Alberta Primetime: Panel Discussion of 2012 Education Budget

Alberta Primetime recently hosted a panel discussion of the 2012 Education Budget. Panelists included Jacquie Hansen, President of the Alberta School Boards' Association, Jonathan Teghtmeyer, Alberta Teachers' Association, and Frank Peters, Professor of Educational Policy Studies at the University of Alberta. Issues highlighted: infrastructure needs, inflation outpacing grants, inclusive education, FNMI & Aboriginal students, teachers' contract bargaining and teacher workload.

Alberta Primetime: Education Funding

Carol Henderson, President of the Alberta Teachers' Association, and Jacquie Hansen, President of the Alberta School Boards' Association, join Alberta Primetime to discuss the need for long-term planning around education supported by sustainable and predictable funding. Both organizations are concerned that while there will be 6,000 new students in our education system next year, approximately 1,200 teachers are being laid off. Alberta Education is projecting 100,000 new students by the end of the decade.

Cuts to Education

Jacquie Hansen, President of the Alberta Schools Board Association, has written a letter to the editor in this morning's Calgary Herald entitled, "Brace yourselves for cuts to education." She points out that while at first glance it appears government funding increased by 4.7%, the province actually turned around and cut or eliminated pieces of the basic funding formula. Previous blog posts have talked about the ELL funding cut (Calgary Board has the largest number of ELL students in the province at approximately 22,000) but her letter also points out that the grant that covered the cost of purchasing supplies in an area where there is a higher cost of living was eliminated as well - and this will cost the Calgary Board of Education $8M.

Ms. Hansen goes on to state that, "Schools are a people business. When dollars are cut, ultimately staff will be cut." This means fewer teachers and services for our children. Is this any way to "nurture and preserve" a world-class public education system? She calls for a funding model based on the current health-care model that would see "multi-year budgets with preset grant increases" allowing boards to plan long term.

Possible Teacher Layoffs are discussed on Access TV's Alberta Primetime

Access TV's Alberta Primetime sat down with Jacquie Hansen, President of the Alberta School Boards Association, to discuss the impact of cutting funding to the Alberta Initiative for School Improvement (AISI) by 50%. Ms. Hansen described AISI funding as supporting work that allows for the development of creative and innovative means to improve student outcomes. This funding has "kept us leading edge."

She goes on to give kudos to the government for honouring the promised wage increase to teachers but points out that there have been adjustments in other areas including, but not limited to, no new funding in the classroom for special needs students, removal of funding to the class size initiative for grades 4 to 6, and funding that supported new immigrants to our country. Add to this inflationary pressures and increasing costs means school boards across the province could very well be looking at possible teacher layoffs. Please take a few minutes to watch this video clip.