Ron Fisher, the Sundre-area Ward 6 trustee on the Chinook's Edge School Board, says he agrees with some of the changes made under the newly introduced Education Act, while disagreeing with other parts.
The Education Act was introduced as Bill 2 in the legislature last week. Once passed it will replace the Schools Act of 1988 as the governing legislation for education in Alberta.
The new legislation has been developed following consultations with school boards, educators, parent groups and others.
The legislation is divided into a number of sections, such as access to education, governance and collaboration, and administration and financial responsibility.
Under the access to education section, the new legislation raises the age of compulsory attendance to 17 from 16 years to (the government says) “encourage more students to complete their high school education.”
For his part, Fisher says he does not agree with that particular change.
“If it means keeping kids in school just to keep them there and they are bored and they don't see any use in going to school, this just creates a problem,” said Fisher.
“I would much rather the government would save that money and spend that money on those kids once they reach a certain age, maybe 22 or 23, when they realize they need more education and want to come back and get more education. That's where the money should be spent.”
The legislation also increases the age of access to 21, allowing students more time to graduate and aligning Alberta with the majority of other provinces and jurisdictions.
“Basically this is the same thing. I would rather see the government put that money into those people, but at the right time,” he said.
The new legislation also requires school boards to develop a code of conduct that addresses bullying behaviour, whether or not it occurs within a school building, during the school day or by electronic means.
Fisher says he is in support of that anti-bullying initiative.
“I am absolutely in favour of this. I think it is reflective of the government's wish to cut down on bullying and it reflects their awareness that with cyberbulling it is very hard to control. It is done at home, but if it is affecting students at school, then this certainly has to be addressed,” he said.
The legislation bases residency on the residence of the student rather than where the student's parents live, as is the case under the School Act. Fisher says that is a good move.
“This will recognize the fact that students are more mobile now and some of them can be on their own, even in Grade 11. We do get students coming into the school and they can be living away from their parents and we of course have to provide an educational program for them,” he said.
Under the governance and collaboration section, school boards are compelled to collaborate with post-secondary institutions and the community to enable smooth transitions for students from high school to post-secondary education. Fisher says that too is a good change.
“I would certainly agree with that initiative,” he said. “It appears now that the government would like us to try and develop transitional means with post-secondary institutions. This is certainly something we have to look at.”
