Whitby Free Press, Wednesday, September 25, 1996, Page 7-' i i Just when you think eénoughi has been said abo-ul educational reformn -- for the present, at least -- along cornes John Snobelen w'ith another load of bricks for rebuilding thé education system. Three weeks ago in this space I had offered some advice to Snobelen, whojust happens to be Minister of Education and Training in the province of Ontario. Snobelen has said publicly that the education <system»" is broken and needs ÈL-ing. He also says the province pays too much for education. In short, a better job must be done, more cheaply. To this end, two new documents were released on Friday. Excellence in Education: Hig& School Reform, a discussion paper, wilI be delivered to some 2.5 million homes in Ontario over the next few weeks. In it, Snobelen asks parents and students for advice on the shape of the new high school curriculum. To be sure, this is no document dashed offjust prior to deadline. In it, Snobelen has put his stamp on the high school of the next century. This will, he says, have higher standards, be more accou.ntable, do more measuring (testing), provide more introduction to the workplace and provide more high-tech (computers) in classrooms. Snobelen's reformns, as outiined in the discussion paper, leave littie to the imagination. He isn't asking if you like the changes. He's askmng what would you like in the changes: should short-term cooperative education/work experience as a credit course be optional or compulsory? Or shoùld it be a compulsory non-credit course required for graduation? Ontario's new Education Quality and Akccontability Office will test students in grades 3, 6, 9 and il regularly. Snobelen asks: What purposes should provincial testing serve? How should it be expanded? What subjects should be tested and in what grades? Should Ontario reintroduce provincial examinations for ail Grade 12 students? (That is, on graduation from high school. Three consecutive governiments have announced the el imi ation of Grade 13.) Another document also released last, Friday is Curriculum for Ontario Secondaiy Scijools. This document details how new curriculum will be introduced to the system over the next three years. First of all, standards, of course, will be comprehensive, consultative and swift: a set of comprehiensive resuis to guide development of' detailed curriculum will be completed by March 1997. In turn, curriculum guidelines for each subject will be ready by October, 1997. Course profiles for every course offered by secondary schools will c'proceed i conjunction with the validation of the curriculum guidelines during the 1997-98 school year. An extensive complement of course profiles will be completed in 1998-99 and 1999-2000.» Whatever all that means. .I tIink it means the guidelines for how curriculum will be developecj will be announced next spring. Guideline for subject development will be ready ini a year, and detailed profiles, or subject outlines, will be unfurled over the next four years. And what do I think of these P'roposals? As one who has in th 'e past been known ito cast some aspersions on Snobelen's competence, I must fread lightly here. Some of these proposals, properly and positively implemented, are needed and overdue. Some are impossible given unlimited resources. It is a big bite out of a big apple. Snobelen wants te pray it is not Wormy. The changes i high school curriculum- will be a<xxrnilished %while noeln"ErieEvs ndMieï-ri INTERIOR 0F AIL SAffIT ANGLICAN CHURÇCHý OCTOBER 416 Ail SinW Aglioe Chu coelebrating its l3Oth anniversary this year. The church was officially opened on thie Sunday aftrAil Saints' Day, Nov. 1, 1866, as WVhitbYs second Anglican Church. This picture shows the church decorated for the wedding of James Finlay and Clara Mary Gross. Whitliy Archives photo 10 YEARS AGO from the Wednesday, September 24, 1986 edition of the WfflTY FREE PRESS " Deputy Chief Gerald Robinson and Inspecor Morley Nicholson of Durham-Regional Police were honoured for 30 years of service. " The 150 employees of Croven Ltd. have gone on strike. " Construction of Pringle Creek Public School will begin in two weeks. " Fred Martin has been chosen as Whitby's officiai Town Crier. 85 YEARS AGO from the Thursday, September 21,1961 edition of the WWITB EEKLy NEWS *A citizens' committe. under Dr. Joseph 0. Ruddy sta-tes that Whitby will need a general Three locations are proposed for a park in the northwest section of the town near the CPR " Renters Of cottages at Heydenshore Park want a residential- designation whon their beases expire in 1963. " Anderson Coilegiato students will hold thefr flrst footjal game at the school on Sept. 25. 100 YEARS AGO from the Frday, Septeinher 25, 1896 edition of thé " Thomas Manderson oftho Why-Reah onln»wnabnzmelfrgaiexbtd at the Chicago W orld a Fair.cht nli o w nabo z m d lfrg ane hbt d " The Oniarjio and Durham Exhibition will ho held at the fair grounds on Gardon Stret on Sept. 29 and 80 with the Queen's Own Rifles Band in attendance. *An organ recital on the new Ontaio Ladies' Colego pipe organ wlll ho given by Prof. J.W.F. Harrison, free of charge on Oct. 7. * Jeweiler J.S. Barnard offers solid sterling silver teapsas wedding presents at *6.50 I b Education ofthe next Century