As I write this column, we have settled into the new year and the days are getting noticeably longer. With the light returning,this is a time of optimism –and as I reflect upon the year that has passed, I hope for a better future for our public education system and for Alberta’s students. It is time to create a conversation for positive change while also honoring the past.

The year 2022 was evidenced by tumult for public education and Alberta schools. By March we marked the second anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic while the Omicron wave had peaked as it moved through Alberta and the rest of Canada. In June, the Alberta government removed all public health measures, including masking, preferring an endemic approach to managing the pandemic including encouraging people to obtain COVID-19 vaccines and boosters. By the fall, school divisions were reporting high absenteeism due to illness and children’s hospitals were reporting long wait times because of seriously ill children with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the flu, and COVID-19. 

Layering onto the issues caused by the pandemic and RSV, was the rushed mandatory implementation of curriculum in elementary schools, mandatory standardized diagnostic testing in grades 1 through 3, and decreasing resources to support public schools. Given the disrupted context for school staff and students, how do we understand what the cumulative impact of the pandemic, policy-making decisions and declining resources are and how do we move forward to stand up for public education?

Firstly, the ongoing research by the Alberta Teachers’ Association through its pulse surveys over the course of the pandemic have shed light on the experiences of teachers and school leaders as they work with students and families to foster learning under challenging circumstances. The pulse surveys reveal that now, more than ever before, the needs of students are increasingly complex, and the resources required to meet the demands are not keeping pace.

In addition, the Association has been working to understand what parents, students, teachers, school leaders and other education support workers are experiencing during the pandemic and the 2022 school year. Consequently, the Association is convening four in-person round tables, one virtual round table, a Francophone round table, and an Indigenous round table across the province so parents, community members and educators can explore ideas for positive change in the public education system. The Alberta School Councils' Association is supporting this project by encouraging parents to engage with these hopeful conversations through their school councils or through attendance at the Association hosted events. These activities will generate ideas that can be compiled and brought forward for discussion as we move forward to the May 2023 election.  

The next provincial election promises to be an important one for public education. I hope that when the wisdom of parents, students, community members and educators is compiled, a bold, hopeful vision for education will emerge and citizens will be able to engage all political parties to inspire positive policy positions for the future of public education.