Curriculum Context

I was invited to share my thoughts as part of a curriculum roundtable discussion with my local MLA. I’ve inundated her office since she came to power, as well as many of her fellow representatives and party members, and I was flattered to be invited.

Then – I was too exhausted to go. After several weeks of hybrid teaching (yes, on a computer and in person AT THE SAME TIME), then moved online (again) this week, and I just could. not. do. one. more. thing. So, I sent my well-researched thoughts on anyway, and I’ll share them here because – why not.

(Note, the MLA citations don’t transfer well – I’ve included my Cited Sources list nonetheless, because this is what my high-quality Alberta Education has equipped and prepared me to do.)

To understand the problems with the new curriculum, you must first understand the results of the curriculum we are currently using. Alberta’s curriculum is tested on international and global stages, and excels in areas of science, reading, and math, as shared by Minister of Education Adriana LaGrange in December of 2018 (Government of Alberta). The Northwest Territories uses Alberta’s curriculum, as do international schools in Hong Kong, Macao, Abu Dhabi, Tokyo, and Phnom Penh (Government of Alberta). My Grade 12 students who apply to UBC will find their English Language Arts mark bumped 4% when they apply because of the rigor our program demands and creates academic excellence and competitive learners.

We have hired a curriculum expert whose life experience of an education system is one far inferior to ours.

I think we well understand and continue to bear witness to the chaos and destruction of our neighbour’s schools (Goldstein) (Walker, Christina; Petulla, Sam; Lou, Michelle; Griggs, Brandon). Curriculum advisory panel member Ashley Berner suggests that Albertans should be grateful for the lifted, Wikipedia-sourced draft (French) because, “The US school systems should be so lucky.” (Berner). The reality is that this person has no idea what our curriculum looks like, and is likely using few metrics that create partial, uncontextualized understanding, but she’s damn right – US schools should be so lucky, and theirs is certainly not the standard to which Alberta should stoop. Bring a shovel if you want to lower that bar.

The writer of this curriculum has severely underestimated the audience and intention of our curriculum. They clearly do not understand what front matter is, or the standard layout and purpose of a planning unit. They don’t seem to realize that they are preaching poorly to the choir – where is the organization, purpose, orienting features of this curriculum? What is the story behind why kids are learning what you have suggested they memorize? What are they going to do with this information, and how will it benefit them today and in their futures? Where is the ‘why’?

Your curriculum audience is a professional one: learning facilitators working under the purview and governance of Alberta Education, who have been implementing and delivering the most rigorous and achievement-generating curriculum in the country and globally attractive. We make learning happen, and you know there’s a difference if you have ever sat down and tried to do your kid’s or your own homework. Although all stakeholders contribute, all stakeholders may not be able to access curricular outcomes or language used for the simple reason of limited literacy; being a teacher requires being literate at an advance level in order to have successfully navigated the rigors of an education degree program of study. Implementation of curriculum is another piece of a teacher’s profession that is only ever visible in part – planned study is not implementation nor is it materials.

Teaching professionals learn the demands of our field and areas of expertise at the secondary levels, so we can prepare our students for theirs – and their fields don’t exist yet. Our students will work with technologies and societal contexts and global and environmental shifts that don’t exist or haven’t happened yet. We must foresee skills, knowledge, and abilities that our students will need for a world still in development, just as we must equip them with wisdom and histories that have preceded them.

Students are the necessary musicians carrying instruments to a teacher’s composition of learning in the classroom. Beautiful music is made individually and collaboratively, and it takes time and practice but when things come together there is breathtaking, life-altering beauty produced through hard-won mastery.

Teachers can’t do it alone, and we don’t – one reason this pandemic version of learning is so tough is that we can’t make magic all by ourselves, and it’s exhausting to try and maintain performance at that level. I am not a circus. Curiosity and wonder are easier to grow in environments rich with other curious and wonder-filled people, doing activities to puzzle and explore and problem solve. Teachers create learning communities and plan experiential learning opportunities before the moment the unique groups in our care walk through the doors, and we live there fiercely and intensely through the school year. We want all of our kids and their families to succeed and go on to happy lives.

Happy lives will still be filled with struggle. We want our kids to know how to roll with that, too, and walk away wiser and stronger and whole. We certainly should not be trading our academic standing for a three-year-old’s Crayola crayon drawing of a curriculum. What a waste of time and money to even humour this draft. We can let go of the embarrassment of this draft (J. French) only by returning to the drawing board and replacing uninformed contributors with those whose performance levels we may aspire to, rather than sink.

Alberta Education seems to have forgotten the work that preceded their tenure. They have been planning for the shift towards twenty-first Century learning since 2010, and had a great mission statement that we could all agree on: “Engage all students as they develop skills and understandings to become engaged thinkers and ethical citizens with an entrepreneurial spirit.” (Learn Alberta) What has your government that for Alberta’s children and futures that looks like a lofty goal? Last I heard, your panel member Angus MacBeth was in need of a shovel as he commented during a press release event for an August 2020 curriculum draft rollout,

“We want every Albertan that we produce through our schools, along with their families, we want every young person who graduates from one of our schools to be the kind of person you’d want to be selling YOU a used car,”. (Macbeth, Angus; LaGrange, Adriana)

We could realistically use the same curriculum we’ve been using in most subject areas for the foreseeable future: I’ve taught across subject matter extensively enough that I’ve become familiar with the good and the bad, to a degree, or everything but Math and Gym (and I will leave those to the experts who can speak much more eloquently on their subjects than I can).

