Page Content
ATA PRESIDENT MARK RAMSANKAR ADDRESSES THE ASSEMBLY
“Keep your heads up, forge ahead and know that you are a vital member of one of the best teaching organizations on our planet,” said President Mark Ramsankar, greeting the more than 418 teacher delegates who attended the 97th Annual Representative Assembly (ARA) on May 17 and 18. “We are the teachers of Alberta, and the reason Alberta is recognized as being the best English-speaking school system in the world is because of our teachers.”
Following these inspirational words, Ramsankar rolled up his sleeves and got down to business, focusing on the work that has been accomplished in the past year and the activities that lie ahead. In particular, Ramsankar commented on “these times of volatility and change,” referring to the recommendations made in the Task Force for Teaching Excellence report, which was released on May 5. “It feels like the landscape changes every 12 hours,” he said.
Providing a bit of background on the task force initiative, Ramsankar explained that when it took wing last September, its stated aim was to make recommendations that would ensure that for every child, in every class, there would be an excellent teacher. “Who can argue with that?” asked Ramsankar. “When the task force was launched, I heard words like support, excellence, bold, objective.” He looked forward to contributing to “what sounded like a move forward at a time when classrooms were severely overcrowded” and teachers needed support. However, when neither teachers nor the ATA were invited to the table, his enthusiasm waned as his worry grew. “The Association has long stated that transformation will take place only with support of teachers.” That was not to be the case.
Ramsankar encouraged delegates to learn more about the task force report by reading the May 13 issue of the ATA News. This special edition focuses solely on the minister’s task force and includes rationale for the ATA’s response, background information on the formation of the task force and commentary on the recommendations that show merit and those that “are the greatest insult, blaming teachers for their workload problems and suggesting we need more accountability and regulation.”
“We have always held ourselves to high standards, and we will continue to do so into the future,” countered Ramsankar. “I do not regret coming out harshly and with conviction in what I have considered a frontal assault on our profession and the rights of the teachers I represent.”
Ramsankar said that the report seems to focus on “the four Ds: de-fund, de-spirit, de-professionalize and de-unify.” But he encouraged delegates to continue to challenge the minister of education and the task force report and to fight for their rights as teachers. “We have the tools in our hands to fight this battle,” he said. “This government and other MLAs have felt this heat, and I say turn it up. Let this government know that we are not de-spirited or de-unified.”
In closing, Ramsankar shared the words of an 89-year-old retired teacher who had contacted him about the task force report. She said, “I am proud to be a teacher, and I am proud of my profession. I fought for my profession for many years, and it is an absolute travesty what the government is proposing in those recommendations. You should fight this fight with every breath in your body. And call me to let me know what I can do.”
In response, Ramsankar proclaimed, “I say to you in front of this assembly, I still have breath in my body, and I will continue to fight for your profession and mine. I, too, am a proud Alberta teacher.” ❚
