2021 October 13 – Anonymous Parent from
Chilliwack APFC
APFC, answering a Facebook post today which stated,
I’ve heard that Canada has had this current model of distributed learning for 100 years.
I wonder if this rush to change and standardize it has anything to do with funding, and the loss of numbers of students who are moving to DL during the pandemic.
[Editor note: the hundred years would be a reference to correspondence courses which started in 1919 and are still available, but they split off into distance education which is still offered, but this split off into distributed learning and now Bill 8, in July 2020, has declared that henceforth the correct word is “online”.]
APFC’s answer:
A few things the government has done have been directly related to keeping money in the public system.
1- getting the independent DLs to promise not to enroll new students spring 2020.
2- cutting $12 million to IDL spring 2020 and strongly recommending they charge tuition fees up front for entrance (threatened with more cuts if they didn’t).
3- Misinformation about homeschooling and graduation (only grades 10-12 are required for a Dogwood, but the government made their web pages and public messaging appear as if any grade of homelearning would be an issue, and they also didn’t advertise that DL (OL) counts the same as regular public school for a Dogwood).
4- allowing public districts to set up brand new “transition” programs that were essentially DL but funded at the in person rate instead of the DL rate.
5- waiting until directly after the school funding deadline to change mask mandates (I’m all for the mandates personally, but it was a bit unfair of them to wait until just after people could have enrolled in a DL to make those changes).
There are probably more, but this is long.
[Editor note: It is difficult for parents to go public about their views out of consideration for their child’s privacy and their school’s reputation in the ongoing struggle.]
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