Update on Job Action and Student Report Cards

November 1, 2011


Dear Parents and Guardians:

Subject: Update on Job Action and Student Report Cards

As the first term reporting dates approach, the Burnaby School District would like to provide you with an update on teacher job action and how it might affect our ability to provide you with a comprehensive report about your child’s progress.

As a part of job action, the Burnaby Teachers’ Association has informed the district that teachers will not produce report cards. However for grade 12 students, teachers will submit marks to the office if the student indicates that they require marks for graduation, post secondary institution registration or scholarship applications. In all other cases, instead of preparing and issuing report cards, teachers are available to communicate individually with parents about their child’s progress.

The district encourages all parents to contact their child’s teacher(s) directly either by phone, by note in the student planner or by email. You can locate teachers’ email addresses in the staff directory on your school website. If you have difficulty connecting with your child’s teacher(s), please contact the school principal.

The duties of principals and superintendents remain unchanged by the teachers’ job action. The school district has a statutory obligation to issue student reports. As a result, report cards will be issued for each student this fall regardless of whether or not teachers provide administrators with marks or anecdotal information. At a minimum, the report will include the student’s division, teacher(s), courses and attendance. Reports and/or grades will be given for any classes taught by administrators.

Please note that this is legal job action by the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) which is represented locally by the Burnaby Teachers’ Association (BTA). This job action is governed by the British Columbia Labor Relations Board (LRB) and the Labor Relations Act. School districts and the Government of British Columbia are represented in the negotiations by the British Columbia Public School Employers’ Association (BCPSEA).

BCPSEA is currently reviewing options which recently included a return to the Labour Relations Board to request a change to require teachers to issue report cards. Although this is a difficult situation, the district is working hard to continue to provide Burnaby students with an excellent educational experience. As always, our priority is to maintain safe, welcoming school environments for all students, staff and families.

You can find more information about the teacher job action on the district website at www.sd41.bc.ca.

Sincerely,

Claudio Morelli

Superintendent

5325 Kincaid Street, Burnaby, BC V5G 1W2 604 664-8441 www.sd41.bc.ca