Should British Columbia Government Fund Private Schools?

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The British Columbia government has been exploiting their residents for far too long, by quietly promoting the private schools of the region. Although many are not aware, the BC government is withdrawing tax money and awarding it to independent schools. There is clearly a flaw in this system, where “independent” schools become reliant on government handouts. This amoral implementation of government funding is having profound effects on the schooling careers of public school students all across the province. Firstly, funding private schools takes away from public school funding, and therefor impedes the ability of students to learn. Secondly, funding for private schools strengthens their roles in our communities, and sparks debates on who deserves …show more content…

While private schools finish every year with impressive surpluses of funding, almost every public school board within BC is in a deficit. Despite budget cuts becoming increasingly more evident throughout the province, government is showing no signs of changing its fiscal policies. Last year the only high school in Osoyoos was forced to shut down due to meager government funding, now residents have to send their children 22 kilometres away to the nearest high school in Oliver (Hyslop). Cuts are having tremendously large effects on small towns across BC, but they are also evident in the big cities. The majority of schools in Vancouver are still in need of seismic upgrades to better protect students and staff in case of an emergency. In fact 21 schools in Vancouver are classified as “H1” which means that they are very likely to collapse during an earthquake (Smyth). Shouldn’t the safety of students be the number one priority of the school board? In smaller departments public underfinancing has also had some increasingly serious cutbacks in recent years, as many key, non- teaching public school programs have been cut or greatly reduced (Bacchus). These programs include library department staffing, special needs teachers, and counselling staff, none of these budget cuts should be tolerated but especially not the reduction of special education. Special needs teachers are key to the development of a special needs student, and cutting the program is a violation of the student’s right to learn (Quinn). This complete lack of ethical practice from the BC liberals should not be

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