Three-grade classrooms worries McBride parent

A McBride parent is raising concerns about a plan to put three grades of students into each of two classrooms at the community's elementary school.

Jennifer Quam does not have any trouble with a two-grade split and added one-grade classrooms are uncommon at McBride Centennial Elementary School, "but I think that's crossed the line at a three-grade split."

Under the current enrollment projections, there would be 18 students in a Grades 2-4 class and 26 in a Grades 5 to 7 class which would still be under the provincial government's cap of 24 students in Grades 1 to 3 classroom and 30 in Grades 4-7 classrooms.

But Quam maintains there are still enough concerns to make taking that route more trouble than it is worth.

The parent of two children, one going into Grade 2 and one going into Grade 5, said her oldest is on an individual education plan to meet particular learning needs, "and my concern is that he will get lost completely."

She is also worried the age gap between the youngest and oldest in a particular class will be as much as five years and believes that will create social and emotional troubles.

School District 57 superintendent Brian Pepper said a three-grade split is not common but is "absolutely acceptable."

"The grade configuration, to me, isn't the most important factor," Pepper said. "The most important factor is in individual subjects, where is the student and how can we move them forward with their learning from where they are."

He added that in some rural schools the family groups that come with multiple-grade classrooms are considered important for the development of children in the community although there are others where they prefer not to have them.

"But is there anything wrong with it educationally? Absolutely nothing, it's absolutely acceptable."

Asked if the the teachers of a three-grade classroom would be assigned additional support in the form of teaching assistants, Pepper said it depends.

"What would be more important is the composition of the class," he said. "You wouldn't just arbitrarily put in teaching assistants just because you have a split or a tri-split.

"You may have a straight-grade class that has two or three teaching assistants in it and you may have a two-grade or a three-grade split class that has no teaching assistants in it."

The plan could change depending how many children end up enrolling in September, Pepper noted.

Quam said she is not the only parent in McBride who is worried.

"It's a big issue out here," Quam said. "We've had several meetings out here and parents are starting to get riled up."

McBride parent advisory council president Clemens Esser said there is a sense of unhappiness among parents over the proposal but he also doubts enough children will enroll by September to change the school district's mind.

He also worried the move could create a "downward spiral" where families opt against moving to McBride because of the format of the classrooms.