Jason Schilling

Colleagues, please make sure you’ve taken time to complete the matters bargaining survey. It’s available on the ATA Website until March 01.

❗ Bargaining Update – List Agreement Reached

Read Bargaining Update #3 to see the draft agreed-to list of all matters:

https://legacy.teachers.ab.ca/membersonly/CollectiveBargainingUpdates/BargainersBlog2016-18/Pages/Bargaining-Update-3-List-Agreement-Reached.aspx

Please remember to complete the bargaining needs survey before March 1.

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This government is failing the students of Alberta, they deserve better. They deserve smaller class sizes; they deserve better learning conditions.

The government can’t claim poverty and we can’t let them to continue to balance the budget on the backs of kids. It’s time for this government to step up and stop the excuses.

On February 29, the government tables its next budget, we will be looking for three things on budget day next week:

1. Where is the funding for enrolment growth?

2. Where is the funding for inflation?

3. Where is the added funding to repair the current damage caused by years of underfunding?

Update from earlier in the week, please go to the Association website to complete the bargaining survey if you haven’t already.

www.teachers.ab.ca

🆕Bargaining Update – List bargaining commences

We have met with government and employer representatives to initiate the first steps of central table bargaining.

Read Bargaining Update #2 ➡ https://legacy.teachers.ab.ca/membersonly/CollectiveBargainingUpdates/BargainersBlog2016-18/Pages/Bargaining-Update-2%E2%80%93List-Bargaining-Begins.aspx

Please don’t forget to complete the bargaining needs survey before March 1.

For your information.

Palliser Teachers Authorize Strike Vote

Palliser teachers refused to be swayed by an ultimatum issued from school board bargainers and are instead opting to move toward taking a strike vote.

On Monday, at a meeting attended by over three-quarters of members, teachers voted 92 per cent in favour of authorizing the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) to apply for a government-supervised strike vote. The vote came after teachers rejected the school board’s last offer in local bargaining by the same margin.

“Palliser negotiators said there would be no bargaining table to come back to if teachers rejected their offer. It was a threat that our teachers did not take kindly to, and they strongly voted that offer down. At the end of the day, it offered no noticeable improvements over the status quo.”
—Natalie Townshend, Palliser ATA local president

Read the full release: https://bit.ly/3SY60Lf

The Alberta Teachers’ Association has released the following statement in response to new policy directions affecting schools and supports for gender and relationship diverse students. Additional comments will be made when more detail is known about the government’s specific plans for implementation.

“Our primary concern is the safety and wellness of all students.
I am worried about how today’s announcement will impact the safety of some of our most vulnerable students. We want all students to know, and especially those students who identify or have family members that identify as gender or relationship diverse, that teachers support you and care for you.

Today’s announcement about the policy direction intended by government is broad reaching. We appreciate and respect the partnership and complementary roles of parents and teachers in the lives of students, and we recognize the value of parental support that exists for the vast majority of students. However, pieces of the policies announced are concerning and have the potential to impact the culture and operation of schools.

We are concerned about the chilling effect placed on classrooms and schools, impacting our ability to provide safe, caring and inclusive spaces for all students. We are concerned about how students may feel forced to suppress their identities and to be afraid of reaching out to teachers as an avenue for support.

Transgender youth are 5 times more likely to think about su***de and nearly 8 times more likely to attempt it than other children. We must be mindful of the vulnerability of these students and their need for safety, security and support.

Teachers must be broadly and meaningfully consulted on these policy positions and their consequences before they are enacted.”

—Jason Schilling, ATA President

Colleagues, as we prepare for the next round of negotiations, it is critically important that we hear from teachers about their needs and priorities for bargaining.

The 2024 Bargaining Needs Survey is now available for you online. Please take 20–25 minutes to complete the survey and share your important thoughts. The survey is available in English and French. Encourage all of your colleagues to do the same.

The survey is open until March 01, but please don’t wait and risk this opportunity passing you by.

