Education Minister Adriana LaGrange

By Shaun Penner

Education Delivery

Alberta Education lays out at-home learning plan, cancels Diploma Exams

Mar 20, 2020 | 11:18 AM

Alberta Education says it now has guidelines in place for the learning outcomes for students while classes are cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

After cancelling all in-school classes on Sunday, the province says it has collaborated with the Alberta School Boards Association, the College of Alberta School Superintendents, the Alberta Teachers’ Association and the Association of Independent Schools & Colleges of Alberta this week to develop a plan to continue teacher-directed learning while students remain at home.

The new course material will be developed by each teacher from grades K-12, and will be delivered either through online means, over-the-phone or course packages that will be arranged on an individual basis. The material will focus on core areas that have not been fully covered to this point in the school year.

The breakdown of how that will look for each grade level can be found below:

Kindergarten-Grade 3

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• Education content will focus on language/literacy and mathematics/numeracy outcomes of the provincial curriculum.
• Teachers will assign an average of five hours of work per student per week and will be expected to work with their students and parents on the delivery of these materials.

Grades 4-6

• Education content will continue to focus on language/literacy and mathematics/numeracy outcomes, and there will be an opportunity to incorporate science and social studies outcomes through cross-curricular learning.
• Teachers will assign an average of five hours of work per student per week and will be expected to work with their students and parents on the delivery of these materials.

Grades 7-9

• Education content will focus on core mathematics, language/literacy, science, and social studies curriculum outcomes.
• Teachers will assign an average of 10 hours of work per student per week and will be expected to work with their students and parents on the delivery of these materials.

Grades 10-12

• Education content will focus on specified and core courses required for high school graduation requirements, including language (English, French, and French-language arts), social studies, mathematics, biology, chemistry, and physics.
• Content from other courses will be delivered where possible, and accommodations for students unable to complete courses are in place.
• Teachers will assign an average of three hours of work per course per week and will be expected to work with their students and parents on the delivery of these materials.

Report cards will be handed out at the end of the year, and all students that are on track to progress to the next grade level will.

The province also says that Grade 12 diploma exams, as well as Grade Six and Nine provincial achievement tests have been cancelled. Students who still wish to write a diploma exam will need to arrange that with their teacher or principal.

Graduating students on track to receive 100 or more credits will still be eligible to graduate and receive a high school diploma. Principals have the ability to award up to 15 credits to students in Grade 12 whose program has been negatively impacted by class cancellations. For any courses that are started, schools will complete them with the student to the best of their ability, provide a final mark and award credits.

Principals can also award credits in areas such as work experience for students who may not be able to complete those in the current situation.

“I want to thank every Albertan involved in our province’s education system,” said Education Minister Adriana LaGrange, in a release. “Everyone has come together to chart a path forward as part of our COVID-19 response – teachers, support staff, superintendents, administrators, elected trustees, parents, education associations, the provincial government, and many others.”

“It is important that Albertans know that we are all working towards the same goal – to provide the best possible learning situation for our students during this very challenging and unprecedented time.”