The Alberta Teachers’ Association

The Association’s current #MyClassSizeIs campaign is drawing attention to not only the size of Alberta classrooms but also the complexity of student needs that exist within them. Through social media,  teachers are sharing information about their classrooms to raise awareness of learning and teaching conditions.

Some teachers have reported having more than 10 students over the recommended class sizes and wide ranges of student needs to meet. ATA president Greg Jeffery hopes teachers like these will get some relief this school year with the $75-million Classroom Improvement Fund (CIF).

It seems every year Alberta classrooms get more challenging,” Jeffery said. “Even in the centres where classrooms aren’t getting bigger, they are getting more complex because then you have combined grade levels. I’m hopeful the CIF will help teachers across the province get whatever resources, training and supports they need to meet the needs of students in their classrooms.

Some boards have not publicly shared a lot about how their CIF committees have decided to spend their funding. Others have shared information with the media or have made mention of it in reports or meeting minutes posted on their websites.

Information from a sampling of school boards indicates that staffing — certificated teachers and support staff — is a priority. Money has also been earmarked for professional development, as well as for classroom materials, resources and technology.

Northern Lights Local No. 15 president David Ripkens made sure teachers had input into how the CIF would be spent in Northern Lights Public Schools.

We polled the local membership soon after the announcement about CIF was made; Ripkens said. “Teachers made it clear that kids should have equal opportunity to benefit from the classroom improvement funds. For some that now means more teachers in their school; for others, it means literacy or technology resources at their fingertips.

Ripkens is content that the Northern Lights CIF committee (made up of an equal number of board and teacher representatives) did what was best for students.

Being granted CIF money was not a foregone conclusion,” he said. “The collaborative relationship between the ATA local and the school board created the conditions to make it happen. Kids get to reap the rewards. This is a textbook win-win.