The Alberta Teachers’ Association

School success jeopardized by cuts

In a recent editorial I wrote about my experience as a rural high school teacher who had grown up in the big city. Over the years that I taught, I was surprised by the number of students who were the first in their families ever to get a high school diploma. (This is not to suggest the phenomenon isn’t common to urban areas—perhaps it’s hidden better.)

During graduation ceremonies, it was an incredibly moving experience to see the faces of an entire family light up when a son or daughter, brother or sister, or grandchild received that first diploma. The pride was palpable and the joy contagious.

In many cases, students succeeded because committed professionals found pathways to success for students through alternative programs like distance education, work experience or special projects.

In our small school, we were unable to offer a wide variety of courses and weren’t able to be very flexible in scheduling. That did not work well for some students; the solution for them was to enroll in courses offered by the Alberta Distance Learning Centre (ADLC).

A lot of students at my school took Math 30-2 through distance learning. Some opted with the ADLC before the course was offered in our school so they could take a job in the second semester. Others had failed the course and needed it to pursue postsecondary education. Yet others found themselves in a scheduling conflict that made it impossible to take the course when it was offered in the school. Regardless of the reasons, being in a small rural school worked against them, but they still wanted to be in school with their peers and graduate with them, and distance learning made that possible. Because I was a math teacher, a lot of these students ended up in my classroom. I was happy to help them during prep periods or after school—they were willing to learn and be diligent, and needed the support and guidance of a teacher.

ADLC gave many students the chance to graduate from high school. Students at risk of not graduating were not unique to my school; Alberta continues to have a low high school completion rate. About 75 per cent of students entering Grade 10 complete high school within three years, and only 5 per cent more complete it within five years.

The provincial government’s high school completion framework speaks to the value of having engaged students who feel a sense of belonging in their school. It also says that positive connections with adults and peers in school help promote that sense of belonging and aid completion. ADLC offers the flexibility to help students find success in their programs while remaining in their school and community and having access to familiar professionals who have a positive influence on them.

Funding cuts to ADLC, work experience and special projects will diminish the offerings available to our most at-risk students and will seriously jeopardize their ability to succeed in school. A cut to ADLC funding is a short-sighted solution to the government’s persistent revenue problem—a problem that requires courageous long-term thinking. Jeopardizing the future of these students will have real and adverse financial effects on the province in the years ahead. Sadly, this is yet one more example of how cuts to education hurt our kids.