Noah Beadman and Matt Gonzalez, grade 8, and Sophie Sullivan, grade 10, protested outside Seaton Secondary on Wednesday as part of a province-wide student walkout.
(CHARLOTTE HELSTON / iNFOnews.ca)
June 04, 2014 - 10:30 AM
VERNON - Some students in Vernon walked out of class today in reaction to the B.C. Teachers Federation strike. The walkout was a province-wide action launched through social media by a teen from Surrey.
Some city schools showed more support for the walkout than others.
About 30 students from Seaton Secondary school were seen on 27 Street with signs. They said they're sick of being caught in the middle between the province and the teachers association and want their voices to be heard. One student said the province and teachers are acting like divorced parents and she doesn't like being in the middle. Another said she thinks the dispute can be settled another way and is upset that time teachers spend on action might prevent her from being properly prepared for exams. The crowd was a mixture of Grade 8 through Grade 11 teens.
Grade 10 student Jaime Kerr said her teachers regret they can't offer students extra help when needed. She said she's protesting in support of teachers and has been for days.
"They work extra hours and they don't get paid for them," she said. "We're the next generation, we're, like, the future of pretty much everything... my family support me... half my family are teachers."
Seaton principal Jackie Kersey told Infotel News she spoke to students and encouraged them to return to class today and take their protest into the school during a lunchtime "student voice meeting" to be held tomorrow. She said she was concerned for the safety of students out protesting on a busy street.
To contact the reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infotelnews.ca or call 250-309-5230. To contact the editor, email mjones@infotelnews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
—This story was edited at 1 p.m. to change the main photo.
News from © iNFOnews, 2014