Class action
 
Disgruntled parents in Surrey, B.C., lobbied for a new school with uniforms, homework and lots of tests. They got what they wanted. But is Surrey Traditional School a step forward for education? Deborah Jones investigates Published: Chatelaine, April 1995 By Deborah Jones A small boy scoots around a corner and starts a sprint down the hall to his kindergarten classroom. "Slow down, honey!" calls Nancy Brittain sweetly. The child, in neat uniform of kelly green jersey and navy pants, skids to a halt then walks on. We don't have fistfighting or swearing here," says Brittain, mother of three pupils at Surrey Traditional School and one of the parent monitors who patrol the school's halls and playground, and help teachers in classrooms. "One month ago, some kids were acting up and I made them write lines, 'I will learn to listen,' 100 times. Now, they come to attention!" Adults are also paying attention to this controversial new alternative school in Surrey, B.C., with a reputation for "back - to - basics" education. Dozens of parents lined up overnight to register their children for Surrey Traditional, drawn by its emphasis on academic achievement, competition and old - fashioned respect for authority. Since it opened in September, other parents and educators have flocked to visit, hoping to set up similar institutions. Equally passionate are the opponents -- some teachers, parents and educational theorists -- who criticize the traditional program, and others who view the school as an elitist institution with a right - wing Christian agenda. While it's controlled and funded by the board of education in this Vancouver suburb, the school is the brainchild of parents who were dissatisfied with the public system. It's not the first such school: a handful of back - to - basics schools are run by public boards across Canada, including two in neighboring Langley, B.C., that have been open for nearly 20 years. If Surrey Traditional has attracted disproportionate attention, that may be because it was born on the crest of a continent - wide wave of pressure to make public schools more rigorous and accountable. While the Surrey parents lobbied last year, New Brunswick educators were revising the provincial curriculum to further emphasize standardized testing and the core subjects of math, science and language; Alberta passed legislation allowing community - initiated "charter" schools; the B.C. government had recently shelved parts of its controversial Year 2000 program, which would have lessened the impact of traditional grading and let students progress at their own pace. Across Canada, parent groups were demanding more testing and objective report cards; and in the United States, dozens of charter schools have begun operating. But what's really going on at Surrey Traditional? Look inside the doors and perhaps the biggest surprise is that there aren't many surprises. Blake Robertson is a tall 11 - year - old with the bottom half of his blond head closely shaved -- a cut that looks radical among the uniformed student body at Surrey Traditional. But as he leans over a set of math problems in Gary Richards's Grade 6 class, Blake is the picture of quiet concentration. After listening to Mr. Richards explain fractions, he and the 28 other pupils have taken pencil to notebook to work out the lowest terms of 75/100. There's no talking as the teacher walks up and down the orderly rows -- Blake and his friends know that acting up results in an immediate trip to the principal's office. The quiet is only broken when Mr. Richards announces phys ed. There's an eager rush for the gym, where Blake changes into shorts, then bounds onto the floor for a game of European handball. Blake's mother, Liz Robertson, had been hearing alarming stories about the school system for years, some through her job as a part - time marketing representative for her husband's steel - products company. "They say graduates fill out application forms that are spelled wrong. Everyone has a horror story," she says. Robertson, 33, was raised in Surrey, after her family emigrated from the Netherlands. She has the bearing of a future politician -- dynamic, articulate and attractive, with blue eyes and perfectly trimmed blond hair swinging down her back. To ensure that her own kids -- Blake, 10 - year - old Mieka and 3 - year - old Scott -- learned their lessons well, she volunteered in their classrooms and organized school activities, while working two days a week. But by 1992, Robertson began to feel that the schooling of her older kids was out of control. She believed that Blake was being allowed to coast; she recalls taking one poorly done social studies assignment back to his teacher, asking her to make him do it over. Blake's class was chronically disrupted by rowdy kids. And she thought her daughter, Mieka, ahigh achiever, was spending too much time helping other kids. Robertson was also uncomfortable with the increasing use of "child - centered learning," which stresses self - directed activity, with students often working in groups. As in most public schools across Canada, some of the teachers at the Robertsons' school used child - centered methods, while others stuck to traditional structured lessons like those Liz had grown up with. The final straw was the day Blake came home and reported that children who wore unfashionable clothes were beaten up by "in" kids wearing baggy jeans. "Imagine going to school wondering if you're going to get pounded on because of your