Does anyone else see the irony in the fact our education system is so antiquated, its computers can't handle something as simple as online registration?
And these are suppsedly the "good" schools people are lining up to get their kids into.
Some parents in Kelowna spent half the weekend camping outside Chute Lake Elementary School to make sure their kids got a spot on the enrolment list. Eighty parents were in line at Chute Lake by Monday morning, and up the road in Lake Country, 72 people waited patiently to register their kids at Davidson Road Elementary.
Even if the Central Okanagan School District offered online registration, it wouldn't solve the problem of more families wanting in to what they perceive to be the best schools. It would just speed up the process.
It would all be over in minutes, like when tickets go on sale to big concerts. Alarm clock didn't go off? Too bad, little Johnny won't be attending the school of your dreams.
The district has resisted online registration because not all families have access to the Internet. But not all families have the ability to wait more than 24 hours in line either.
Perhaps it's time to reconsider the district's "open boundary" policy, under which students can go to any school rather than the one in their neighbourhood.
If that school isn't up to snuff, put the pressure on improving it rather than giving parents the incentive to send their children elsewhere.
- Managing Editor
Jon Manchester