Throughout Moose Jaw, students are celebrating their last day of school before the summer break. However, many teachers are nervously looking ahead to an unknown fall. 
 
"It's hard to know what to expect," explained Patrick Maze, President of the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation. "Different school divisions have handled the cutbacks for the government budget differently. But for the most part, we know there's a reduction in support to classrooms, for teachers. We know that the supports the the teachers previously relied on like Aboriginal retention workers in some divisions and learning coaches in other divisions and learning consultants in other divisions have been cut back and either reassigned to classrooms or redeployed so that the divisions can find some saving."
 
Further to the uneasiness is the knowledge that the teachers' contract is up for renewal. 
 
"We're currently negotiating. Our current collective agreement expires at the end of August. All the terms of that agreement stay in effect until a new agreement is in effect. As per the provisions of the Education Act, we have to start negotiating 100 days prior to the expiration of the old agreement. So we've been in negotiations since about May."
 
"There shouldn't be anyone experiencing any wage cuts until a new agreement is signed and we're currently at the table attempting to negotiate a new deal."
 
And while the school divisions and teachers are trying the put the students first, he adds that it is growing difficult. 
 
"For students, they might be looking at a little bit higher PTR, which is the pupil-teacher ratio, so higher class sizes, potentially, depending on which division. They all have some autonomy but they all have to have their budgets approved by the government. So some might have a little higher class sizes, some might have fewer learning supports for students and some might have fewer supports for the teachers themselves in order to help the students."
 
"Parents always have the ability to contact their representative in the legislature, if they see the need to discuss it with their MLA. I think that's always an option and always an appropriate place to start is their MLA that's been elected to represent them. They can have a discussion with them and if they have concerns. And in September, if they are concerned about cutbacks and higher class sizes, they can discuss with the division but of course the division made the decisions they have, based on the budget that they've received from the government and so it's been scaled back and they've have to make some difficult choices."
 
"We'll have to see how it plays out in September with some of the cutbacks and go from there. We know that divisions are trying to make the best decisions possible for the students and yet with the budgets they have, it's been made increasingly difficult for them to offer what they'd like to offer to students and so they've had to make some cutbacks and some difficult decisions."