Literacy teachers, librarians to be shuffled

Dozens of reading-focused teachers will see job changes next year as a result of Regina Public Schools’ 2017-18 budget.

The school division has been combing for cost savings given a $9.5-million funding shortfall following the provincial budget.

Come next year, 10.5 fulltime-equivalent teachers are being reassigned to the classroom from their current roles as early intervention reading teachers in 11 schools, and more than 40 teacher-librarians will spend more time in the classroom.

The reading teachers work on an individualized basis with students who are reading below grade level.

“They were valuable in that it’s an extra support,” said Darren Boldt, Regina Public Schools’ deputy director of student achievement.

“The extra support was in place because we felt it’s important; it’s unfortunate that we’re in the budget situation we are in.

“If a bunch of money fell from the sky right now and we could meet the needs of all of our schools without reallocating that time, absolutely they’d still be in place.”

Boldt said the division wouldn’t have targeted a reading support without being able to provide the support in another way.

Literacy is a “critical priority” for the division.

Students will continue to receive individual attention, being pulled out of the classroom or doing group work. Intervention will mostly fall on learning resource teachers and regular classroom teachers.

Almost all of these teachers are currently working in community schools.

Boldt points to the “30some other schools” that support students’ literacy without these specific teachers.

It’s a relatively new resource, which was introduced about four years ago, said Boldt.

The role of teacher-librarians is also changing, as they’ll be required to spend half as much time in the library and more time teaching in a classroom.

As of the fall, Regina Public will have 44 elementary schools, each of which has a teacher-librarian.

Teachers were alerted of the change earlier this week, said Boldt, because the division needs its staffing in order by the end of the current school year.