Students hold signs at a rally for education funding in Vancouver on Sunday. (CBC)

More than 500 people packed into the auditorium at John Oliver Secondary School in Vancouver on Sunday afternoon to call on the province to invest more money in education.

The Vancouver School Board has estimated an $18-million funding shortfall for its 2010-2011 budget.

The board blames rising labour costs, including salaries and medical plan premiums, for what it calls a budget shortfall and is urging the province to provide additional funding.

The board says its options to meet the shortfall include staff layoffs, cutting programs, shortening the school year by 10 days or closing schools.

However, Education Minister Margaret MacDiarmid has accused the board of "fear mongering" and says declining enrolment is to blame for the budget woes.

"We are out here to protect our schools because the government is doing a lot of cutbacks, so we're here to stand up for our children's rights," said Diane Sheppard, the mother of a Grade 1 student at Lord Roberts Elementary School in downtown Vancouver.

Emily Akita, a music teacher in Vancouver, came to the rally in the hopes of saving school music programs from the chopping block as the board prepares next year's budget.

"This is very concerning for me because it's going to be affecting, if the budget goes through, 51 elementary schools," she said.

"It's just not fair that the ministry isn't funding the school board properly to run its programs."

The Vancouver School Board is scheduled to approve next year's budget at the end of April.