School Councils and Parents: Teleconference with Education Minister, Hon. Thomas Lukaszuk

The following notice was distributed today by the Alberta School Councils' Association (ASCA):

PLEASE DISTRIBUTE TO ALL PARENTS AND SCHOOL COMMUNITY MEMBERS


The Minister of Education is hosting a teleconference with parents on school councils at 7:45 pm on November 29th to discuss education.


The Minister believes that parents play an important role in the education system, and is interested in hearing directly from them.

Parents and School Council representatives are invited to participate in the conference call with the Honourable Thomas Lukaszuk, Minister of Education to discuss priorities for the next several months for Alberta's education system.

Participants are encouraged to gather as a group to dial in where possible.

The call will begin at 7:45 PM on Tuesday, November 29, 2011 and will take approximately 1 hour.

Please dial in at least 15 to 20 minutes ahead of time to the number listed below, as it will take time for all participants to be queued into the call and ensure participation.


Dial in information: 1-888-789-9572

Conference ID: # 5634664

When participants dial in they will be greeted by a conference operator asking for the conference ID, the person's name, school and school authority. Participants will be able to ask a limited number of questions following the Minister's comments.


All questions and responses will be heard by all participants and the Minister will answer as many questions as possible in the time allotted. If you experience any problems during the conference call, please stay on the line to speak to the operator.

If participants have any questions in the days leading up to the teleconference, please contact Maureen Melnyk, Education Manager, Learning Supports & Information Management, at maureen.melnyk@gov.ab.ca or by telephone at 780-427-6272, or by calling toll free at 310-0000.

Alberta Education offering more opportunities to provide feedback on the Education Act

In a news release today, the Alberta Government is asking all Albertans - young and old - to provide feedback on the Education Act. In addition to the forums that were announced previously, the public can engage online through discussion boards, facebook and twitter along with providing written submissions to the Minister.

Dr. Sharon Friesen's presentation at CAPSC meeting

At last night's CAPSC meeting, Dr. Sharon Friesen referenced the book "How People Learn," citing it as the best research available at this time on student learning. You can download it for free from the National Academies Press website. She also shared that Inspiring Education and Action on Inclusion were written to be in alignment with the research in the book.

Dr. Friesen also talked about the history of public education and its genesis in the factory model and why we need to rethink the model and transform learning to meet the needs of our students in a world characterized by increasing globalization and the use of digital technologies. You can watch her Inspiring Education video on this topic at Youtube.

She also has a video on EDTalks entitled, "Creating knowledge building environments" that captures much of what she had to say about what really influences student learning.

Opportunity to provide input on Education Act

In a press release today, the Alberta Government announced its Our Children, Our Future: Getting it Right public consultations on the Education Act. As part of this process, the government has announced that forums in seven cities across the province will be held between November 26 and December 9.

A forum will be held in Calgary on Thursday, December 1 from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm at the Coast Calgary. Space is limited and you must register to attend.

Alberta Education invites your input on the guiding principles for future curriculum design

Inspiring Education asked the question: What does an Educated Albertan look like 20 years from now? After much discussion and consultation around the transformation of education in our province, Alberta Education has been moving the agenda forward in regards to what students will be learning and the outcomes of this learning. After extensive research and hosting a series of Curriculum Roundtables, this activity culminated in the symposium, "Curriculum Design for Informed Transformation: Creating a Great School for Every Student."

A member of our executive was able to attend one of the roundtables and you can read this article that appeared in our newsletter last spring for more information.

Alberta Education is now providing another opportunity for public input on the "guiding principles for future curriculum design" through an online survey. Curriculum design would include items such as programs of study, assessment and educational resources. The deadline for participation is November 21.

Alberta Primetime: Full Day Kindergarten

Premier Alison Redford has followed through on her leadership campaign promise to return $107M in funding to education. Now she is working with Education Minister, Thomas Lukaszuk, to deliver on another campaign promise, full-day kindergarten for all.

Eryn Kelly, Co-President of the Calgary Association of Parents and School Councils, along with Cheryl Smith, Vice-President of the Alberta School Boards Association, and Cynthia Prasow, Instructor at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Education, participated in an Alberta Primetime panel discussion around the provision of full-day kindergarten to all children in our province.

