Education Minister Adriana LaGrange made the announcement Thursday morning in Edmonton (Photo: Government of Alberta)

By Justin Goulet

EDUCATION CHANGES

Province’s new curriculum to focus on literacy and numeracy

Aug 6, 2020 | 11:33 AM

The provincial government has announced details on updating school curriculum for K to 12 students.

Last August, the province appointed an independent panel of experts to help develop a new curriculum.

The panel was chaired by former superintendent of Edmonton Public Schools, Angus McBeath.

“We took their [the panel] draft vision and we gathered input from roughly 8,500 Albertans and education stakeholders,” said Minister of Education Adriana LaGrange on Thursday morning.

“This feedback, combined with the draft ministerial order the panel developed, helped finalize our new vision for student learning, which I was pleased to sign off on this morning [Aug. 6].”

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LaGrange said a new ministerial order replaces the 2013 order on student learning, switching it with a model focused on literacy and numeracy and giving students a “knowledge of the rich and diverse history of Alberta and Canada”.

The province said this will put an end to the “discovery” or “inquiry” style of learning in the previous model.

“It emphasizes civic virtues, core knowledge and the outcomes students need to succeed both in school and throughout life,” LaGrange said.

“Education in Alberta will promote the acquisition of skills and the pursuit of knowledge with wisdom while valuing equality of opportunity, parental responsibility, personal responsibility and excellence, and respect for difference and the inherit dignity of each individual.”

LaGrange said that ultimately, the new ministerial order is a “return to proven teaching methods”.

“This new ministerial order is the cornerstone for future curriculum development,” she said.

“It has set us on a path to update and strengthen our K to 12 curriculum and has charted the course for us to honor the remainder of our curriculum campaign commitments to Albertans.”

The minister added that with the new order in place, the province will begin work on reforming new curriculum that falls in line with the government’s updated vision.

“As we committed to during the election, Alberta’s future curriculum will focus on developing foundational competencies. It will include a Social Studies curriculum that is taught without political bias, offering an objective understanding of Albertan, Canadian and world history, geography and civic literacy,” LaGrange stated.

“It will have financial literacy as a mandatory element woven throughout the entire curriculum, and it will teach consent as an essential part of the health and wellness curriculum.”

LaGrange said that updated curriculum will be created through a reform process that begins with determining the key knowledge and skills Albertans should possess by the time they finish high school.

“It is time for Albertans to have a curriculum that focuses on the fundamentals of literacy, numeracy and core knowledge,” she said.

The rollout of the new curriculum has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with testing to start in the K to grade four group in September 2021.

LaGrange added that validation has been expanded to include grades five and six. This means that for the 2021-2022 school year, the entire elementary school curriculum will be piloted in Alberta.

Thursday morning’s news conference can be viewed below: