Minister of Education Demetrios Nicolaides announcing the next steps for consultation on the draft social studies curriculum in Alberta, March 14, 2024. (Photo: Government of Alberta on YouTube/YourAlberta)

By Justin Goulet

Province seeking additional feedback on draft social studies curriculum

Mar 14, 2024 | 12:23 PM

Albertans are invited to share thoughts on key facets of the new draft social studies curriculum.

Over the last seven months, Alberta Education consulted with more than 300 partners, teachers, multicultural organizations, Indigenous and francophone communities to obtain feedback for the development of a new draft kindergarten to grade 12 social studies curriculum overview and draft kindergarten to grade six social studies curriculum.

A second public engagement is on now until March 29, 2024.

“Thank you to the many education partners, community organizations and Albertans who have provided input into the development of new draft social studies curriculum,” says Minister of Education Demetrios Nicolaides.

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“Your valuable contributions will help ensure Alberta students learn from a curriculum that builds their critical thinking, problem-solving and decision-making skills, and empowers them to be involved citizens.”

The consultation process initially started in the summer of 2023 and in the fall, Albertans completed more than 12,800 online surveys to provide input on what they hoped students would learn in new draft social studies curriculum.

Results from the survey found that Albertans believe critical thinking skills and understanding of local, Canadian and global events, as well as global and national history should be key elements of new curriculum. The province said it will continue to engage with education partners and residents.

“Teachers provide invaluable insights and expertise and bring the curriculum to life every day in their classrooms. The Alberta Teachers’ Association remains open to continued collaboration on all aspects of curriculum design and implementation in all grade and subject areas,” says Jason Schilling, president of the Alberta Teachers’ Association.

School authorities will get to pilot new draft kindergarten to grade six social studies curriculum in classrooms in the 2024-25 school year.

NDP RESPONSE

The Alberta NDP Critic for Education and Services to Children with Disabilities, Amanda Chapman, has issued a response to the curriculum news.

“The UCP’s new social studies curriculum has been significantly delayed due to their failure to consult with teachers and educators back in 2021. They are rushing the rollout of a new curriculum, asking educators — who are already overworked and underfunded — to pay the price for their mistake,” she says.

Chapman adds the last time the UCP attempted to re-write the curriculum, it was “widely rejected by Albertans as racist, age-inappropriate and a complete misrepresentation of the history of Indigenous Peoples.”

“That ended up being thrown out, which squandered time and public resources and ultimately failed to build a modern curriculum that all students can see themselves in and that prepared them for success in their lives,” she says.

“No one denies this curriculum needs updating, but it’s the UCP’s own lack of proper consultation that created this delay in the first place. Now, amidst overcrowded and under-resourced classrooms, teachers are expected to pilot a new program in less than six months.”

Chapman remarks that teachers are facing pressure already and she is concerned the “this rushed timeline will only exacerbate their burden unnecessarily.”

Feedback on the draft curriculum can be submitted online at the Government of Alberta website.