TORONTO, June 8 /CNW/ - The Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation
(OSSTF) welcomes any new investment in special education funding.
    "Unfortunately, without knowing specific details of the actual funding in
the area of special needs, OSSTF has concerns," said Rhonda Kimberley-Young,
president of OSSTF. "Our immediate concern is that in the shadow of impending
layoffs to educational workers, the success intended in this announcement may
go unrealized.
    "We have a further concern that the investment in a partnership with the
Ontario Psychological Association to reduce waiting times for student
assessments will create an additional layer of bureaucracy that will either
duplicate or eliminate the work done by existing support staff employed by
district school boards." Kimberley-Young added, "Board employed psychologists
are an essential part of the school team and can provide assessment and advice
to the educational team on implementation that will ensure student success."
    Special education programs and services should be delivered by a
multi-discipline board employed school team that collaborates with community
services as required to address specialized needs of students and to support
parents.
    In the area of professional development, further investment is always
positive, however, the details of this investment and its implementation must
be considered carefully.
    As well, educational support staff workers have recently reported an
increased incidence of injuries related to the performance of their jobs under
the present funding model. This would indicate a need for change in order to
address this difficulty along with other difficulties arising from this system
of funding.
    "It is important that the government has recognized that special
education funding must be addressed. We would hope that there will be
substantial increased funding to school boards to guarantee student success
through the soon to be released Grants for Student Needs (GSNs). OSSTF will
continue to work with the government to assure that the potential of each
student is achieved and will monitor the government's financial commitments,"
Kimberley-Young concluded.

    OSSTF/FEESO, founded in 1919, has 50,000 members across Ontario. They
include public high school teachers, occasional teachers, educational
assistants, continuing education teachers and instructors, psychologists,
secretaries, speech-language pathologists, social workers, plant support
personnel, attendance counsellors, and many others in education.

For further information: Ken Coran, Vice President, Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation, cell: (416) 427-0589, office: (416) 751-8300 or 1-800-267-7867