Education Chief: Strike Is a 5-Letter Word

TORONTO (Reuters) - Ontario Education Minister Gerard Kennedy got low marks for spelling and math this week when discussing the possibility of a strike by the Canadian province's teachers.

"I think strike is a bit of a five-letter word in education and that gets people nervous," Kennedy said on Wednesday, according to media reports.

After it was pointed out that the word strike has six letters, Kennedy, a member of the Liberal Party, said that he meant to say something else all together. "Pardon me, I was going to say four, but it really is a tough word in education. Thank you -- show off!"

Critics were quick to call the gaffe a "Dan Quayle (news - web sites) moment," in reference to the former U.S. vice-president, who famously made a schoolboy add an unnecessary "e" to the end of the boy's correctly spelled "potato."

"But then again, at least no one put Dan Quayle in charge of educating over a million schoolchildren," said legislator John Baird, of the opposition Conservative Party.