Panel Highlights:
•Full-day kindergarten offered in British Columbia and Ontario to all children
•In Alberta, full-day kindergarten is available to some, not all children
•Benefits: equity and fairness across province; greater potential for early intervention; improve grade 1 readiness; research shows improvement in literacy, language, social and emotional development - especially for “at risk” children; recognition of the important connection between early learning and later success
•Drawbacks: wide range of readiness for full-day program; availability of space; cost is projected at $200M; staffing pressures; bus ride times

Mandate Letter for the Hon. Thomas Lukaszuk, Minister of Education

Premier Redford has sent mandate letters to all twenty of her cabinet ministers. The letter to Education Minister, Hon. Thomas Lukaszuk, asks him to establish minimum three-year funding cycles for education in collaboration with the Ministers of Finance and Treasury Board and Enterprise. The Premier also asks him to table an Education Act that reflects "the principled, learner-centred, inclusive, competency-based education system proposed in the Inspiring Action report."

Alberta Government News Release: Education Act pulled from Fall 2011 Legislative Session

In a news release today, the Alberta Government announced that Bill 18 (Education Act) was being pulled from the fall session. The Hon. Thomas Lukaszuk, Education Minister, made the decision after consulting with school boards and stakeholder organizations. A revised Education Act would be back before the Legislature in the spring after further engagement with students, parents, teachers and the public.

' “It is crucial that this legislation has a direct and positive impact on students,” said Lukaszuk. “I am committed to ensuring our province continues to foster a world-class education system that puts the needs of our children first.” '


The Calgary Board of Education, in a letter dated October 24 from Board Chair, Pat Cochrane, asks that the Minister not rush this legislation through as it needs further development to reflect "the themes identified by Albertans in Inspiring Action." The letter goes on to say, "This is work that is critically important for student learning into the future." (Board Report: Correspondence, page 25)

In an email dated October 21, the Alberta School Boards' Association provided the Education Minister with some highlighted provisions that they felt needed clarification and/or addititional context. These included provisions around Age of Access, Compulsory Education, Student/Parent/Board Responsibilities and Suspensions/Expulsions.

FAQ: Education Act (General) from Alberta Education website
FAQ: Education Act (Parents and Students) from Alberta School Councils Association website

Full Day Kindergarten

During the PC Leadership campaign, Premier Alison Redford pledged to introduce full day kindergarten within one year of forming government. With this support, Education Minister Thomas Lukaszuk has said he will be discussing the issue with school boards and requesting funding from the Treasury Board to implement full day kindergarten in the 2013-2014 school year.

Currently, kindergarten is not mandatory but over 95% of Alberta's children participate.

Eight years ago, Alberta's Commission on Learning Report and Recommendations called for the establishment of full day kindergarten (see pages pages 46-47). A Calgary Board of Education Report summarizing research is cited in the report, and an excerpt follows:

• A developmentally appropriate full-day program benefits children academically and socially - especially children from low socio-economic or educationally disadvantaged backgrounds
• Teachers preferred full-day to half-day programs
• Parents reacted favourably to the full-day schedule
• Full-day kindergarten may reduce the long-term costs for special and remedial education.

'“... All studies indicated a positive relation between participation in full-day kindergarten and subsequent school performance. Higher achievement in academic development as well as greater growth in social and behavioural development is consistently reported ... All studies reviewed here suggest that a full-day developmentally appropriate kindergarten program is especially beneficial to children from low socioeconomic levels and/or educationally disadvantaged backgrounds.”'

The Calgary Board of Education began providing full day kindergarten in 2005 to children who would benefit most.

What do teachers have to say about full day kindergarten? Check out this Alberta Teachers' Association article.

Alberta Government Asking for Public Input on Budget 2012

In a news release yesterday, the Alberta Government announced plans for a budget dialogue with Albertans. Seven regional roundtable discussions will take place in early November with invited community members. Government is also inviting feedback from the wider public on their budget priorities through a survey and written submissions. Background information is available on the Government of Alberta Website.