As a long time elementary teacher, I was ashamed to read that the ETFO voted against sharing their classrooms with early childhood educators.
It appears to be a vote of (mostly) women against women. We have waited decades for universal childcare in Ontario and now teachers are standing in the way of progress. Our ECE grads are also professionals and they are trained to work with babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Most have not been recognized for their dedication to the important work they do and most are underpaid.
We, as teachers, should be the first to acknowledge their worth and expertise in the future of childcare.
Anne Mare McMullen, Stratford
The first thing our new ETFO provincial leader, Sam Hammond put on his agenda was staking out the territory of the newly enlarged, full-day kindergarten program, claiming it for elementary teachers. The ETFO took a survey of 800 Ontarians to back them up in saying, "People want a certified teacher providing instruction within a full-day kindergarten program." But I'll bet the questions were limited in scope and context.The only reason I could oppose ECE people in the classroom is because there was evidence that they were somehow incompetent or underqualified.
Why not propose a partnership of Early Childhood Educators and certified teachers? E.C.E.'s have training, they have great skills, they create programmes, they have a heart for kids, they know how to work with parents, they are sensitive to health and safety issues. Surely a partnership is better than an us-or-them approach, don't you think?
