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© MB OPINION B THE HABITS THAT = USED TO z ANNOYING ARE NOW q AMUSING - EVEN ENDEARING, WRITES # DREW EDWARDS When our first kid moved out this summer I was a little verklempt but, mostly, | I was ha} to get mildly annoyed at having what amounted to a freeloading roommate ing in my basement, eating all my food. Mature beyond her years, she no longer needed anything resem- bling day-to-day parenting, beyond the occasional bit of guidance on how adult stuff worked — and even DREW EDWARDS Column that, she could mostly fig- urea gute on wher own. other bene- nis it took my teenaged m 3.2 seconds after his sister's departure to take her basement lair, ica eaving me with actual of- fice/reading/TV watching space, a.k.a. his old bed- r the first time in two decades, my wife and I have a whole floor to ourselves |, given my son's robust social schedule, often the whole house. The quiet was disconcerting, then blissful. ThenI discovered some- thing I even better than my I kid leaving: her Blond visit coc martes by CO COVID — her first bout — but she showed up recently with a smile, a hug for each of her parents and more dirty laundry than a roomful of corrupt politicians. § She re mediately opened fridge, marvelled at all the food her too. Things she took for granted or sometimes did more out of a sense of obli- gation — spel time with her grandparents, for instance — she's now em- bracing with enthusiasm (he's also getting a ton of meals to boot). Now forced to deal with room- mates who don't clean up after themselves, she is far more conscientious about the state she leaves the ‘dtchen face with Instead of being mildly annoyed, my reaction in the months leading up to her departure, I found it ing — even endear- ing. We had shopped specif- ically with her in mind and lined up meals we knew were her favourite. No.1on the don Dad's homemade burgers. Her, attitude is different, house feels full again, "the nergy and equilibrium of the four of us sharing the same space as familiar and comfortable as a favourite (freshly laundered) sweat- er. This is my family unit in its natural state, some- thing I both cherished and took for granted without even realizing either one. She will go back to her home soon, the apartment TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA “DAUGHTER'S VISIT MAKES HOUSE FEEL FULL AGAIN she shares with her friends (including her significant other). I'll be glad to get my space back, to have access to the washing machine, to have a fighting chance at a glass of orange juice before it's all gone. I'll also be ver klempt again. This house may not be her home anymore, in that day-to-day sense, and it isn't even where she be- longs — she needs to be where she is, living her own life, finding her own way. But I will always look forward to the next time we can be all together, com- plete in a way I cannot be otherwise. Tis a ee published lay, is a division ofthe Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants urged to bring their concems w ia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., IN M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca Aocna editorial@waterloochronicle.ca Pcie ican waterlonchronicte @wichrot WHO WE ARE atonal Newelteda counet . Publisher and Drew Edwards thinks | chief Executive Officer verklempt is a real word. Neil Oliver He can be reached at Vice President, Content, ca if ity Operations that abuse of the English Dana Robbins language makes you ver- Director of Content klempt. Lee Ann Waterman Regional General Manager Nelson Parreira Regional Director of Media Heather Dunbar Advertising Representatives TIME FOR SOME REAL CONVERSATIONS ABOUT EDUCATION IN ONTARIO WE'LL ALL AGREE THAT GETTING PAID $39,000 PER YEAR IS NOT ENOUGH, WRITES MIKE FARWELL For months, we've been talking about a health-care system in crisis and what needs to be done to fix it. art may be time for simi- Jar conversations around education in Ont In health care, the pan- demic exposed not only shortages in hospital ca- pacity when it came to available beds but also in- burnout and emergency room closures. 8 ~~ We've learned that $ have some of the highest Fs spending in health care, § yet we still achieve some of the poorest outcomes, forc- g ing some to ask if he ealth- _atf MIKE FARWELL Column care funding is being allo- cated appropriately. Is too much money being spent on the administration and bureaucracy of a compli- cated system, for example, while too little money makes its way to front line workers and patient care? A similar question could be asked around On- tario nding. workers, are paid ade- quately at an average of $39,000 per year. But averages are notori- ously poor benchmarks. e ent we're going to use, though, should we not also ask why these education workers average only $39,000 per year, while a high school teacher in an average of mo more “than $100,000 per year? Naturally, there's a case to be made for the time spent earning the creden- tials to become a high school teacher and the dif- skill sets required for voach role. Still, the numbers show a rather between tee most recent dispute has drawn our attention to a critical group of educa- tion workers who earn, on average, just 859, p00 Per year. Nobody s! that these front Sine class. room supports, including educational assistants, li- brarians and maintenance worage salaries for differ- ent roles within the same education system. Outside the classroom, it's casy to find salaries that ai re than five times higher t than the aver- paid to an educa- tion worker. In fact, it's dif- ficult to find a director of education at any of Onta- rio's school boards earning less than $200,000 per year, with the highest paid peng in Toronto and earnin; more than $290,000 annual ly. Beneath the directors are associate directors, su- perintendents and more, all of whom earn well in ex- InO both a public: and ¢ eer school board dollars, leaving us us es ie ers of administration that are sure to be duplicated from one board to the next. We also spend money to pay the salaries of elected trustees, even though the government vides a range of roles and a corresponding range of sal- aries, so it shouldn't sur- prise us that the situation holds true in edu However, this aaa give us an indication of how much money is being Spent in education in Ontari while giving us the oppor, oney is being distributed approp! We' e that $39,000 per year is not enough. The question now be- comes whether we're will- ing to have a conversation about What i is enough, and ney we're spend- ing is ‘sup porting our stu- dents in the most meaning- ful way. Columnist Mike Far- well is a broadcaster, MC and advocate. Follow him on Twitter at well_WR, or connect with him via Mike. Far- well@rci.rogers.com. 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