Find out more and access the survey on our website by reading the first 2024 Bargaining Update.

We will continue to keep you updated throughout the process. Stay tuned.

Thanks for your engagement and support.

Today, I stand in solidarity and support our colleagues in Saskatchewan as they stand united for better learning conditions for their students and working conditions for teachers. It's time for government to take their bargaining seriously.

The issues Saskatchewan teachers are facing echo Alberta--class sizes, the complex needs of our students, lack of funding. These are concerns that require serious discussions. I echo STF President, Samantha Becotte's call for their government, like all our governments, to take public education seriously.

Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation

Colleagues,

Check out the latest resource from the ATA titled, Supporting Ukrainian Newcomer Students and Their Families in Alberta Schools.

This resource was developed in collaboration with the Alberta Teachers’ Association and the Additional Languages and Intercultural Council (ALIC). It is free to review and download online. https://teachers.ab.ca/sites/default/files/2024-01/COOR-203%20_SupportForUkrainianNewcomerStudents-WEB_2023-11-24.pdf

The Canadian Multicultural Education Foundation and the ATA have developed a series of resources that will be useful to teachers as they work with students and their parents. You can find other resources on the ATA website here:

https://teachers.ab.ca/advocacy/diversity-equity-and-human-rights-dehr

Diversity, Equity, and Human Rights (DEHR) | Alberta Teachers' Association The DEHR Committee supports safe and caring classrooms for students

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Maintenant, plus que jamais, il y a un besoin d’examiner les pratiques et les systèmes qui favorisent la santé sociale et émotionnelle de tous les membres de la communauté scolaire. Cet atelier a été conçu dans l’objectif de rehausser les compétences socioémotionnelles des adultes du milieu scolaire et leur efficacité en ce qui a trait à l’enseignement des compétences socioémotionnelles à leurs élèves et à leur capacité de servir de modèles à cet égard. Il s’agit d’un atelier interactif pouvant être réparti en plusieurs séances au cours desquelles les participants apprendront et mettront en pratique des stratégies tout aussi pratiques que puissantes pour renforcer leurs compétences sociales et émotionnelles et celles de leurs élèves.

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Thanks ATA Local 32 for having me at your Induction Ceremony. It’s a great night to celebrate and honour our newest members. Thanks to Ross MacDonald for the bagpipe procession

The Government of Alberta has opened public consultations in advance of Budget 2024, and as teachers in Alberta, your feedback is important.

Please take a few moments to share your views by filling out the Budget 2024 online survey. https://your.alberta.ca/budget-2024/survey_tools/budget-2024-survey

Some of the concerns that need to be addressed are:
• Class size and composition issues need to be resolved. Seventy-two per cent of Albertans believe that class sizes are too big.
• Eighty-five per cent of teachers have seen a dramatic increase in the complexity and diversity of student needs in 2023.
• Four in 10 teachers have more than 33 students in their classes.
• Inclusion requires support. Students are in classes without the support they need.

You can also participate in telephone town halls, scheduled for December 11 and 12, by registering online at Budget 2024 consultation. https://www.alberta.ca/budget-2024-consultation

Your participation helps to ensure that public education is prioritized in the budget. The survey and online submission portal are live until January 19, 2024.

Thank you for your dedication to public education, and for taking the time to provide your valuable input.

Budget 2024 Survey The Government of Alberta invites you to share your thoughts on Alberta’s next budget, which will be announced in 2024.Tell us what you think the government’s financial priorities should be, and how we should prioritize spending on health care, education and affordability initiatives, while maki...

