For issues that you feel are serious, by all means, contact the Ministry of Education. The more stories they hear from parents the better. And…psst…the district is not going to want you telling the Ministry anything…feel free to use this strategy as you like.
The Ministry has been helpful with parents. They have intervened and contacted districts. You never know. Write a compelling email and you might get the support you are looking for.
The Ministry has been helpful to parents, for online school issues as well. They have their own department. Sometimes calling will bring you to support faster, especially if it is urgent and time-sensitive.
I am putting them here for your convenience.
ECC.Minister@gov.bc.ca – Minister
DM.Education@gov.bc.ca – Deputy Minister
inclusive.education@gov.bc.ca – Inclusive Education department
If the Ministry doesn’t hear from parents they have no way of knowing the realities of the classroom and as I have heard from many external organizations, if they don’t hear from parents they assume that everything is fine and there are no issues. If your child isn’t getting enough support in the classroom and the school is blaming lack of funding or resources, email the Ministry. Can you imagine if every parent started emailing them when their kids were excluded from the classroom or were lacking in enough support hours??
You may also want to CC: the BC Office of Human Rights Commissioner in your email to the Ministry if you feel that your child with a disability is not getting a proper education. info@bchumanrights.ca. There is a call for an inquiry so the more everyone is aware of the situations happening in education, the better.
If your process with the Ministry was unsatisfactory, feel free to file an Ombudsperson complaint.
The Ministry has 30 business days to reply back to you.
If you have any concerns connected to the Ministry of Education, how they handle privacy, you can file a complaint with the Privacy Compliance and Training Branch of the Ministry of Citizens’ Services. The Privacy Compliance and Training Branch (PCTB) is responsible for responding to privacy complaints regarding all government ministries.
Please contact PCTB at privacy.helpline@gov.bc.ca or call 250-356-1851. If you are not satisfied with their response or do not receive a response after 30 business days, you may submit a complaint to the OIPC.