EDMONTON - On the first day back to school, thousands of parents and advocates are calling on the provincial government to stop the implementation of the new curriculum that has been roundly rejected by families, teachers and education experts. Instead, Public Interest Alberta, Protect Public Education Alberta, Youth Voice Alberta, and Support Our Students Alberta are demanding a process led by education experts to develop a new curriculum that will set all Alberta students up for success.
“Every child has the right to a high quality public education,” said Caitlin Perry, mother to four youth and education advocate. “This curriculum will take students in the opposite direction and it’s going to do lasting harm.”
“This curriculum threatens the integrity and foundational principles of education,” added Medeana Moussa, Executive Director of SOS Alberta. “It erodes the dignity of students as learners in Alberta.”
Since April 2021, the provincial government has ignored the legitimate concerns of families, communities and teachers. Alberta citizens have mobilized and tirelessly raised their voices for over a year and a half demanding this government to ditch the draft curriculum. Public Interest Alberta, Protect Public Education Alberta, Youth Voice Alberta, Support Our Students Alberta and people across the province are calling for the provincial government to immediately stop the curriculum implementation and to listen to teachers, educational assistants, educational experts, and families and go back to the drawing board. In less than a week, more than 2,000 Albertans have written to the provincial government demanding a stop to the curriculum implementation. As of yet, the Province has not responded.
“We will not stop until the provincial government reverses course on this regressive curriculum,” said Bradley Lafortune, executive director of Public Interest Alberta. “From chronic defunding to forcing this curriculum, our public education system has gone from strained to buckling: this is not an accident. We need families, youth, teachers and Albertans to stand up and send a clear message to stop this dangerous curriculum.”