Today we mourn the passing of our friend and colleague, Cory Schoffer, who was not only a tireless advocate for public education but a genuine, all around great person. Cory's dedication to his family, his friends, his beloved dogs and Winnipeg sports teams was legendary. He had a big heart, a big laugh, and was always quick with a witty reply. We will miss him terribly here at the ATA, and I will personally miss his friendship, laughter, and great advice. My deepest condolences to his family, his friends and loved ones.

wîcihtotân (weh-chee-tow-tan), is an ATA program and network for Indigenous teachers and school leaders to listen and learn together. The program connects participants to offer support, guidance and mentorship with each other. Participants will share resources, strategies, ideas and experiences that can enhance their work and help each other feel less isolated, marginalized and vulnerable. Register for free by November 30: https://bit.ly/40O78DC

Public Education Needs More to Reduce Country’s Largest Class Sizes

Alberta Teachers’ Association president Jason Schilling has issued the following statement in response to today’s funding announcement from the Alberta government:

“When students are added to classrooms that are not fully funded, this amounts to a cut.

This year’s growth in student enrolment is unprecedented. Estimates from school boards suggest that enrolment will be up by at least 20,000 students over last year. School boards are short about $135 million this year as a result of the province not fully funding these students.

By adding students without funding school boards to hire enough teachers and other support staff, it is guaranteed that class sizes and classroom conditions will just continue to worsen. While any injection of funding to schools is appreciated, today’s announcement falls well short of what’s required to improve conditions in schools. In fact, this announcement does not even stop the situation from getting worse.

Funding is always a choice. The government posted an $11.6 billion surplus last year. It is projecting a $2.4 billion surplus this year. The government has the money; it just needs the political will.

Albertans want more spending on education. Our public opinion polling shows 68 per cent of Albertans believe that we are not spending enough on public education, and 72 per cent of Albertans feel that class sizes are too large.

Funding is a choice. So, why are we choosing to continue to cut the level of per-pupil funding when we already have the lowest funded public education system in the country?

This funding is obviously welcome, but it is nowhere near enough. Alberta’s students deserve better.”

—ATA president Jason Schilling

Yesterday's Press Release on the defeat of Bill 202 regarding class size data in the Legislature.

Teachers are disappointed that the Alberta legislature defeated a private member’s bill that would have brought a return to public reporting of class size data, says Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA) president Jason Schilling. The Government of Alberta stopped the practice of publicly reporting on class size data in 2019 at a time when the data was showing years of unprecedented growth in Alberta class sizes.

“Alberta’s students are currently learning in the largest and most complex classrooms we have ever seen. The previous government introduced a new funding model that cut supports for complex student needs and stopped funding the full rates of enrolment growth. At the same time, it also stopped reporting the exact data that would track the impacts of these funding choices.”

While class size funding is no longer reported, tracking of employment levels shows that the hiring of teachers in recent years has failed to keep up with rapid student population growth. Through last school year, student enrolment rose by 25,000 students since 2018, while the teacher supply was cut by 600 positions during the same time. Another 20,000 students are expected to be in schools this year.

“Per-pupil funding has been cut by 10 per cent in the past five years – teachers know this has resulted in significant class size growth. Every time we add more kids in the system without fully funding them, we are cutting that funding rate further and further. Albertans deserve to know the facts about the current state of classrooms.”

Bill 202, the Education (Class Size and Composition) Amendment Act, sponsored by Calgary-Beddington MLA Amanda Chapman, called for the annual reporting of class size and composition data; the establishment of provincial standards for class size and composition; and the establishment of a Commission on Learning Excellence to look at class size, composition and other educational issues.

The bill was defeated at second reading in the legislature this afternoon. Schilling says the bill was just calling for information and transparency, and he would like to see the Minister of Education bring back class size reporting even without the mandate proposed by Bill 202.

“Adequate support for public education should not be a partisan or political issue. Regardless of political stripe, Albertans across the board want to see well-funded classrooms.”

Meta won’t allow me to post the link for you. But check out the column, then share with your friends and neighbors.

https://calgaryherald.com/opinion/columnists/opinion-where-have-all-the-teachers-gone

Opinion: Where have all the teachers gone? We cannot keep asking schools to do more with less. By underfunding, we are failing a generation of students who are our future leaders.