Some curriculum was poorly written to begin with (I’m looking at you, Humanities options like Personal or General Psychology or Sociology, with your eight incredibly general bullet points).

Some has so many outcomes, that it’s only possible to learn the theory but never execute the process (Science 9 has so many hands-on options, and SO much content and vocabulary to memorize – yet the hands-on work is what will make these concepts come to life in accessible ways).

Some hasn’t been updated in far too long (hello Drama, with your zero technological skills additions in after 30 years of advancement and multi-media/ multi-modal and mobile present-day performance models).

Some has been updated recently (thank goodness that was last year for the Cosmetology journeyman course list revision, I packed nine course credit modules in for my quarter 1 class because the other Cos teacher and myself had not yet figured out our pacing).

Some couldn’t be updated as often as would be needed with specific curricular outcomes (hello visual communications, anything in the Adobe design suite or the digital music and gaming programming, much less our VR and video, robotics, and nanotechnologies production capabilities.

Some has been moved in good directions in efforts to address concerns of the Canadian Truth and Reconciliation Council recommendations with the addition of Teaching Quality Standard 5: Applying Foundational Knowledge about First Nations, Metis, and Inuit (Office of the Registrar), yet has not had a chance to impact or grow.

And some curriculums are mostly fine. Secondary English Language Arts gives a significant amount of flexibility to tailor student learning experiences for the groups in front of us. We could use some support on text choices and an updated approved materials list as well as selection process supports for stakeholder understanding… dedicated functional communications and STEAM-geared course streams would be great, as well as the literature focus of the current 30-1… maybe a visual communications stream or options series… Social emotional learning is a natural extension for us with the values and character related work we do… oh, and, since I’m asking, increasing University prep credits and media extensions would also give us more flexibility in getting kids their diplomas with post-secondary training and career paths.

The truth is that great and forward-thinking schools are going there without your explicit permission. We can always ask forgiveness, but if we wait to ask permission it’ll be the kids who suffer, and it’s for them and for their futures that we make every choice we do in our classrooms and schools and Google Meets.

K to 12, I went public school all the way. I attended hair school in Edmonton, college in Medicine Hat, University in Lethbridge, and I’m undertaking my Masters through my alma mater while I teach and lead the English Department at a exemplary public school. I speak on no one’s behalf but my own, but I speak in the interests of Alberta’s students, present and future.

What kids are doing technologically, especially in this pandemic context, should astound and clarify the need for envisioning and planning delivery and execution of student’s future needs. In my mind, public school is on par with building the pyramids; a modern-day miracle of engineering. My past experience of this system has been superb, led me to success, and is the product of the real Albertan advantage; I refuse to participate in its destruction. I hope to participate in its upkeep and improvement.

Works Cited

Berner, Dr. Ashley. In defence of Alberta’s proposed elementary school curriculum. 16 April 2021. CBC Opinion. 27 April 2021. <https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/road-ahead-alberta-draft-curriculum-defence-ashley-berner-1.5988835&gt;.

French, Janet. Northwest Territories studying alternatives to Alberta school curriculum. 9 March 2021. Janet French. 27 April 2021. <https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-curriculum-1.5941738&gt;.

French, Janey. Academic finds segments of Alberta draft curriculum lifted without credit. 5 April 2021. Janet French. 27 April 2021. <https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/academic-finds-segments-of-alberta-draft-curriculum-lifted-without-credit-1.5976245&gt;.

Goldstein, Dana. ‘It Just Isn’t Working’: PISA Test Scores Cast Doubt on U.S. Education Efforts. 3 December 2019. 27 April 2021. <https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/03/us/us-students-international-test-scores.html?auth=login-google1tap&login=google1tap&gt;.

Government of Alberta. 2018 PISA results: Minister LaGrange. 4 December 2019. Government of Alberta. 27 April 2021. <https://educationnewscanada.com/article/education/level/k12/3/804548/2018-pisa-results-minister-lagrange-.html#:~:text=In%202018%2C%20Alberta%20scored%20534,find%20more%20opportunities%20to%20improve.&gt;.

—. Alberta Accredited International Schools. February 2021. Government of Alberta. 27 April 2021. <https://www.alberta.ca/alberta-accredited-international-schools.aspx&gt;.

Learn Alberta. Guiding Voices: A Curriculum Development Tool for Inclusion of First Nations, Metis and Inuit Perspectives Throughout Curriculum. 2015. Alberta Government. 27 April 2021. <https://www.learnalberta.ca/content/fnmigv/index.html&gt;.

Macbeth, Angus; LaGrange, Adriana. “Taking steps to improve student learning – August 6, 2020.” YourAlberta Youtube Channel. Prod. Your Alberta. Edmonton: Government of Alberta, 6 August 2020. Video.

Office of the Registrar, Alberta Education. “Alberta Education Teaching Quality Standard.” n.d. Open.Alberta.ca. Alberta Education. 27 April 2021. <https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/4596e0e5-bcad-4e93-a1fb-dad8e2b800d6/resource/75e96af5-8fad-4807-b99a-f12e26d15d9f/download/edc-alberta-education-teaching-quality-standard-2018-01-17.pdf&gt;.

Walker, Christina; Petulla, Sam; Lou, Michelle; Griggs, Brandon. 10 years. 180 schools shootings. 356 victims. 2019. 27 April 2021.