The Nova Scotia Teachers Union is pleased with the province’s commitment to hire 190 new positions for inclusive education.
However, they say government needs to follow through on other recommendations from the Commission On Inclusive Education’s report.
NSTU president Liette Doucet says an Institute of Inclusive Education needs to be created.
Doucet says it would be an arms length committee, as opposed to a hired person to monitor how things are going.
“Right now we no longer have elected school boards so we need some way to monitor what’s going on,” says Doucet. “And somebody who was hired by the government to monitor what the government is doing doesn’t really give that trust.”
The union also expressed concerns surrounding recruiting new teachers as they say they have a shortage, which is starting to show in urban areas.
“Because it always an issue in rural areas but when it hits the urban areas as well it shows it’s an issue everywhere.”
Doucet says it can be more difficult to recruit education professionals to rural areas, a concern that was echoed by the South Shore’s Regional Executive Director of Education Scott Milner last month.
Doucet says she wants to be sure the province hires qualified people and works to retain them.
Story by Brittany Wentzell
@BrittWentzell
