This week, the BC Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) is launching a new campaign with a powerful ad showing the realities facing students and teachers in BC’s public schools. And as Canada’s leading advertising agency for public education advocacy, we’re proud to help.

The BCTF has built a reputation for thoughtful and effective public campaigns on the issues that matter most to parents, students, and teachers. The new series of ads launching this week builds on that reputation, calling for real action to address the biggest challenges in today’s schools.

Helping kids find their way is what teachers do. They’re highly trained—and devoted—to spotting the unique needs of students and doing what they can to help every child learn.

But BC’s schools are facing big challenges. Students have complex needs. Many require additional supports, from special educational needs to mental health needs. And a shortage of teachers and inadequate levels of classroom resources are making it harder to reach every child and deliver the supports they truly need.

Last year, BCTF launched a campaign to raise public awareness of the teacher shortage in BC schools. Since then, public opinion research has shown a significant increase in the number of people in BC who are aware of how the shortage is impacting students.

This year, BCTF’s new campaign builds on that message to call for the solutions that will improve public education across the province. It starts with hiring more teachers—so they can help more kids.

Airing province-wide throughout May across TV, digital, and social platforms, the new campaign shows the realities of teaching today. Educators are under immense pressure to juggle the needs of every student, trying to do what’s best for each child but without the levels of support and staffing that would be required to do so.

It’s a situation that leaves teachers feeling exhausted and burnt-out as they struggle to do what they can to meet every student’s needs. And it’s time to change that—with real action to invest in public education.

It’s what kids need.