TEEN VANDALISM, DRUG USE CAN BEST BE CHALLENGED BY ESTABLISHING A
STRONG SCHOOL COMMUNITY

Mr. Larry Dick, principal of Paul Kane High School, hit the nail
squarely on the head in a May 27 Gazette article "Schools in the red"
when he blamed the provincial government, namely the Ministry of
Education, for the shortcomings in secondary education not only here
in St. Albert, but across the province. He cited our province's
notorious financial acclaim and questioned the Klein administration's
unwillingness to provide the necessary funding. I will take it a step
further in frankly stating the Progressive Conservative government in
this province is completely unresponsive to the Albertan youth and
their education.

Ideas raised by opposition members in the legislative assembly (such
as Ray Martin's discussion of a junior kindergarten plan, or Jack
Flaherty's repeated criticism of poorly constructed class-size target
initiatives and Grade 3 Provincial Achievement Exams, to name only a
handful) have been caught up in the backwash of the hurricane that is
the democratic deficit in this province. These issues may well have
been discussed if our assembly was in session for more than a couple
of weeks at a time, but unfortunately, it would seem for the time
being the entire provincial bureaucracy is on the autopilot of standing orders.

The entire education system is in desperate need of an overhaul.
Elementary school students are stuffed into desks/classrooms for
large portions of the day at an age where their physical development
should perhaps take precedence. Junior high school students are
entrapped in a pre-pubescent/post-pubescent prison reigned by no less
than a social entity of martial law. High school students see their
favourite optional courses scrapped in favour of the essentials
(given the pass rate for Pure Math 30 in this province, I think it
might well be considered a non-essential at this point).

Which brings us to the title synthesis, as the Gazette and the
Edmonton Journal have been flooded with articles concerning youth
vandalism, methamphetamine use, hooliganism, rioting, alcoholism, the
lack of funding in our schools and the increase in class sizes.
Please do not dismiss this as a leftist rant (despite its appearance)
and take this commentary to heart. The lack of a strong foundation
for youth in the guise of a school community is the primary direct
cause of the "boredom" which leads them to violent behaviour and drug
use. Ignorance of this correlation will not lead to its dismissal,
despite your best efforts.

Christopher Connelly

St. Albert