clothes!" Robertson exclaims over coffee and a grilled cheese sandwich in her kitchen, dressed in a comfortable yellow T - shirt, jeans and woolly socks. In January 1994, Robertson lit on the idea of establishing a traditional school modeled on the ones in nearby Langley. No stranger to community involvement -- she volunteers at a local skating club -- and college - trained in public relations and marketing, Robertson got the names of the Surrey parents on a waiting list for one of the Langley schools. The common ground was immediate as the first five parents gathered over pie and coffee at Ricky's Restaurant in Surrey; they traded ideas on how to make education better and decided a traditional school was what they needed -- next September. That core group included Heather Stilwell, former president and onetime federal candidate for the far - right Christian Heritage Party. Stilwell's politics would become a focal point for opponents of the school, who later charged that it would be dominated by right - wing ideas and fundamentalist Christian values. But the founding group decided early on that the school should have no religious agenda and be open to children of all faiths. As more parents joined, the lobbying effort picked up speed. Their proposal went to the Surrey school board on April 14, setting out these goals for the school: structured lessons with regular testing; a clearly defined code of behavior; emphasis on core subjects -- reading, spelling and math; regular homework; uniforms. The curriculum and report cards would be the same as in other B.C. public schools. A narrow majority of trustees (all of them recently elected on a right - wing slate) voted to move ahead with the proposal. By June, despite opposition, the school was set to start in the fall. Lynn Kelsey, a mother of two children who go to other Surrey schools, was one of those who sought a delay. "It takes resources away from other schools," she complained. Surrey, a sprawling mix of farmland, cookie - cutter housing developments and highways, is the fastest - growing school district in Canada -- and among the lowest - funded per student of any B.C. community. Some 7,000 of the board's 50,000 pupils are housed in portable classrooms. But the plan was set. As summer dawned, the board advertised for teachers and contractors lowered the basketball hoops in the former junior high that was to house the school. And Cathie Paton was named principal. Paton, a trim, no - nonsense 48 - year - old who had taught in Surrey schools for 27 years, jumped at the job; it was a good fit, since her own preferred teaching method was traditional. Meanwhile, the debate continued. The British Columbia Teachers' Federation, fearing the school would tamper with curriculum, temporarily barred members from accepting jobs at Surrey Traditional -- but relented when the board promised a thorough review of the school this spring, "Parents are parents, they're not professional educators," said Kelly Shields, president of the Surrey Teachers' Association. "They may not be familiar with the research, with studies in child development, learning and curriculum issues." Shields also charged elitism, saying the school should be forced to accept all kids from the local neighborhood, not just families able to transport their children from around the city. Other criticisms came from academics, who argued that opening the door to more alternative schools chips away at the Integrity of the public system, and that traditional teaching can restrict students' learning. Charles Ungerleider, associate dean for teacher education at the University of British Columbia, says the highly structured program may not do enough to develop judgment and creativity. "Youngsters who are broadly educated, and have more rather than less experience, fare better in uncertain, difficult economic times than youngsters who are highly specialized." Such objections cut no ice with the parents who slept in lawn chairs overnight to be first in line on registration day. As June 11 dawned bright and clear, Liz Robertson and the other founders arrived with doughnuts and hung banners, ribbons and balloons. Cathie Paton brought huge thermoses of coffee. Registration became a party, and by the time it was over 210 children had been enrolled in classes from kindergarten to Grade 7. On a gray December morning, Grade 1 teacher Gall Bellchamber is greeting a group of visiting mothers and trustees from another B.C. community. "Hands up who got an A in spelling!" Mrs. Bellchamber exhorts her class. A thicket of tiny arms shoots up. "Almost the whole class!" beams the teacher. The visitors smile. The smallest pupils at Surrey Traditional are already used to tests and grades. All teachers in kindergarten to Grade 7 use a traditional method: they deliver a lesson -- perhaps combining lecture, demonstration and question - and - answer -- then have the students do exercises individually to reinforce what they've heard. They test the students, then follow up with remedial work on weak areas. Language is taught sequentially, with an emphasis on grammar and spelling, in contrast to the modern whole - language approach which plays down the rules of grammar and spelling in favor of emphasizing overall meaning. Tricia Kean placed her son Warren in Grade 6 at Surrey Traditional because she felt he wasn't learning to read in the whole - language program at the school he attended previously. "My son loves to play, and he'd let the self - motivated kids do the work while