Parent says school district failed her deaf son by hiring unqualified teacher

A Portugal Cove-St. Phillips woman says she's fed up with the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District after herson showed up for his first day of Grade 3and did not have a teacher who was proficient in his language.

Carter Churchill is deaf and is still learning American Sign Language, says his mother, Kimberly Churchill.

The teacher the district selected has very basic ASL skills, she said, and was not tested under the ASL proficiency interview, which she believes should be mandatory.

"The system has completely failed Carter," Churchill said. "He is never going to be able to become more proficient in his own language when the teacher doesn't have more skills than he does."

Churchill worries the lack of education in ASL will impact her son'sentire future, if he's not able to getproper instruction at a young age.

She chalks the situation up to the school districtnot being properly prepared for school to start back up Wednesday.

"They had ample amount of time," Churchill told CBC's St. John's Morning Show.

"The School for the Deaf closed in 2010, so let's be real, they have had nine years of succession planning they should have had in place to get prepared."

Lack of ASL-trained teacher, says district

Although the district said itadvertised both internally and nationally for a teacher with superior ASL proficiency the highest level achievable it did not receive any applications with that designation.

"This situation is not unique to our province, as other school districts across Canada are challenged to recruit personnel in this field," reads astatement from the school board.

The district also said allteachers of deaf and hearing-impaired students in the province havemaster's degrees in deaf education by requirement.

"There are two universities in Canada that offer the program.Neitherrequires the 'superior'designation of ASL proficiency to meet graduation requirements."

If any teacher in a hard-to-fill discipline does not meet all the qualifications required for the their position, the district said, it provides professional development to enhance their skills.

School district trustee speaks out

District trustee Peter Whittlesaid he understands Churchill's concerns and is looking into how other provinces educate deaf and hard of hearing students.

"We are providing the same number of teachers, or in some cases more it's a matter of perspective," he said.

"I understand their conviction and their passion and I hope they are able to bring about the changes they want," said Whittle, addinghe was not speaking on behalf of the school board but as an elected individual.

"What Ihave learned is you get elected to the board andin many ways you are slapped with a gag order right off the bat I would like to have more public discussions."

Churchill has filed a human rights complaint against the the district, andWhittle said he has also received an email from another parent who is doing the same.

"I just find it really unfortunate when we can't find a solution without it becoming a public or legal issue, because there has to be a voice for these children, and I am glad the parents are doing it," he said.

The board has a meeting this weekend, in which the Churchills asked to make a public presentation. However, the board turned that request down, saying it would instead expect a written statement or a video message that would be viewed behind closed doors.

"I was disappointed with the decision," said Whittle. "I respect why it was made; there were some legal issues ongoing. However, I felt that a presentation would be important to be made.

"I want to ensure that every single deaf child in the province and their parents get the services they should be getting."

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