Well, teachers, if you’re working in a publicly funded Ontario Board, you can fill that role guilt-free, I just don’t
want it any longer.
Here’s some background on myself. I have a
BA and an MA from McMaster University, and a recently acquired BEd from Brock University.
At Brock, I put in extra time and money to obtain a specialization in educational
technology and 21st Century fluencies. I’ve aspired to be a teacher since
childhood, and until I finally applied for my very own OCT certification, it’s the
only career I’ve ever wanted in life.
At the risk of sounding arrogant, I would
have made a fine addition to Ontario’s self-described “greatest education model
in the world.”
Like 2/3rds of my cohort, I was (not
unexpectedly) unable to secure a job in the public education sector following
graduation. In response to this, many of us chose to teach overseas, or are
pursuing education in a private or tutoring capacity. I’ve found a rather plum
position at a Toronto museum, working within an innovative education program. Yet
even when that job began, I still felt confident I would someday soon have a
classroom of my own as an Ontario teacher.
But here’s the thing. Watching from the
sidelines as this provincial administration has continuously insulted and
undermined the people and career I respect, and aspired to join the ranks of,
has been an intensely disillusioning process. I cannot reconcile the violation
of constitutional rights, willful disregard of collective bargaining, and the continuous
disrespect hurled at this profession with my vision of teaching as a career worth sacrificing
my time, energy, and skillset for. If teachers are so poorly regarded, what
motivation am I being given to struggle to contribute my hard-fought education
and talent to become one?
That question has occupied my mind quite a
bit these last few months, and I highly doubt I’m the only one it has occurred
to. Today, I finally have an answer to it. Because the major political parties of Ontario
continue to treat this profession with either hostility or veiled indifference; because
the current administration intentionally misleads the public into believing
this labour strife has been about greed and sick days, as opposed to fighting to
keep hard-won fundamental rights; because I see teachers publicly derided for refusing
to volunteer their private, personal time to students even while under direct political
attack, I have resolved to take my passion as an educator outside of the publicly-funded school system.
Don’t worry about me, I’ll be just fine out
there. It’s saddening I’m not sure I can say the same for Ontario’s next
generation of public school students when young, energetic, and passionate educators like myself decide it’s not worth being
bullied to care for them.
Shawn McCarty
Toronto, Ontario