AI0- The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, June 10, 1998 Children must come first An open letter to: Chairman, Coast Mountains School District Dear Sir: Education, in the broadest sense, is education of both mind and body, realizing that this cannol be accomplished - wilhout education of the ars; primarily, art, literature, and tnusic, A well educaled and well balanced person is one in whont the artistic side has been educated and nurtured in cqual proportion to the science, technical and physical side. May I suggest a fundamentally and radically different way of approaching the school district’s budget. E, For good education, a reasonable tcacher/pupil ratio might be 25 children per class. One works out how many teachers would be needed and hires that amount of well rounded teachers first. 2. Amongst the teachers in the lower grades one needs a mix with strengths in music, art, and physical education, as well as. the. usual. requirements. Physical education being nol necessarily only sports. Physical well-being would probably reach a greater num- ber of students if acrobics or dance were langht in place of, or as well as, sports. This would ensure that all pupils, tegardless of their athletic ability, exercised regularly. Remember, we are not concerned about the glory of the school (as in sports medals, etc.) We are concerned about ie health and well being of the child. Alse one needs a good musical teacher to teach singing and band, For a lot of children, and some of those who are nol academically inclined, this is an area where they can excel, and in fact this mighi even be the sole period in their day which would make school attendance bearable. Music is known to have a very beneficial effect on one’s cmations and general sense of well being. The same would hold true for art. 3. Next one needs adequate librarian services, books, supplics and janitors, etc. Maintenance of the schools and school grounds and all that entails. 4, Each school necds a principal and probably a secre- CORRESPONDENCE FOR THE TERRACE STANDARD ‘The Mail Bag 5. I also suggest special needs children be given their own classroom with their own teacher/care givers, thus lessening the disruption in the regular classrooms for the other children. For those parents who are concerned that their special needs children will be shunted off out of the mainstream, I Suggest a system similar to one which was in the school [ attended, where the pupils are assigned one particular spe- cial need child, to look out for a and spend time with each day during tecess and lunch breaks, This could be rotated. Tt would teach the children t@ be caring of those less fortunate than themselves. The'special needs child would have the benefit of interaction with their own peers. After all these absojute necessities have been met, one then sees how much is left over for the frills, These being the administrators and so called ‘‘experts’’. One hires what one can afford after child oriented needs are filled. This is in reverse of the current trend where it appears high priced administrators and non-producing personnel are hired (and very well looked after, thank youl) and then one sees what is left over for the children. This results in Investment Advisor Ask For cuts to programs, even if these would be detrimental to the Richard Stanton at 635-8888. Our Free overall education and well being of the child. Faint I hope the message is clear. Which school would you j 24 his a day,7 days a week. ESh send your child to if you had the choice between the first RBC Brochure Ee premise and the second? DOMINION , Susan Mehs, Terrace B.C. SECURITIES iw Professional Wealth Management The Federal | Government Believes This Child’s Post-Secondary Education Is Good For Canada. 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Two administrative boards under one roof appear to slill remain with expense ac- counts, retreats that are paid for by our tax dollars and district vehicles. Where are the cul backs in all of this? In May special services assistants had their hours cut or were laid off with no jobs. Forty four teachers were also given lay off notices, yet few if any ad- ministralive or district posi- tions scem to have been cut. Administration says they are there for the children and that they promote edu- cation, yet they are cutting the children’s right to an ed- ucation by cutting services ou the front lines most necded to ensure that right, Adinuinistration is asking district employees to work more wilh less. My hope is that my voice will not stand alone and that others will demand con- structive changes in this dis- trict and ils administralion. Monica Simms, New Hazeiton, B.C. Smells Dear Sir: Compost is an organic . substance which no matter how long it is left will not harm anyone or anything. Yes, it may offend our noses at some point and lime, but is it any worse than smells of propane and diesel trucks and buses? What is more smelly than compost is dog and cat ex- crenient. I will go out to pull weeds from my garden and the next thing 1] know I’m digging in a nice smelly pile of dog or cat manure. Maybe the people who complain about the compost and grass clipping should think before speaking, I{ we are not allowed smelly compost, maybe we should not be allowed to have smelly cars, trucks and BBQs, or anything another person finds smelly, Maybe we should just all slay inside so our noses will not be offended, Worry about what’s smel- ty and could kilt you, not what’s smelly and will feed you and your families. Kathy Burnett, Terrace, B,C, As good ses : asitgets, Better™. ff ExpressVu". 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