The Alberta Teachers’ Association

Highlights of the Provincial Executive Council meeting held October 20 and 21, 2011, at Barnett House, in Edmonton

1. Approved in principle and referred to Finance Committee for review and costing a proposed list of programs on which the Association should focus in 2012/13.

2. Extended to December 31, 2011, the deadline for signed ­declarations for the Slave Lake Relief Fund, established by the 2011 Annual Representative Assembly to assist Slave Lake and area teachers affected by the devastating fires in the spring of 2011.

3. Changed from “reaffirm” to “amend” Council’s position on expiring current directive 1.B.27, which urges the Department of Education to implement a policy whereby provincial achievement tests are administered to a population sample of Grade 6 and Grade 9 students in each subject area and no student is required to write provincial achievement tests in more than one subject area in a given year, and adopted as interim policy the amended position, which limits the current directive to Grade 9 students.

4. Approved in principle and referred to the Resolutions Committee for processing a resolution urging Alberta postsecondary institutions to revise admission policies to accept Alberta students on the basis of their final school-awarded mark or their final blended mark, whichever is in the best interest of the ­student.

5. Approved, with amendments, Guidelines for Collective Bargaining 2012/13.

6. Directed the Association to urge the minister of education to engage the teaching ­profession in discussions on revising the weighting of the Mathematics 30-1 and 30-2 diploma examinations prior to the January 2013 writing.

7. Dropped the issue of teachers as special education learning coaches from the Issues Bank.

8. In accordance with section 50(1) of the Teaching Profession Act, extended to March 31, 2012, the deadline for the commencement of an appeal to the Professional Conduct Appeal Committee of a decision of a hearing committee.

9. Agreed to fund a limited research project with the Parkland Institute on the activity of cyber-charter and private companies offering online learning and/or tutoring and/or gathering student assessment data within public education systems.

10. Authorized the purchase of a table package for Public Interest Alberta’s Fun(d) Night, scheduled for October 28, 2011, in Edmonton.

11. Authorized the purchase of a table package for the Society for Safe and Caring Schools and Communities’ Creating Safe Spaces Waffle Breakfast, scheduled for November 16, 2011, in Edmonton.

12. Amended the terms of ­reference of the Curriculum Committee and the Teacher ­Welfare Services Committee.

13. Named field members to fill vacancies on Association, Alberta Education and other external committees.