PONOKA NEWS 17
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Concerns continue with Teaching Excellence report BY AMELIA NAISMITH
A report containing 25 recommendations to improve Alberta’s education was released last month, and Albertan’s are still giving feedback on a number of issues, including teacher evaluations, parent involvement, and perceived threats to principals positions.
“We believe strongly that we have excellent teachers in Alberta” Brad Vonkeman, president of the Alberta School Councils Association
A teleconference was hosted May 27 by Education Minister Jeff Johnson and Task Force for Teaching Excellence (TFTE) members Ron Young and Michele Mulder. It provided Alberta’s school councils an opportunity to voice their opinions on the report and asks questions. There has been a lot of controversy surrounding the report, as many different educational groups, such at the Alberta Teachers Association, as well as individuals across the province feel its intentions threaten teachers with the call for evaluations every five years. A majority of the teleconference was spent explaining the thought processes behind that recommendation and dispelling confusion and anxiety. “We believe strongly that we have excellent teachers in Alberta,” said Brad Vonkeman, president
of the Alberta School Council Association. He added should become more involved with the the task force document was created to strengthen an education of students. “I think the parent voice and the community voice is already sound system. “It’s not a report about getting rid of bad teach- the one that’s been missing from eduers, it’s about making everybody better. This report, cation,” said Mulder. This is why the I think, moves everybody report recommends along that continuum,” “It’s not meant to be parents have a place added Young. in evaluating teachers With the report cova threatening thing she added. ering a broad range of . . . if it’s managed A listening counsubjects Johnson says the cil representative document is not about properly, it’s not questioned why it pinpointing weak teachmeant to be a free would be necessary ers, but instead is looking for all” for teachers to receive to build on all matters that will provide more advanTask Force for Teaching Excellence feedback on their own tages and opportunities member Michele Mulder individual professional growth plans. to the students. “I want Mulder likened to emphasize that we’re extremely proud of our system . . . but we’re only the practice to a professional growth strong because we look to continual improvements.” exercise. “It’s only that too often a perOne of the report’s recommendations states son is too close to themselves to the teachers should turn in a professional growth plan areas that need improvement.” Johnson and the TFTE members each year with an evaluation of those plans by their principal every five years to keep teachers account- feel allowing parents and students to evaluate teachers will help close the able. Further explaining the non-existence of a threat gap between how teachers feel they to teachers, Johnson says the evaluations are not are providing for their students and, in meant to expose bad teaching practices through that turn, how the students feel they are beprocess, because if there were a bad teacher in a ing taught. “It’s not meant to be a threatenschool, the ministry would not wait for the five-year process to run its course to remove them. A related concern centered around how, not only parents, but the community as a whole could and
ing thing . . . if it’s managed properly, it’s not meant to be a free for all,” said Mulder. Another concern seems to be how teaching excellence will be defined and why some practices already common in the province were named as recommendations. Johnson says those recommendations were made to ensure everybody will have access to those “best practices.” “What goes into those portfolios of excellence we need to have continuing dialogue about,” he added. More unhappiness stemmed from the belief the TFTE sought to remove principals from their Alberta Teachers Association (ATA) membership. However, Johnson and the TFTE members stressed to the more than 50 councils listening in on the teleconference that the document was not being put in place to create a “bureaucratic nightmare” or remove principals from their current roles. Mulder says the report works to keep the checks and balances within the system and ensure the best is set before Alberta’s students.
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