Vancouver Sun Letter: 2008 June 25
In her June 24 letter, Cherryl Katnich said that if teachers are concerned about the lack of learning time in schools, perhaps there should be fewer professional days.
She is probably not aware that the teachers' professional association requested that the government add extra days to the school year so teachers could attend workshops that would enhance teaching practice.
If professional days were no longer taken, then it would stand to reason that the school year would be shortened by the same number of days.
This doesn't seem like a very good outcome for the students, who benefit from their teachers being up to date on the latest research in their areas of education.
As a primary teacher and teacher-librarian in the Surrey school district, I have attended hundreds of events, most of which I paid for myself, as funding for professional development is very limited.
Helen Fielding, Vancouver
