363 - 369 Perspectives

Student 10019334, COMS 369

As most of us remember, attending public school was never without its fair share of permission slips. There were forms for field trips, movies shown in class and now… religion? Up until recently, the only topic of discussion in classrooms that mandated parental permission was sexual education, but the government has stepped up its role in regulating the public education system and has now implemented Bill 44. Teachers can no longer speak or teach about anything to do with sexual education, sexual orientation or religion.

The bill was first brought to parliament in early 2009, and it was not brought to public eyes without controversy. The government voted on the bill and it was put into place effective September 1, 2010. It falls under the category of human rights, and some would argue that it enshrines parental choice over homosexual choice. It is because of this fact that a portion of those against the bill claim that this bill is a direct response to a court case that took place in British Columbia in 2006.

Peter and Murray Corren, a same sex couple, set in motion a court case against the B.C. Ministry of Education, stating that the Ministry had for years discriminated against same sex couples and their lifestyles. Before the case could be completed in court, the B.C. government settled with the Correns by coming to an agreement that Peter and Murray would stand as consultants to the Ministry to review the course material before it went to the classrooms to ensure that it avoided discrimination against same sex couples. Some critics of the bill argue that the Alberta government implemented regulation of sexual orientation-based teachings so that the same case against the Alberta board wouldn’t be able to happen like it did in British Columbia.

Another aspect of the bill that appears to be even more controversial is the portion that includes religion. Teachers are no longer allowed to teach their students about any matter related to any religion, but the larger impact is on the subject matter that contradicts the beliefs of any religion. This includes Darwinism, evolution, and the Big Bang theory. Not only are they not allowed to teach it, they legally aren’t even permitted to answer questions about such material if those questions arise.

Growing up with a teacher for a mother, I have seen my fair share of debates arise between parents and educators regarding everything from unfair grading to detentions, but never in my mom’s eleven year teaching history has a parent called her and been upset with her and the school for teaching their child something that they didn’t agree with.

After much digging, I have not found one teacher that agrees with this legislation, some for more practical reasons and some for philosophical reasons. Firstly, the mandates are simply impractical. In elementary schools, the students are small children who most often either forget to have their parents sign the permission slips, or they lose the slips altogether. If no slip is brought back by the due date, the children are put into the class by default. That seems like a pretty ineffective policing system to me. In high schools the permission slip system seems even less effective. At that age, most students have been exposed to these topics in their lives outside the classroom and have probably already formed their own opinions. In addition to the practicality of permission slips, teachers are finding the classroom dynamic to be very inefficient. As previously stated, questions posed by students in class that relate to the ‘taboo’ topics outlined by Bill 44 cannot be answered by the teachers. Any class discussion of human reproduction, evolution, same sex marriage, and many more, is forbidden by law.

Picture this: you’re a seventh grade student, and you heard your friends talking outside about some Discovery Channel program they saw last night. It was a show about the origins of planet Earth. You have some questions, so you put your hand up and ask the teacher what caused life to start on Earth. She looks at you with a bit of an awkward, nervous look, and then quickly states that she can’t answer that. As a student, you’re left unfulfilled and possibly with the opinion that your teacher isn’t very smart if even your friends knew about that. The teacher is left feeling frustrated that she can’t teach one of the basics of science to her eager student.

Is that any way for our teachers to be feeling? Is it fair to the children of our future that they are left with a skewed and incomplete knowledge about basic science? No, absolutely not.

On the other hand, many teachers are extremely passionate about what they do, and feel that Bill 44 is restricting the learning opportunities of some students based solely on the fact that their parents’ beliefs overshadow their education. Again, human rights groups have spoken up in regards to this. As one CBC News commenter puts it, “If a parent thinks 2 + 2 = 5, should they be able to pull their children out of math class?” (CBC User bernse, 2009).  A parent’s belief (religious or otherwise) should never stand in the way of a student’s right to learn about as much in their world as they possibly can. The students have a right to knowledge, regardless of their parent’s beliefs.

Bernie Potgan is the Head of the Education Program at Ambrose University College here in Calgary, Alberta. Ambrose is an evangelically rooted private institution that encourages the inclusion of religion in their programs. He was quoted on canadianchristianity.com as encouraging the parents of students in the public school system to embrace the opportunities provided to their children by the schools and to allow their children to be educated on all levels of religions other than their own. He outlines that it is better to be educated and well rounded than to be close-minded to only their beliefs. I have to agree. A Christian man of authority in an educational setting is encouraging parents to not have their children opt-out of these topics, so why wouldn’t those less qualified follow his advice?

If I am not mistaken, Alberta’s government consists of individuals that the people have elected to speak on their behalf and represent their views and opinions on social and economic matters. From what I have seen on almost all the websites and forums I have researched on, and based on the debate this bill has sparked, this bill is not representative of the people’s wishes. In a true democracy, the government would have seen all this dislike and disapproval of such legislation and put the matter under review. In a true democracy, they might have even removed it. I see no such effort.

At the end of the day, it is ultimately up to you to decide. Will you side with the many who feel the government is favoring parental right over human rights? Will you side with those who think this isn’t just fostering religious ignorance or with those who feel everyone deserves to learn about every religion? Join us on the side that favors the children of our future.

For more information, please see these sites:

Lloyd Mackey. (n.d.). Alberta human rights bill balances parental, gay rights. In Canadian Christianity. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from http://canadianchristianity.com/nationalupdates/2009/090604alberta.html#articletop.

Kristopher Wells and James Chamberlain. (September, 2009). Alberta’s Bill 44 severely restricts professional autonomy. In BC Teachers' Federation. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from http://bctf.ca/publications/NewsmagArticle.aspx?id=19492.

CBC News. (June 2, 2009). Alberta passes law allowing parents to pull kids out of class. In CBC News. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2009/06/02/alberta-human-rights-school-gay-education-law.html.

Dennis Theobald. (August 24, 2010). Government puts fences around Bill 44. In The Alberta Teachers' Association. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from http://www.teachers.ab.ca/Publications/ATA%20News/Volume-45-2010-11/Number1/Pages/Government-puts-fences-around-Bill-44.aspx.

Ken Dickerson. (April 29, 2009). Bill 44: Alberta Government’s Human Rights Amendments Spark Religious Controversy, but Leave Free Speech Untouched. In Centre for Constitutional Studies. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from http://www.law.ualberta.ca/centres/ccs/news/?id=264.

Karen Drummond. (September 20, 2011). Bill 44 implementation - Alberta human rights act, section 11.1. In Calgary Board of Education. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from http://www.cbe.ab.ca/parents/bill44.asp.

CBC News. (February 17, 2012). Quebec students must take ethics-religion course. In CBC News. Retrieved November 21, 2012, from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/02/16/supreme-court-canada-religion-education-challenge.html.