School reviews and closures have sadly become a fact of life in rural Saskatchewan.
Now there are some guidelines available to help school boards and communities get through the process.
The government has produced a handbook with the help of school divisions that have already undertaken reviews.
South East Cornerstone, Prairie South, Saskatchewan Rivers, Horizon and Sun West all contributed material explaining how they did it.
The book has no legal standing and is for information only. The Education Act, which was amended earlier this year, governs school reviews and closures.
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It sets out criteria based on enrolments and distance to the nearest schools, explains how to establish a review committee and timelines and outlines the schools of opportunity designation that allows reprieves.
“With the significant changes the government of Saskatchewan has made to the school review process and the introduction of the new schools of opportunity designation, we wanted to provide a resource that supports students, parents and school divisions,” said education minister Ken Krawetz.
One chapter in the handbook emphasizes the importance of communication. Creating annual profiles of each school in a division and posting them on the website, for example, allows everyone involved to track enrolment, staff numbers, the physical condition of the building and projections for the future.
“Open communication begins long before a school review is even considered, with posting of school profiles and school division policies and procedures relating to school review,” the book said.
The roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders are also outlined.
Boards have until Oct. 15 each year to place schools under review.
Basic criteria in the Education Act for a review include:
- The distance between the school and the nearest potential school for Kindergarten to Grade 8 students is less than 40 kilometres.
- At least 90 percent of these students live within 75 minutes of the nearest school.
- The board arranges and pays for transportation that minimizes transit time for those who live more than 75 minutes away.
To trigger a review the projected enrolments for the next school year would be expected to be at least: 25 for Kindergarten to Grade 4; 30 for K-5; 37 for K-6; 44 for K-7; 51 for K-8; 58 for K-9; and 88 for K-12.
Schools that don’t meet these criteria and are slated for closure might be considered schools of opportunity if they are situated in communities experiencing economic turnaround and possible growth.
Communities must prepare proposals for the education minister outlining how economic activity would increase enrolment within 20 months.
If successful, the schools would remain open for up to two years to see if they are indeed viable.
“As far as I’m concerned the minister of education has given communities and organizations a really heavy homework assignment that quite frankly I think he’s hoping is never handed in,” said NDP education critic Trent Wotherspoon.
He expects few communities will take on the task. He also noted the Saskatchewan Party government was supposed to provide “a grand solution” to stave off school closures.
“Now we’re seeing a handbook that sort of galvanizes the best practice” for closing them, he said.
The handbook is available at www.education.gov.sk.ca.
Helping with homework
Here are tips from the Alberta education department for how parents can help their children with homework.
- Set a regular time during which your child needs to do his homework.
- Ensure the room your child studies in is quiet, has plenty of light and has school supplies close at hand. Remove distractions by turning off the television and discourage social phone calls during homework time.
- Show an interest. Ask your child about school activities and talk about what was discussed in school that day. Take your child to the library to check out materials for homework, and make time to read with your child as often as you can.
- Find out the school’s policy on homework at the beginning of the school year. Ask your child’s teachers about the kind of assignments that will be given and what time frame the child has to complete them.
- Be involved. Ask the teacher how you can help with homework. Be available to answer your child’s questions, look over completed assignments, and encourage your child to share returned assignments so you can read the teacher’s comments.
- Understand your child’s learning style so you can support how he or she learns best.
- Discuss homework with your child. Talking about an assignment can help your child think it through and break it down into small, workable parts.
- Provide encouragement.