Recent public opinion polling the ATA conducted showed that 72 per cent of Albertans believe class sizes are too big. Read the rest of the column below:

Opinion: Where have all the teachers gone? We cannot keep asking schools to do more with less. By underfunding, we are failing a generation of students who are our future leaders.

As the President of the Alberta Teachers’ Association, I share with you with my profound sense of gratitude and respect for the sacrifices made those who chose to serve Canada and to ensure our freedom.

Canada's history is intertwined with the selfless acts of all our veterans. These veterans stood tall in the face of adversity to protect our values and way of life.

We remember not only the countless lives lost but also the resilient spirit that unites us as a nation.

In classrooms across Alberta, teachers work tirelessly to educate the next generation about the significance of Remembrance Day. We teach our students about the sacrifices made during times of conflict and the importance of fostering peace in our world.

Remembrance Day is not just about the past; it is a call to action for the future.

It is our duty to impart the lessons of history to our students, so that they too continue to value the concept of peace.

On November 11, let us reflect on the sacrifices made, and rededicate ourselves to building a world where peace and harmony prevail.

Let us remember them.

Remembering and grateful for the bravery and sacrifice of our Indigenous Veterans today on Indigenous Veterans Day.

Learn more about their courageous dedication here:

Indigenous Veterans - Veterans Affairs Canada Remember Canada’s Veterans

My latest Offscript for the ATA News:

As a teacher, we all have those days where things just do not seem to go to plan. Usually they are Mondays when you forget your materials at home, the photocopier jams and you spill your coffee. Normally, when I’ve had one of those days where everything seems to go wrong, my students and their desire to learn would help to turn the day around and remind me why I got into teaching in the first place. Thanks to them, my Monday scowl has been replaced with a smile (even if I still have coffee stains on my shirt).

While in my current role I don’t have a classroom filled with students to help conquer my Monday Malaise, I now find renewed energy through my teaching colleagues across the province.
In the past few weeks, my bucket was filled by attending the two Beginning Teachers’ Conferences (BTC) and the Substitute Teachers’ Conference (STC)—events brimming with enthusiasm for the work we do.

We all remember our first few years of teaching and how isolating those years can be when you are eyeball-deep in imposter syndrome. In my remarks to the BTC, I encouraged our newest members to connect with their colleagues, either in a formal or informal mentorship program. Teachers in their first years of practice have questions, need advice and could use a few tips on how to best navigate a jammed photocopier. So, I encourage my more “seasoned” colleagues to be there for our newest colleagues. Help foster that energy and creativity they bring to the profession.

The STC was another great opportunity for professional learning and connections. For me, the STC also was an opportunity to thank our substitute teacher colleagues for their support of classroom teachers when they are absent. Last year, Association research showed that the average student will spend the equivalent of one entire academic year with a substitute teacher by the time they graduate. Particularly given the substitute teacher shortages we have seen these last few years, it is important that we honour these professionals for the vital work they do.

You never know where you will find inspiration to get through the hard days. However, after a few tough weeks, I was reminded of why teaching is such a great profession. And I owe that all to you.

Five things you should know about the APP proposal | Alberta Teachers' Association There’s a word for the proposal to pull Alberta out of the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and build a smaller, from-scratch provincial pension plan. The word is risky. Teachers, of course, appreciate the importance of words. And of math. And of taking the time to learn about important issues like the s...

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You scan your poppy on your smartphone and it will give you a story of a Canadian veteran. Pretty cool.

Reading for Pleasure Helps Kids’ Brain Development The simple and fun act of reading for pleasure in early childhood produces better cognition, mental health and educational attainment in adolescence

“Celebrating different cultures at school will bring to light new thinking and understanding. Students need to understand there is never a right or wrong way — we are all different and we learn and grow together.”

Check out the latest feature on diversity in the ATA Magazine, in schools now, or online: https://bit.ly/46GzZvM