The Alberta Teachers Association (ATA) said a new report from the Blue Ribbon Panel on Inclusive Education in Alberta indicates a need for more supports and services for students with special needs.
“Teachers have identified increasing complexity of classrooms and inadequate supports for students as the biggest issues they face,” said ATA President Mark Ramsankar.
“The Blue Ribbon panel’s work gives us, as stakeholders in education, a roadmap for working together to improve education for all students.”
The report, released on Sept. 9, offers 38 recommendations which include recommendations to Alberta Education, school jurisdictions, schools, the ATA, the government of Alberta, postsecondary institutions, school councils, teachers and administrators.
Key recommendations according to the ATA include: a multilevel communication strategy to provide clear and consistent communications; more funding and time for professional development for teachers; conducting regular research on inclusive education and the establishment of advisory committees to guide successful implementation.
“It is important that the necessary steps be taken to ensure that teachers have the support and resources required to make inclusion meaningful and successful for all students,” the ATA press release states.
“Countries all over the world are dealing with the same issues related to equity and inclusivity for students with special needs,” said Blue Ribbon Panel Chair Marc Arnal in the press release.
“Alberta has the opportunity right now to grasp this global issue and become a world leader on one of the most important educational issues of our time.”
The report comes after Alberta Education published Setting the Direction Framework in 2009 and Setting the Direction Framework: Government of Alberta Response in 2010, which outlined 12 recommendations for special education.
“Since that time, teachers have seen little improvement at the classroom level for students with exceptional needs, and in some cases, supports have actually been reduced,” the Blue Ribbon report states.
In an email to Rocky View Weekly, Director of Communication for Alberta Education Tamara Magnan said the department is reviewing the report and its recommendations.
“Alberta Education provides over $400 million annually to support inclusive education and help meet the needs of all students,” she said.
“While Action on Inclusion is no longer a separate project or initiative, the work to implement an inclusive education system continues and is embedded throughout the ministry.”
“Every student in Alberta deserves a high-quality education – and as a national leader in education funding – our commitment is strong,” she added.
The eight-member Blue Ribbon Panel was established in 2013 by the ATA to provide an “arm’s-length” investigation and report prompted by “ongoing concerns about the state of inclusion in Alberta schools,” according to ATA press release.
The panel included a classroom teacher, a special needs teacher, a school-based administrator, a central office administrator and representatives from Alberta universities and the ATA.
The report was the result of four face-to-face and one teleconference panel member meetings, and research from the University of Alberta, which included two online survey’s from ATA members; focus groups and telephone interviews with superintendents.
“It’s the teacher’s responsibility to help students learn, and everyone and everything in the system should support the teachers in ensuring that this takes place,” the report states.
For more information or to view the report, visit teachers.ab.ca