he played," says Kean. At Surrey Traditional, she says, Warren has to learn to spell 25 new words each week and use them in writing assignments. He does homework every day and is even eagerly reading before bed each night -- something he's never done before. "I know he's doing better here," says Kean. "He's got far more confidence in himself now." Grins Warren, "I'd rather go back to my old school because they get out earlier!" Much of the attention on Surrey Traditional has focused on its teaching methods. But in fact, these techniques are widely used in schools throughout B.C. and the rest of Canada. Even principal Cathie Paton, who has always used traditional methods, says the "back - to - basics movement" is a misnomer, because basics are covered in all types of teaching. So what's the difference at Surrey Traditional? In other schools, individual teachers choose their own methods. At Surrey Traditional, the approach is consistent. For Blake Robertson and Warren Kean, the traditional method seems to be working. Blake deems the school "cool," and says tests and the detailed explanations by his teacher have helped him improve his marks. He even approves of the uniform -- and the fact that here you can't get beaten up for wearing the wrong clothes. Both Liz Robertson and Cathie Paton emphasize that all - traditional teaching is not for every student. In fact, six children have left Surrey Traditional since September -- three families left because they felt the school was not significantly different from their neighborhood school. For Robertson, the issue is choice and allowing parents a say in education. She points out that nearly one - third of the students who applied to Surrey Traditional had previously been home - schooled. Indeed, besides the uniforms, the ubiquitous presence of parents at Surrey Traditional may be the most significant difference between it and many other schools. Each day, there are 12 to 15 volunteers monitoring halls and helping in classrooms. Gary Richards, the Grade 6 teacher, says the parents' presence adds a sense of community and allows for happenings such as impromptu lunchtime piano recitals in the cafeteria. "We can do that because we have so many parents, while other schools are limited to teacher supervision." Parent involvement has also caused the biggest controversy in Surrey Traditional's short life. It happened in December, when the Vancouver media reported that several books about native spirituality and non - Christian religions had been removed from library shelves at the school because of complaints by Heather Stilwell. But rather than a clearcut case of censorship, it turned out that the principal had removed the books to review them in response to Stilwell's complaints, and had replaced them after the media reports came out. While Stilwell pursued her complaint about one book through the school board, Paton said the school had no interest in censoring any books. Liz Robertson, who does not attend church and is not a fundamentalist Christian, says the attacks are unfounded; Stilwell's religious views are her own and do not reflect those of the parent advisory group. The school has no religious teaching or prayers, although there was a bang - up December concert that featured the Christmas theme prominently. While the books incident may have been a red herring, Kelly Shields of the teachers' association still worries that the presence of Stilwell and other fundamentalist Christians could make non - Christians and other minority groups feel excluded. She points out that the school has a much lower proportion of children from immigrant families who speak English as a second language than schools in its neighborhood. Surrey Traditional's ESL population is about 15 percent, compared to 70 percent at some schools. Paton says such charges are misguided. "We're open to anybody who wishes to enroll a child. There is no discrimination, no preference given by race or religion." She acknowledges that the school may have a different ethnic makeup than schools in some neighborhoods, but says that's because it draws from all of Surrey. Controversy over Surrey Traditional seems bound to continue, especially as other communities seek to emulate the model. But if one lesson has emerged so far, it's that the parents' commitment, not the program, is what sets the school apart. There's no doubt that parental activism is a growing trend in a time when every day seems to bring tales of schoolyard violence, of students dropping out, and of young men and women ill - equipped to find jobs in an economy changed by global competition. Battling uncertainties in their own lives and fearful for their children's future, parents want to feel in control of what their children learn and how they learn it. For some, that means rejecting expert opinion that emanates, as they see it, from an ivory - tower education establishment. Liz Robertson is one of those parents. "There's probably no one right way for all kids. But the issue is choice," says Robertson. With Surrey Traditional an example of what can be done, she says, "Parents feel their children have a lesser chance of falling through the cracks this way." Copyright Deborah Jones 1995 About this website: Text and photos by Deborah Jones except where otherwise noted. Please contact me for reprint rights. All material copyrighted ../About.htmlshapeimage_1_link_0
Disgruntled parents won the right to a traditional school
Home    Report    Think    Explore    Essay    Play    About