Local school recognized at provincial awards.
A Summerland school was recognized as being among the best schools in B.C. at the annual Garfield Weston Awards for Excellence in Education dinner in Vancouver Wednesday.
Giant's Head Elementary School was named a School of Distinction in the category Improvement in Academics at elementary schools. Sparwood’s Frank J. Mitchell Elementary won the category and the runners up were the St. James Catholic School in Abbotsford and the Rosedale Elementary School.
"The teachers, administrators, and support staff from Giant's Head Elementary School have an unparalleled dedication to teaching which is reflected in their students' triumphs," said Lisa-Diane Fortier, Fraser Institute associate director of Outreach Programs, School Performance Studies.
"Every single year, these educators are finding new ways for their students to succeed in reading, writing, and math, and it's important that they receive the accolades they so richly deserve."
While Larry Little, chair of the School District 67 board of education, agrees that the staff at Giant’s Head is doing a great job, he said similar comments could be made about every school in the district.
“Every school is doing something to help kids learn better,” he said, adding that educators throughout the district are constantly working to expand their knowledge of best learning practices.
The board chose not to send a representative to the awards presentation last week. While not diminishing the achievement of Giant’s Head Elementary, SD67 Superintendent Wendy Hyer said the district did not want to lend credence to the Fraser Institute’s controversial Report Card on BC’s elementary schools, on which the awards were based.
The Fraser Institute produces two report cards annually, one ranking elementary schools and the other doing the same for secondary schools. In the case of the elementary school report the analysis is primarily based on the Ministry of Education’s Foundation skills assessment tests, a purpose for which the tests were not designed.
“We didn’t want to put too much emphasis on the award, because you can’t criticize them (Fraser Institute) when they do the school report and then take credit when they do something like this,” said Hyer. The district, she added, is aware that Giant’s Head is doing an great job in many areas, not just on the few indicators the Fraser Institute uses in its report.
The Improvement in Academics award recognizes elementary schools that have experienced the fastest, most consistent improvement in their academic performance over the past five years.
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