Post by Michael Yue on Mar 23, 2006 18:13:46 GMT -5
MEETING REGARDING ARABIC LANGUAGE AND PRAYER ISSUES
In attendance: Sadika Mohamed (Iman School), Maha Abdelhamid (Imam School), Tony Carrigan (RSB), Rob Inrig (RSB), Rick Beardsley (RCN)
Date: February 27, 2006
Location: Offices of Richmond School Board
Purpose: The meeting was arranged in order for representatives of the Imam School (and Arabic speaking parents) to explore language and prayer issues with staff from Richmond School Board. Immigration from Arabic speaking countries has increased significantly, will continue into the foreseeable future and Richmond is a favoured settlement site. RSB records indicate there are 171 Arabic speaking students enrolled in Richmond public schools but there may be many more from homes where parents speak Arabic.
Language Issues
Three issues were identified with regard to Arabic: communication with Arabic speaking parents; the possibility of offering a course in Arabic at night school through continuing education; Arabic courses to be taught in public schools along with such other languages as Japanese, Chinese, Punjabi, Spanish, German, etc.
· With regard to communication between school and home, RSB has a system of community volunteers to provide translation and interpretation where needed. Patti Pascal, coordinator of this service, was introduced and provided information about the service, training available, and she distributed application forms for volunteer positions. Ms. Pascal indicated that she is looking for Arabic speaking parent volunteers to provide interpretation and translation for school/home communication. The next training session for parent volunteers will take place in April.
· It was further suggested that a brief to Richmond School Board requesting the hiring of a part-time Arabic speaking cultural interpreter would bring attention to the need for better school-home communication. It was cautioned that creating such a position may be somewhat difficult to achieve as it is a budget matter that must be considered within the context of all the other demands made on the school board’s budget. Nevertheless, the group was encouraged to submit a brief making such a request.
· The decision to offer languages at night school is a matter for the Continuing Education Department of Richmond School Board. Michael Khoo of Continuing Education is the contact person (604.668.6535). The normal procedure is for a group to put forward the names of potential teachers, Continuing Education will promote the offering of the course through its normal channels, and then enrolment will determine whether or not the course will go ahead. This is one way to provide a service to the community and give some profile to Arabic language and culture without having to deal with the complexities of working through the regular school system.
· Offering Arabic through the regular school program is a much more complex matter as it falls within the responsibility of the provincial government and specifically the Ministry of Education. However, a search of the Ministry of Education web site (www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/second_lang_irps.htm) shows a reference to an Instructional Resource Package (IRP) for Arabic but does not have the IRP itself available online. The existence of a provincial program for Arabic needs to be clarified. It appears that a program for Arabic 5 to 12 was developed by the BC Muslim School in Richmond in 1999 under the Ministry Authorized Second Languages program. This is a program that is used to authorize development of First Nations language programs mostly. The status of Arabic 5 to 12 as part of the provincial language program is not clear.
· If Arabic is a provincial course of study, then there are more issues to attend to before it can be offered at the local level. Are teachers, certified by the BC College of Teachers, available to teach Arabic? Will there be enough students at any given grade level in a particular school to warrant offering a course and assigning a teacher? It should be noted that the Ministry of Education does have a policy of equivalency credit for languages other than English in the case where a student has attended a regular school program in their first language up to and including grade 9. A student in this circumstance may receive credit for having completed a grade 12 course in that language. Secondary school counseling offices can provide specific information on this policy.
· What needs to be explored further is the possibility of offering Arabic as a locally-developed course. This is the circumstance where there is a qualified teacher already working in a Richmond school who proposes to design and teach a course for his or her students. These courses are categorized as either “locally-designed” (LD) courses or Board/Authority Authorized (BA/A) courses. BA/A courses are recognized for high school graduation. LD or BA/A are usually “singleton” courses, that is, one course offered in one block within a context of hundreds of courses typically offered in secondary schools. There is a lack of flexibility found in singletons, which means that while the course may be offered, few students may be able to enroll because they have to satisfy all their other course requirements first. Signing up for a singleton course limits student’s other choices in course selection or draw students away from other already existing singleton courses. For these reasons, school administrators are often reluctant to offer new singleton courses unless there are compelling reasons to do so.
· Another service offered by Richmond School Board to enhance multicultural understanding is found in the Elementary School Multicultural Friendship Clubs. These teacher-sponsored clubs exist in many schools in Richmond and provide opportunities for students to learn about many cultures through arts and crafts and food activities. Activities are provided by a network of community volunteers who are registered with and trained by Richmond School Board. The group was introduced to Fiona Yeung, the cultural interpreter who coordinates the friendship club program. Fiona displayed some of the arts and crafts currently used, discussed the program and distributed registration forms to the group. Ms. Yeung wants to recruit Muslim parent volunteers to develop and showcase an activity through the elementary multicultural friendship clubs. Parent volunteer training will take place next fall.
Prayer Issues
The request for a place to pray in school was made in recognition that Canada is a multicultural and multi-faith society. The request is for a prayer room that would be available to all students, not reserved for any particular faith in the same way that non-denominational chapels are available at hospitals and airports. The benefits of prayer were discussed, particularly noting the positive impact of quiet reflection on student attitudes and behaviours. There are reports that some schools have made prayer rooms available informally where students have made the request to the administration and where space has been available. The biggest obstacle to formalizing such a facility is the school act, which clearly sets out the public school system as a secular system. Again, this is a matter for the provincial government and lobbying should be directed to local MLAs and the Minister of Education.
Conclusion
Richmond School Board was openly welcoming and helpful in regard to the issues for which it has responsibility: home/school communication; cultural interpreters; multicultural friendship clubs; and continuing education. Issues of provincial responsibility (curriculum and prayer rooms) were clarified and a course of action through lobbying was identified.
