The Alberta Teachers’ Association

Alberta and Singapore set their sights on 2030

读万卷书 不如行千里路
It is better to travel far than to read voluminously.
—Chinese saying

On a cold winter night in November 2012, six educators from Singapore arrived in Edmonton to participate in the “Encountering Curriculum Design—Bringing Inspiring Education to Life” symposium at the invitation of the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA).

Although the temperature we experienced couldn’t have been more different from that back home, Alberta and Singapore share a similar vision for education. Both Alberta and Singapore selected 2030 as the year to achieve their vision of the future. In Alberta, the new Education Act has a goal to educate Albertans to become engaged thinkers and ethical citizens with an entrepreneurial spirit by 2030. In Singapore, educators look at the desired student outcomes of a confident person—a self-directed learner, an active contributor and a concerned citizen and the requisite competencies that would position our students to take advantage of opportunities in a globalized world. 

Over the past two years, Singapore has also looked at the attributes of a student-centric, values-driven education that would guide our effort toward our desired future. This was shared at the symposium by our delegation leader, S. Manogaran. Discussions with our Alberta colleagues revealed that Alberta and Singapore have much in common, which confirms a shared vision of the future for both jurisdictions.

Organic Change for Policy Shifts

The Singapore delegation noted a high degree of consultation and engagement that the Alberta government undertook to enact the Education Act, through Inspiring Education,[1] a public dialogue to shape the future of education in Alberta. The process of educational change in Alberta was rigorous and inclusive, which meant it took time for change to be legislated and put into effect. However, the lengthy process allowed for greater commitment and support from stakeholders to embrace change.

Along the same line, we also observed that catalyzing change in Singapore required a sustained and inclusive process for us to think through hard issues. Last year, Singapore’s prime minister launched “Our Singapore Conversation” for Singapore citizens to shape the desired future that they’d like to achieve. In his 2013 National Day Message, the PM remarked that Our Singapore Conversation has helped us crystallise what we aspire to: A Singapore which gives its citizens opportunities to succeed and live fulfilling lives. A nation which defines success in many ways and offers multiple paths to many peaks. A society with safety nets that give people peace of mind. A community where the disadvantaged get help and those who have done well in turn do more to help others.[2]

Strengthening Professionalism

Another area where we observed catalyzing change was in strengthening teacher professionalism. We learned that the focal point for education transformation in Alberta schools was at the local level. School leaders and ATA representatives explained that schools, rather than the Ministry of Education, were the main initiators of change in practice. 

Implemented by the ministry, the Alberta Initiative for School Improvement (AISI), which sought to enhance teachers’ research skills and promote teacher leadership, was used as an illustration of such ground-up innovation and change. When the Academy of Singapore Teachers (AST) was created in 2010, it was also given the mandate to champion a teacher-led culture of professional excellence, centred on the holistic development of the child. With Singapore’s focus on engendering stronger teacher leadership and ownership, we saw how Albertans had started their journey earlier and would learn much from Alberta about how teacher leadership can be a pervasive model of change.

The notion of developing teachers as reflective practitioners resonated with the delegation. Jean Stiles, principal of Jasper Place High School (JP), in Edmonton, embraces the idea of “teachers as researchers” and encourages teachers to conduct research with the aim of changing teacher practice. Aligned with AISI, teachers use research to enhance their instructional practice, thus promoting a culture of innovation in the school. This focus on teacher research also contributes to a culture of distributed leadership among teachers at JP.

Singapore is also deeply committed to realizing the idea of “every teacher, a caring educator.” In support of the belief that every child can learn, Singapore develops its teachers as caring people who act on that belief and can connect with and motivate the child. A caring teacher knows the child, shapes the child’s values and character, helps the child grow as a person and brings out the best in the child. A caring teacher is also a skilful teacher who masters content and engages students through thoughtful planning and skilful execution. 

Alberta’s teachers are also caring educators. Not only do they build relationships with their students, they also deepen their expertise and hone their craft through individual Teacher Growth Plans (TGPs). The TGP is akin to the Teacher Growth Model (TGM) used by Singaporean teachers. The TGM model helps teachers to take ownership of their professional growth to nurture in students the competencies required for the 21st century.

Inspiring School Leadership

While teachers seemed to take centre stage to engender change, school leadership was identified as important to the success of innovation and creativity, especially instructional leadership. Indeed, during our visit, we observed that principals play a critical role in driving collaboration, innovation and improvements. They set directions, guiding areas and programs of collaboration. We noticed that school leaders in Alberta play two roles: an instructional leader role and a managerial role. Thus school leaders don’t simply manage schools—they are expected to lead the school in innovation and improvement. Professional development of school leaders is guided by the Alberta School Leadership Framework, which develops “suitable, highly competent educational leaders who create learning cultures through which each student would have an opportunity to engage in quality learning experiences that lead to achievement of the goals of education and address the student’s learning and developmental needs.”

