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Let’s Remember The Past And Take Action Now
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
A quote from 19th-century Spanish philosopher George Santayana seems an appropriate place to start when discussing our Pledge for Public Education. French author Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr gave us “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” Or how about Yogi Berra’s “déjà vu all over again?”
At first blush these quotes seem disheartening, but while they were generated in my thoughts here today as I read the other articles in this issue, the further I read the more encouraged I became. Because we reluctantly accept the cyclical nature of educational change, we then also must acknowledge the same circle of response to the various iterations of change. Let’s look at each of the pledge statements on its own.
I believe all students should be able to learn in small-sized classes.
The recommendation that we most often use to support this statement comes from the Alberta Commission on Learning of 2003. The gains we made were eroded by the Alberta revenue cycles and so the need to push back is a regular one. Many others are now joining this argument.
I believe all students with special learning needs should receive the supports and resources they require for success.
While Alberta’s model for inclusion has only been in place since 2012, the need for support for students with exceptionalities goes back much further than that. The increasing complexity of the inclusionary classroom, adding in refugee children and many more ELL students, is a more recent phenomenon that adds to the firmness of our resolve on this statement.
I believe all students should have the opportunity to benefit from fully funded junior kindergarten and full-day kindergarten programs.
Readiness to learn and having an equitable model for education are concepts near and dear to Alberta teachers. Early intervention allows our students to get the most from their educational experience and helps teachers to do their best work. We are beginning to see models that speak to this initiative—success breeds success.
I believe all students should have access to a teacher-certificated school counsellor in their school.
Our partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association, which goes back more than 10 years, demonstrates teacher commitment to this statement. While we have made significant progress on reducing the stigma attached to issues of mental health, the access to services at the school level remains woefully inadequate in many areas of the province. Partners are taking up the call on this item, and it is heartening to know we are not alone.
So where is the good news in all of this? I believe it resides in the overt demonstration that we, as a profession, will not give up on issues that are important to the well-being of the students in our charge. This pledge allows teachers to stand up for these primary needs that are lacking in our educational system and invites all Albertans to lend their voices to the cause of improving public education for all citizens of the province.
It is one more way of saying “teachers want what students need.” Please engage in the campaign so that, because we remember, and we take action, we may not be condemned to repeat the inadequacies of the past.
