Parents and others weren’t included in K-6 curriculum development
By Letter to the Editor on April 20, 2021.
Editor: I am disappointed with the guest columnist who identified the attacks on K-6 curriculum as “partisan”!
The writer claims that the critics were largely connected with the NDP government; then he goes on to say that they and the ATA were “locked out of the curriculum development process” thus they were “expected to say the grapes were sour.”
My recollection is that many of the “critics” were from all across the spectrum.
I also remember that the UCP garnered votes from across the spectrum as well.
After all, the majority of voters chose them, didn’t they?
Surely some of them are part of that group of attackers!
If we are looking at partisanship, is not the writer of the article displaying a semblance of partisanship?
Is there is something about a pot and a kettle in this conversation then? Hmmm?
He does make a good point about a skilled-based and a knowledge-based curriculum, however.
My questions are these, “What does a Grade 1 student need to know about Charlemagne?” ”
Shouldn’t the early grades ensure that the children learn to work together, tolerate differences, and learn the basic skills of reading, writing, spelling, speaking and thinking?
Rote memorization may not be very popular, but learning the correct words and their spelling is a necessity from my standpoint. For example, there is a difference in the spelling of the past and present tenses of verbs.
Using the verb meaning “to be in front of”, the present tense is spelled “l-e-a-d”; the past tense is spelled “led.”
Obviously, the writer of the column had not learned that in his school years (or was that a typo by the Herald editor? See the first sentence in the sixth paragraph).
Teachers are probably better fit to know how to teach what belongs in a curriculum than are non-teachers.
Parents and others have a right to identify the things children should know.
Unfortunately, members of these groups were not included in the composition of the curriculum development committee.
E.E. Balay
Lethbridge
-1
The work done to get to the draft stage is significant. There is still time (one year at least) for further input, recommendations and changes. Pity those who are so narrow minded that they think a “draft” is useless while espousing all the usual anti everything platitudes. The time to step up is now, not huff and puff and step down as have numerous school boards. The composition of the advisory panel is quite interesting. One of the panel members is our very own from the U of L. In short this is about politics. Current government against the NDP and unions. Where is “it’s all about the students” movement???? We have to get rid of Kenney seems more important at the moment.
Panel Members include: Angus McBeath, Jan Panteluk, Amy von Heyking (U of L), Dr. Martin Mrazik, Andy Neigel, Keray Henke, Glenn Feltham, Paulette Hanna, Miles Smit, NhungTran-Davies, Sharon Carry, Ashley Berner.
Google is your friend.
https://www.alberta.ca/curriculum-development.aspx
.
Buckwheat said, “Where is “it’s all about the students” movement????”
It’s never really been about the students. Oh of course the “curriculum fighters” on both sides will tell you it’s all about the students, but all curriculums are just various types of adults trying to force their emotion, opinions, and ideology on students.
Worth a repeat:
The author from a different letter said, “The classroom culture is so dogmatic, my kids were allowed little self-expression“.
As depressing as that statement is, it’s absolutely true. More importantly, it’s a testament to the danger of ideology. Ideology is basically self righteousness that promotes divisiveness. Ideology is “dualism” and it’s very destructive to society. Ideology is the lowest form of human thought. Despite ideology being the lowest form of human thought, it is the basis of our political and educational system.
It doesn’t matter if it’s political ideology (NDP, CON, LIB), Religious ideology, or Social ideology. All ideology is narrow minded thought that not only stifles the highest form of thought (objectivity), but it also stifles the human “soul” (self expression).
In specific regard to educational curriculums:
All current flavors of curriculums should be placed in a garbage bin to which they they truly belong. Kids should only be taught basic life skills that includes thinking skills (objectivity and logic). All other time, kids should be allowed to pursue the knowledge and skills that their particular heart desires.
To summarize, the education system should not be teaching kids what to think, but how to think. It’s high time we abolished ideology, useless facts, and useless skills from the education system. That insanity should be replaced with basic life skills, self learning, rationality, logic, and objectivity.
NOTE:
The detrimental effects on our kids due to our backwards educational system is profound and can’t be understated. I’m talking up to and including low self esteem, depression, female promiscuity, drug / alcohol addiction, and even suicide. I might elaborate on that in a following post.
Further to this a couple of links to the “others” who weren’t consulted
https://www.alberta.ca/assets/documents/edc-curriculum-working-group-members-kto6-2020.pdf
https://www.alberta.ca/assets/documents/edc-connecting-with-education-partners.pdf
Thanks for the reply buckwheat, but I don’t understand how your reply and the links you provided relate to my comments.
Note that my main point in my previous post is that a curriculum (any curriculum) should not exist.
Between this Kenney UCP K-6 curriculum fisaco, their pandemic response fiasco, their open-pit coal mining fiasco, their $ billions wasted on iffy pipelines and corporate welfare handouts fiasco, their failure to explore other decent avenues of revenue fiasco…….it seems that their wheels on their bumblebus keep falling off every day. Literally, it’s some sort of fiasco almost every day with this bunch. No wonder most Alberta folks are indicating that they will not vote for the Kenney UCP next time around. The Kenney UCP ignores this at their peril.
Well said and I’m a liar for pointing out what I went through as a true conservative while my father almost lost his life and five of my friends lost their jobs because of the massive budget cuts Klein forced upon us. Budget cuts we know weren’t necessary if he had been collecting proper royalties and taxes, like Lougheed did.
Every member of the working group is a member of the ATA. What is your point. The political arm of the ATA was left out? Too bad.
no, just the arm that actually works with the kids was left out. that is why there is so much reticence from teachers and school divisions