Critics gathered at the Maples of Ballantrae Golf Club in Whitchurch-Stouffville yesterday to have their say on Bill 52, which, if passed, would see students in school until the age of 18, set standards for equivalent learning and strip of their driver's licence if a student drops out or has very poor attendance.

The standing committee on the legislative assembly hosted the public hearing where educators, students and various organizations supported students learning until the age of 18 and efforts to create equivalent learning programs but were opposed to the idea of linking education with a students privilege to drive.

"Attendance in school has nothing to do with the privilege to drive and to tie the two together is fundamentally wrong," education critic, Frank Klees, said. "This government is, once again, assuming the role of being the official parent and that is an intrusion Ontarians will, and should reject."

Aurora High School graduate Nicholas Dodds told the committee the bill is biased against those living in a rural area where driving is a necessity since those in an urban areas can still use public transportation.

It was also composed assuming every student is taken care of financially and comes from an ideal family situation.

Some students are forced to drop out of school to financially support their family or to escape an abusive home by living independently.

"Sometimes quitting school is more beneficial and the bill ignores the prevention of poverty or abusive relationships," he added. "Taking away a driver's license can amount to imprisonment."

At 16, children cannot be placed in a foster home so they would be forced to work to provide themselves with shelter and food, justice for children and youth's Martha Mackinnon pointed out.

"This bill is not helpful and it will have an adverse effect," she said. "Young people who want to drive will with or without a license, with no insurance and it is inevitable at least one will have an accident."

Mr. Dodds also pointed out school, especially the traditional one-size-fits-all curriculum, is not suited for the needs of every student.

Many leave school to pursue other life paths in the working world, where they can excel.

"You cannot impose a right onto somebody, the right to a quality education is no longer a right if it is forced upon students," he said. "It is insulting to youth and denounces the rights of teens to make their own decisions."

Speakers from the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association and the Ontario Association of Counselling and Attendance Services pointed out this bill would generate a great deal of administration work.

This would take time away from the quality of education not to mention funding that would have to be allocated to complete the requests for attendance conformation.

"The Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation supports the goals of the bill but feel it will sour parents and students," vice-president Den Coran said while suggesting any reference in the bill to the highway traffic act should be eliminated.

"You can only push so far, these are student's lives we are pushing."

Representatives from the Ontario Christian Home Educators' Connection and the Ontario Federation of Teaching Parents did not opposed the bill, but expressed concerns about the difficulty of going though the school board for their students and suggested, if the bill is passed, a procedure be developed for attendance confirmation especially for home schooled students to be submitted to the Ministry of Transportation.

"There is no evidence this will work," Trinity Spadina New Democrat MPP Rosario Marchese said. "This connection will not get potential drop outs more interested in learning."

All parties in attendance supported the section of the bill outlining the responsibility of the Minister of Education to set standards of equivalent education, which will provide a framework for school boards to set up alternative education programs to serve different students' learning needs.

However, the issue of revoking a student's drivers license is blurring the content in the rest of the bill, Don Valley West Liberal MPP Kathleen Wynne said.

"If there aren't any teeth, enforcement in this bill the students are still going to drop out," she said.

"I am confident we will come out with the right answer."

The hearing held in York Region is the first of two, the other to be held tomorrow in Hamilton. The input gathered in these public sessions is to be shared with the Minister of Education and used to recommend changes to the bill in question.

Have your say. Do you think students who drop out of school should lose the right to an Ontario driver's licence as proposed by the Education Ministry? Go to www.yorkregion.com to vote