About Teachers' Conventions

Under the Teaching Profession Act, the Association is responsible for advancing and promoting the cause of education in Alberta and improving the teaching profession. A primary way in which the Association fulfils this obligation is by organizing annual conventions for teachers. The Association has established 10 convention associations in the province, which are responsible for authorizing, planning, conducting, evaluating and governing teachers’ conventions. Each convention association is governed by a formal constitution and a board made up of teachers selected by the participating locals. These teachers give freely of their time and energy to plan a program that reflects the needs and interests of teachers in their area.

Teachers have a professional and legal obligation to attend the convention organized in their area. Such conventions afford teachers the opportunity to keep up with new approaches and instructional methods, to identify common problems and to exchange ideas with colleagues. Conventions also help instil in teachers a sense of pride in their profession. Discipline charges can be and have been brought against teachers who fail to attend their annual convention. The dates for Teachers’ Conventions are set several years in advance per the Association’s Administrative Guidelines. Attached is the schedule of dates  from 2011—2020 for all Alberta teachers’ conventions.

Although teachers have a professional obligation to attend their convention, they may, in exceptional circumstances, be unable to do so. In 2004, the Association’s Provincial Executive Council approved a Protocol for Convention Attendance that outlines in detail the obligations of teachers with respect to convention attendance and explains the processes that they must follow in seeking permission to be absent. The protocol recognizes three acceptable reasons that teachers may have for being absent from a convention:

1. Eligibility for a medical, bereavement, personal or other leave covered by the collective agreement. In such cases, the teacher should seek permission, in the usual fashion, from his or her school board.
2. Participation in an alternate professional development activity. In such cases, the teacher must seek permission from his or her convention association's convention attendance committee.
3. Participation in a provincial final organized by the Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association (ASAA). In such cases, the teacher coach must, in accordance with an agreement that the Association has in place with the ASAA, formally request permission from his or her convention association’s convention attendance committee by downloading, completing and submitting to the committee an Absence Request Form. Permission will be granted only for the minimal time that the coach requires to participate in the finals event.

The Association offers the following assistance to convention associations:

• Advice in planning programs and sessions that meet the needs of teachers
• Suggestions for keynote speakers
• Help in communicating effectively with other convention associations, Alberta Education, specialist councils and school jurisdictions
• Advice in resolving organizational, financial and legal problems
• Training for convention officials

The Alberta Teachers’ Retirement Fund (ATRF) accepts invitations to conduct personal interviews and/or pension seminars at any teachers' convention. A list of the teachers’ conventions that ATRF staff will be attending this year is available from ATRF’s website.