With negotiations between the Upper Grand District School Board and the its elementary school teachers set to resume, the two sides should surely have no difficulty reaching an agreement before April 24, the date set by the Ministry of Education for every school board to have a ratified pact.

The scheduled talks between the Upper Grand board and the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario are to start tomorrow (Friday) and continue April 14 and 15.

Both sides have been reluctant to speak publicly on the issues that remain now that the EFTO has agreed to an umbrella pact that will provide a 10.5 per cent raise for the teachers over four years.

However, the union has been asking that school boards hire 150,000 "specialty teachers" such as librarians, music teachers and physical education instructors.

As worthy as such an idea might be, the stark reality is that any additional hirings will be impossible without adequate provincial funding.

As well, teachers and the boards have been at odds over the amount of supervision time, (where teachers are required to watch over the students other than in the classroom), required of each teacher. Ms. McLean says teachers currently put in an average of 80 minutes a week, but there are demands that it be put up to 180 minutes per week. Again, money will be the key consideration.

There has been progress elsewhere in the province. Last week, occasional teachers reached tentative agreements with both the Peel District School Board and in York Region. The terms of these agreements will not be released until a ratification vote is held next Wednesday.

Ms. McLean, meanwhile, doubts that all boards across the province will succeed in ratifying agreements with their elementary teachers by April 24.

"We've already met with our board 14 times. Some boards have only met twice," she said in an interview during which she expressed guarded optimism, saying, "We're very hopeful we can have an agreement by April 24."

In the circumstances, we heartily agree and hope both sides are prepared to reach a compromise.