The Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) has strongly rejected the Task Force for Teaching Excellence report released by Alberta’s Education Minister, considering it as an assault on teachers.
“The politically driven recommendations have the potential to seriously undermine the culture of education in Alberta, a global leader in education,” complained ATA President Mark Ramsankar, adding that Minister Jeff Johnson's report, “Seriously undermines teachers’ trust in and relationship with this Progressive Conservative Government.”
Damaging proposals
Ramsankar also called on Premier Dave Hancock to immediately and clearly outline the position of the Government on the task force recommendations attacking the profession.
The ATA, a member of Education International's affiliate, the Canadian Teachers’ Federation, has identified changes that are offensive to teachers and will undermine the culture of education in Alberta, including recommendations that:
- Strip teachers of fundamental employment protections
- Force recertification every five years
- Grant teaching certificates to individuals who do not have a teaching degree
- Fail to recognise fundamental differences between policing conduct and reviewing teacher professional practice
- Turn principals from collaborative school leaders into factory bosses
- Attempt to extort compliance from the Association by threatening to remove principals from membership and/or break it up
CTF: Alberta best in the world
“Alberta has been among the best in the world at advancing the professional strength of its teachers,” said CTF President Dianne Woloschuk. “In a country recognised for strong teachers, Alberta teachers are a group that has arrangements with Finland, Singapore - their equals as top performers in the world. Other provinces/territories have a variety of assessments but Alberta’s review process is among the best. The government in Alberta was a leader in involving our member organisation, the Alberta Teachers’ Association in assessment. The ATA is very concerned about maintaining high competency and has a process to ensure high performance that works in conjunction with employers and government.”
EI: Demand proper social dialogue
EI General Secretary Fred van Leeuwen also said: “Alberta’s public authorities must immediately engage in social dialogue with organisations representing the teaching profession. Teachers must be acknowledged as competent and committed professionals with basic trade union rights.”