Improving the education system
ALBERTA GOVERNMENT HAS MADE CHANGES TO ASSIST STUDENTS AND FAMILIES
Summer is almost over, but no one can say it wasn’t warm enough this year! Lethbridge hit 40 C this August, tying for the hottest temperature on record. It has started to cool down now, but there are still a few weeks of summer left; I hope you are able to get out and enjoy them.
For many of us, thoughts are turning to back-toschool. It’s time to buy school supplies, plan lunches, put labels on pencil cases and sweaters, make plans with friends who have been away, and get all geared up for a new year of learning. With this in mind, I’d like to take some time to discuss recent improvements to the education system.
Life is expensive, and school fees can be a burden that some families just can’t bear. We reduced school fees, but kept school funding constant. Parents get to keep more money in their pockets without negatively affecting their children’s schools. This will save the parents of 600,000 students a combined $50 million dollars.
The Classroom Improvement Fund allowed for 400 new teaching and support positions this past school year, and was such a success that we are continuing it for another year. When classrooms have the right number and mix of professionals in place, students get more individualized attention and have a better school experience.
We are also continuing the successful School Nutrition Program, which will provide approximately 30,000 students with a daily nutritious meal in the 2018-19 school year. No Albertan should have to go hungry, and no child should struggle at school because hunger has interrupted their focus.
Budget 2018 was based on the same principles that we have focused on from the beginning: stable and predictable funding to the service Albertans rely on. This year, for the fourth straight budget, we funded enrolment growth, meaning that as our student populations increase, our staffing increases as well. One thousand teachers and support staff are being hired for the upcoming year, which brings us to 3,600 teaching and staff positions created since 2015.
We are investing in our infrastructure, which in many cases, had been badly neglected for decades. Last year we announced 23 new school projects, which include new schools (like a new elementary school coming in south Lethbridge) replacement schools, and modernizations. Investing in schools is good for students and staff, but it also promotes employment opportunities and builds communities.
Last fall, we passed legislation to ensure that students can form gaystraight alliances without fear of being outed. GSAs save lives, period. We have a responsibility to do whatever we can to make sure that schools are safe and welcoming for all students.
I am so proud of this work, and I only wish that it could have come a generation earlier, or not been necessary in the first place.
We are making long-overdue changes to the curriculum. In the spring, over 9,000 Albertans responded to a survey, in which they supported a back-to-basics approach that would give students a strong foundation in reading, writing and math, and allow them to develop skills in problemsolving and communication.
The new curriculum will also be informed by the Taking Action Against Racism report, which recommended (among other things) that we provide students with tools for fighting racism.
These are some of the ways that we are making the education system better for Albertans. Of course there is more to do. If you have any specific suggestions, I welcome your correspondence.
I want to conclude by saying this: my thoughts are with our neighbours in B.C. who are battling massive wildfires. As always, I am grateful to the dedicated and selfless firefighters who put their lives on the line to protect us and the places we love.
You can contact my office at lethbridge.west@assembly.ab.ca or 403-329-4644. The office is located at 402 8 St. S. If you are celebrating a milestone birthday or anniversary, we can provide celebratory scrolls. Call or email to find out more.