diverse native groups educated their children in an oral tradition rich in music, law, legend, folklore, ethics, and spirituality. They were also taught the dangers and resources of life in their environments, including the name of all things on land, in the water, and in the sky. They also learned inherited rights and privileges, and genealogical relationships going back for generations. They also understood "rithmetic" which made them keen and skillful with bargaining skills that astonished the first European traders on the coast.
Patterns of learning characteristics of aboriginal life changed with the first permanent settlement by Europeans. As the Europeans, looked to solidify economic control in the Pacific Northwest, the Hudson's Bay Company built a fort on Vancouver Island in 1842. With the construction of the fort came new and formal agencies for schooling. In 1849, the first boarding and teaching of students consisted of 17 boys and girls. At the same time, thee Hudson's Bay chief factor, James Douglas was also concerned about furnishing schools for the children of other settlers, which he described as the "laboring classes."
The role of the Board of Education
The level of education service goes beyond mandated provincial curriculum. It must include some allowance for local curriculum decisions. Parents, educators and trustees have many ideas about how education can be improved. However, the level of provincial funding will require deciding which level of service the province will support.
Setting the level of funding requires converting the recognized common level of service into the amount of resources that will be required. For example, the student/educator ratio for an intermediate program, the number of counsellors for a large secondary school, the energy required to heat school buildings, and so on.
However, there is very little consensus among educators on appropriate class size. Another concern is purchasing the required resources such as the cost of text books, and the cost of hiring a custodian. Because provincial funding is usually decided in anticipation of the school year ahead, and costs change during the school year as labour contracts are signed, and inflation pushes up the price of supplies.
All of this goes beyond a mandated provincial curriculum.
The role of the Board of Education
The Board of Education is responsible for public schools (K-12), early learning and adult literacy. They share these responsibilities as co-governors with the provincial Ministry of Education. Boards provide district-level policy leadership that enhances student achievement, hire and manage the senior district staff, and ensure the careful use and control of the district resources. Locally elected boards of education provides the local autonomy and work to increase community confidence in public education.
Boards carry out their work by keeping in touch with their local communities, meeting on regular basis, reviewing recommendations and reports from staff, and making decisions in the best interest of the students and the district. Trustees must work together to carry out their responsibilities . Individual trustees may not make decisions on behalf of the district.
