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AS AN EDUCATOR, I’VE SEEN FIRST-HAND HOW CLASSROOM DYNAMICS HAVE SHIFTED IN RECENT YEARS. THERE HAS BEEN A NOTICEABLE RISE IN BEHAVIOURAL CHALLENGES AND INTERPERSONAL CONFLICTS, WHICH CAN BE DIFFICULT TO ADDRESS MEANINGFULLY IN CLASSROOMS OF 30 OR MORE STUDENTS.”
ports. When funding cuts eliminate/stretch thin social workers, shrink special education teams and cram more students into fewer classrooms, teachers are leſt trying to build classroom support systems from nothing. Flexible seating, sensory accommoda-
tions and daily check-ins aren’t luxuries, they are essentials. And yet, due to funding cuts, many of these tools are only made possible by teachers reaching into their own wallets or repurposing items like milk crates and yoga balls to create makeshiſt solutions. With the 2023 Language curriculum and
its focus on foundational language skills in the Intermediate grades, there seems to be a trend among elementary administrators of requesting that teachers create guided- reading conference areas in their classrooms, in addition to regulation spaces to help with social-emotional learning. Meanwhile, there is barely enough room for students, their be- longings, tables/desks and chairs, let alone flexible seating options and designated spe- cialized learning areas. Even something as basic as students be-
ing able to maintain a clear line of sight to the teacher and visual resources in an over- crowded classroom can be a challenge. Over a
18 ETFO VOICE | FALL 2025
decade ago, I removed the teacher desk in my classroom to make more space for students to move around. But even with all the creative solutions, there’s isn’t enough room or time.
WIDENING ACHIEVEMENT GAPS AND COLLAPSING SUPPORTS
When class sizes swell to 30 students and more, the gap between struggling students and those at or above grade level grows wid- er. Teachers are forced to choose between focusing on students in immediate crisis, which oſten leaves those ready for enrich- ment waiting indefinitely for attention, or prioritizing students at grade level, which can result in those with the greatest need feeling abandoned in large classes and falling further behind. Neither option sits well with educa- tors; we’re set up to fail. Self-contained special education class-
rooms and specialized programs used to help tailor learning for individual students. Tese strategies worked well in part because class sizes were small, staff were well-trained and schools had the support systems in place to implement them. Today, most special edu- cation programs have been dismantled as a result of underfunding. Te expectation now
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