Yes, the North Okanagan-Shuswap School District is considering hiring non-teachers for on-call work but, no, it鈥檚 not a done deal.

The school district has posted notices stating that due to a shortage of certified teachers, the district is looking to hire individuals without a teaching certificate to replace absent teachers.

Superintendent Peter Jory confirms it is being explored as an option but the advertisements are just a first step.

鈥淲e鈥檙e seeing what kinds of people come in the door and if they鈥檙e able to do the job. If we have some suitable candidates we will look at board approval at that time,鈥� he says.

Another critical piece, he emphasizes, is 鈥渢eacher replacements will be called only after all certified teachers have been deployed and for short-term jobs 鈥� typically one day at a time.鈥�

Requirements include: a university degree; experience working with children or youth in a formal position or as a volunteer; the ability to connect with students; strong interpersonal, communication and collaboration skills; demonstrated ability to organize and safely manage groups of children; and completion of a criminal record check.

Jory says the practice isn鈥檛 new to B.C.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been happening in more remote districts consistently over the last 20 or 30 years,鈥� he says, explaining that northern districts do it.

He says it鈥檚 even occurred intermittently in School District 83.

鈥淥ne of our principals got his start as a non-certified math teacher.鈥�

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After the Supreme Court of Canada ruling in 2016 restored contract clauses on class size and composition that were stripped from the teachers鈥� contract in 2002, teachers have been at a premium as districts throughout the province have been hiring.

鈥淲e did a very nice job getting out in front of that after the Supreme Court ruling. We hired a contractor to come in and work specifically on recruitment鈥� Our TTOC (teachers teaching on call) list at that time was very robust,鈥� Jory says.

Since then, however, those teachers have been hired by other school districts and within the district. Also, with it being the middle of winter, about 35 of the TTOCs are retired teachers, some of whom head south. And in January and February, some are on vacation.

At the end of last year, the TTOC roster was 130, he says. At the start of the school year, it was just over 100. It recently dropped down to about 70, half of whom are retired.

He says that would be enough, but some TTOCs don鈥檛 necessarily want to work every day. They also have different specialties and some want to work in specific communities.

Proactive recruitment of teachers is ongoing, he emphasizes, and any next steps will be taken cautiously and thoughtfully. He adds that the North Okanagan-Shuswap Teachers Association is supportive of the plan and understands the system is under some stress.

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Brenda O鈥橠ell, president of the teachers association, agrees.

鈥淥ur preference that we share with the district and, I know, with parents, is to have certified teachers in the classroom. But the shortage is affecting my members in real ways in the classroom,鈥� O鈥橠ell says. 鈥淥n almost a daily basis there are unfilled absences. So teachers are having their leaves cancelled and being called back to work when they鈥檙e on different types of leaves because someone 鈥檚 not available to take their class.鈥�

She says there are some rooms with no teachers in them, which the rest of the staff have had to cover.

鈥淚t鈥檚 important to understand that this teacher shortage is being felt in every region in the province, so it鈥檚 not just a local problem, it鈥檚 a provincial problem鈥� I know the district is moving cautiously with this. Again, it鈥檚 just a stop-gap measure, hopefully for the short term.鈥�

O鈥橠ell started noticing that absences weren鈥檛 being filled just before Christmas, she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of been consistent since that time.鈥�

She notes that flu season has added to the pressure and the district has been hiring proactively.

鈥淲e鈥檙e just beginning to feel the kind of pressure other districts have been feeling since September.鈥�

marthawickett@saobserver.net
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