Grade 7 students at Armstrong Elementary are appealing to Premier Christy Clark, the school board and the B.C. Teachers' Federation to try to reverse their teachers' decision to cancel a field trip because of the job action.
The two-day field trip to Timberline Ranch in Maple Ridge has been an endof-year tradition for Armstrong's Grade 7 students for more than 20 years. The teachers normally do the field trip on paid and volunteer time, because it takes place while school is in session but involves staying overnight.
"When we found out we weren't able to go to Timberline, it really sucked," said 12-year-old Cassandra Boyle. "So we decided if we spoke up about it, it could actually do something and maybe we could actually get to go."
According to Cassandra, the students were disappointed when they learned their field trip was cancelled.
"Most kids were looking forward to it since the day they came to school. It's something all kids look forward to when they come to Armstrong," she said. "I guess some people were asking all these questions to see if there was even the slightest chance to go to Timberline, and everyone was really upset."
Cassandra and some of her friends have been leading the letter-writing campaign and have about 30 fellow students on board.
"We met up at recess and lunch, and figured out what was really wrong with the situation," she said. They then drafted letters on behalf of the Grade 7s to send to the BCTF, the premier and the school board. According to Cassandra, the kids are leading the initiative.
"It's mostly just the students, but we have full support from our parents. Some of the situations were pretty hard to understand, so our parents helped with that, but it was mostly the Grade 7s," Cassandra said.
When asked what she thought about the teachers' right not to volunteer, Cassandra replied: "Then I guess the time we spent fundraising and what we were promised was kind of pointless then and telling us we would be going and just saying no."
Armstrong mom Janice Beecroft is trying to organize a group of parents to take on the field trip instead. She handed out a letter at the school for kids to take home, asking parents if they would like to see the field trip go ahead with parental supervision. The field trip is two-and-a-half days, and the group typically stays overnight. According to Beecroft, all of the parents who responded were supportive and eager to see the field-trip plans back on.
"I can't even tell you the emails I've been receiving," she said. "The responses I got actually brought me to tears."
Beecroft is also trying to get the $1,750 raised for the field trip released from the school.
The teachers' job action started in September, after little progress in contract negotiations between the BCTF and the B.C. Public School Employers' Association, the bargaining agent for the provincial government. The partial strike mostly covers administrative work, and teachers have not been issuing report cards or meeting with administration. Since volunteer activities are, by nature, optional, they weren't supposed to be affected by the job action, but teachers always have a right to refuse.
To read the field trip cancellation letter sent to parents, or a list of what's covered by the teachers' strike, go to Jennifer Moreau's blog, at www.burnabynow.com and click on the Opinion tab.