In Singapore, school leadership is also viewed as a critical factor to fulfill “every school, a good school.” We have an Educational Leadership Development Centre (ELDC) (MOE, Singapore) that studies the professional development of school leaders. The ELDC provides a focus for developing high quality educational leadership to respond to the aspirations of the child and nation. The ELDC reviews and monitors the leadership development efforts by MOE, Singapore, and its partner organizations and initiates the conduct and exchange of high quality cutting-edge research in leadership thinking for learning and application within MOE, Singapore. To support its work, ELDC has developed a leadership philosophy specific to our Singapore school leaders.

Building Relationships

Singapore educators believe that all children can learn—not just in school, but for the rest of their lives. “Putting the child at the centre of what we do” is captured in the Singapore educators’ beliefs in the ethos of our teaching profession. We want to nurture engaged motivated learners who enjoy learning and will fulfill their potential. During our school visits, we observed that Alberta was striving to reach the same goal with its emphasis on inclusiveness and relationship building.

At Dr. Donald Massey School, in Edmonton, we observed that teachers taught all subjects of a particular grade (elementary levels) so they could form close bonds with students. Principal Jennifer Allen said this was a principle guiding teacher deployment for younger students.

The belief of inclusiveness extends beyond catering to specific groups of students. JP offers a full inclusion model of academic and vocational programs. Students from both streams have the flexibility to work alongside one another. Singapore can learn from this model as we embark on providing more pathways and options to cater to the diverse interests and learning needs of students.

Teachers building relationships with students is the teaching philosophy at Centre High Campus, in Edmonton. Students can be part-time or returning to finish a course as part of the graduation requirement. Because many students require assistance, a good rapport between teachers and students is necessary. We were impressed by Principal David Morris’s support of students who aren’t academically inclined and his search for alternative paths for them to follow. He highlighted the fact that many of Centre High’s graduates find secure and high-paying jobs in the oil industry. Morris remarked that many students, in particular First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI), were the first in their families to complete high school.

Staying Responsive and Relevant

Alberta’s new curriculum focuses on developing 21st-century competencies such as literacy, numeracy and other cross-curricular competencies, so as to meet students’ needs when they make the transition to the workplace or higher education. We observed that schools are shifting their practice in light of the vision for educated Albertans in 2030. Both Dr. Donald Massey and Glenora Elementary schools, in Edmonton, have translated the new Framework for Student Learning into child-friendly language and students are encouraged to do self-evaluation based on the competencies as part of their move toward assessment for learning.

In a Grade 1 classroom at Dr. Donald Massey School, there were simplified posters of the Framework for Student Learning. Principal Allen said the posters were written in child-friendly language so that younger students could understand. Students also post messages on the wall about how they’ve achieved the different competencies.

Glenora Elementary School has adopted the Framework for Student Learning for the school learning community. Principal Carolyn Gardiner said the school’s framework was based on the Framework for Student Learning that was developed by the Alberta Assessment Consortium. The framework is written in child-friendly language and students can do self-assessment of their competencies using “I can” statements. Gardiner added that her teachers are trained to give timely feedback, which is integral to teaching and learning.

Partnering with Parents and the Community

Singapore recognizes the critical role that parents and the community play in education. Parents are the most important partners, because they are their children’s first teachers. The community also supports education by providing extended learning opportunities for students to learn life skills.

Engaging parents and the community was apparent when we visited JP and Dr. Donald Massey School. JP invites parents for classroom observations and builds relationships with the FNMI community by providing access to programs about its culture in school and engaging community elders to work closely with native students. Dr. Donald Massey offers parents a choice in providing additional assistance for weaker students. These schools also build relationships with their school communities.

Conclusion

As Alberta looks to Inspiring Education as the vision document to guide the education fraternity toward the educated Albertan of 2030, we’re still shaping Singapore for 2030 and waiting for a similar document for the Singapore education fraternity. In striving toward our goal of making every school a great school, we’re also focusing on nurturing engaged learners, enabling teachers to be caring educators and fostering supportive partnerships with parents and the community.

We were reluctant to leave Edmonton after six days, not because of our dread of the 26-hour journey ahead, but because of the hospitality shown by the ATA and the friends we made. But we made the journey, anyway, knowing that we’re not alone in our quest to prepare our youth for a future that is more complex and less certain. And perhaps in 2030, the journey from Edmonton to Singapore will take only six hours.

Kelvin Lee is an Academy Officer with the Standards and Research Branch, Academy of Singapore Teachers, Ministry of Education Singapore.