The Delusion of Choice

A recent district news release on September 5th, 2006 indicates that the district has chosen to attach completion of the portfolio by grade 12 students to the Passport to Education. Dr. John Phipps, Assistant Superintendent of Educational Programs has indicated, in the context of announced Ministry changes to the 2006-07 grade 12 student portfolio requirements, that: “These students now have the option of making their portfolio presentations and receiving a mark for their work. Under the Ministry of Education guidelines, the portfolio mark will make up 75 percent of the calculation for eligibility for the Passport to Education. This is a real opportunity for students who might not otherwise be eligible to earn the $500 Grade 12 Passport to Education scholarship credit.”

However, the Ministry of Education portfolio website states otherwise:

• Schools "may" use the Portfolio mark to calculate Grade 12 Passport award stamps.
• Schools should apply the Grade 10 and 11 Passport award stamp criteria to students who have elected to use SG.

(Full text for this policy is the 2006/2007 Handbook of Procedures on page 113)

In other words, it is the schools' choice to tie the Grade 12 Passport to education to the completion of the portfolio. However, the district is attempting to make it appear that it is the Ministry guidelines that are requiring this when the reality is that the Ministry is providing district schools with that choice.

Students and their parents are once again being subjected to conflicting district and provincial educational political messages in, what I can only guess, is an effort to deflect blame in the same way district students were treated with the CTC situation; a most unprofessional conduct by the district and ministry leadership. It remains to be seen what version of the truth will be disseminated by school administrators.

The district and ministry leadership have put these kids and their parents through enough bullshit to award all of them with a 100% mark and $500 in compensation for surviving a seriously flawed implementation of a BC educational policy.