Prepared by Rick Beardsley
In attendance: Sadika Mohamed (Iman School), Maha Abdelhamid (Imam School), Tony Carrigan (RSB), Rob Inrig (RSB), Rick Beardsley (RCN)
Date: February 27, 2006
Location: Offices of Richmond School Board
Purpose: The meeting was arranged in order for representatives of the Imam School (and Arabic speaking parents) to explore language and prayer issues with staff from Richmond School Board. Immigration from Arabic speaking countries has increased significantly, will continue into the foreseeable future and Richmond is a favoured settlement site. RSB records indicate there are 171 Arabic speaking students enrolled in Richmond public schools but there may be many more from homes where parents speak Arabic.
Language Issues
Three issues were identified with regard to Arabic: communication with Arabic speaking parents; the possibility of offering a course in Arabic at night school through continuing education; Arabic courses to be taught in public schools along with such other languages as Japanese, Chinese, Punjabi, Spanish, German, etc.
· With regard to communication between school and home, RSB has a system of community volunteers to provide translation and interpretation where needed. Patti Pascal, coordinator of this service, was introduced and provided information about the service, training available, and she distributed application forms for volunteer positions. Ms. Pascal indicated that she is looking for Arabic speaking parent volunteers to provide interpretation and translation for school/home communication. The next training session for parent volunteers will take place in April.
· It was further suggested that a brief to Richmond School Board requesting the hiring of a part-time Arabic speaking cultural interpreter would bring attention to the need for better school-home communication. It was cautioned that creating such a position may be somewhat difficult to achieve as it is a budget matter that must be considered within the context of all the other demands made on the school board’s budget. Nevertheless, the group was encouraged to submit a brief making such a request.
· The decision to offer languages at night school is a matter for the Continuing Education Department of Richmond School Board. Michael Khoo of Continuing Education is the contact person (604.668.6535). The normal procedure is for a group to put forward the names of potential teachers, Continuing Education will promote the offering of the course through its normal channels, and then enrolment will determine whether or not the course will go ahead. This is one way to provide a service to the community and give some profile to Arabic language and culture without having to deal with the complexities of working through the regular school system.
· Offering Arabic through the regular school program is a much more complex matter as it falls within the responsibility of the provincial government and specifically the Ministry of Education. However, a search of the Ministry of Education web site (www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/second_lang_irps.htm) shows a reference to an Instructional Resource Package (IRP) for Arabic but does not have the IRP itself available online. The existence of a provincial program for Arabic needs to be clarified. It appears that a program for Arabic 5 to 12 was developed by the BC Muslim School in Richmond in 1999 under the Ministry Authorized Second Languages program. This is a program that is used to authorize development of First Nations language programs mostly. The status of Arabic 5 to 12 as part of the provincial language program is not clear.
· If Arabic is a provincial course of study, then there are more issues to attend to before it can be offered at the local level. Are teachers, certified by the BC College of Teachers, available to teach Arabic? Will there be enough students at any given grade level in a particular school to warrant offering a course and assigning a teacher? It should be noted that the Ministry of Education does have a policy of equivalency credit for languages other than English in the case where a student has attended a regular school program in their first language up to and including grade 9. A student in this circumstance may receive credit for having completed a grade 12 course in that language. Secondary school counseling offices can provide specific information on this policy.
· What needs to be explored further is the possibility of offering Arabic as a locally-developed course. This is the circumstance where there is a qualified teacher already working in a Richmond school who proposes to design and teach a course for his or her students. These courses are categorized as either “locally-designed” (LD) courses or Board/Authority Authorized (BA/A) courses. BA/A courses are recognized for high school graduation. LD or BA/A are usually “singleton” courses, that is, one course offered in one block within a context of hundreds of courses typically offered in secondary schools. There is a lack of flexibility found in singletons, which means that while the course may be offered, few students may be able to enroll because they have to satisfy all their other course requirements first. Signing up for a singleton course limits student’s other choices in course selection or draw students away from other already existing singleton courses. For these reasons, school administrators are often reluctant to offer new singleton courses unless there are compelling reasons to do so.
· Another service offered by Richmond School Board to enhance multicultural understanding is found in the Elementary School Multicultural Friendship Clubs. These teacher-sponsored clubs exist in many schools in Richmond and provide opportunities for students to learn about many cultures through arts and crafts and food activities. Activities are provided by a network of community volunteers who are registered with and trained by Richmond School Board. The group was introduced to Fiona Yeung, the cultural interpreter who coordinates the friendship club program. Fiona displayed some of the arts and crafts currently used, discussed the program and distributed registration forms to the group. Ms. Yeung wants to recruit Muslim parent volunteers to develop and showcase an activity through the elementary multicultural friendship clubs. Parent volunteer training will take place next fall.
Prayer Issues
The request for a place to pray in school was made in recognition that Canada is a multicultural and multi-faith society. The request is for a prayer room that would be available to all students, not reserved for any particular faith in the same way that non-denominational chapels are available at hospitals and airports. The benefits of prayer were discussed, particularly noting the positive impact of quiet reflection on student attitudes and behaviours. There are reports that some schools have made prayer rooms available informally where students have made the request to the administration and where space has been available. The biggest obstacle to formalizing such a facility is the school act, which clearly sets out the public school system as a secular system. Again, this is a matter for the provincial government and lobbying should be directed to local MLAs and the Minister of Education.
Conclusion
Richmond School Board was openly welcoming and helpful in regard to the issues for which it has responsibility: home/school communication; cultural interpreters; multicultural friendship clubs; and continuing education. Issues of provincial responsibility (curriculum and prayer rooms) were clarified and a course of action through lobbying was identified.
Prepared by Rick Beardsley