This release was issued under a previous government.
More than 100 high schools will remove the 25-hour standard this coming school year. Most recently, the Calgary Board of Education decided to have all of its high schools participate.
“This is Inspiring Education in action,” said Education Minister Jeff Johnson. “We are rethinking and redesigning high school to provide flexibility for students and teachers. Linking credits to the time a kid spends sitting in a desk is too prescriptive for some high school students, especially those who don’t require the full 25 hours of face-to-face instruction to master the curriculum.”
A recent report on the Alberta government’s High School Flexibility Enhancement project revealed positive feedback from students, teachers and parents. The project began in 2009 with 16 schools and is now open to all school boards across the province to implement.
“The flex approach allows high school students to focus on other curriculum needs and access additional teacher supports during the school day,” he said. “It also allows students to continue their progress in a particular course beyond the scheduled semester, rather than awarding them a failing grade and having them retake a course.
“Albertans told us through Inspiring Education that the system as a whole needs to be responsive and flexible. I’m proud of the efforts of all school boards actively engaged in rethinking high school and for thinking outside the box. The option for school boards to remove the 25-hour requirement and design their own flex approach is a very student-centred approach to learning.”
Our government was elected to keep building Alberta, to live within its means and to fight to open new markets for Alberta’s resources. We will continue to deliver the responsible change Albertans voted for.
Media inquiries may be directed to:
Kim Capstick
Press Secretary
Alberta Education
780-415-1650
780-405-2983 (cell)
[email protected]
Twitter: @Kim_Cap
To call toll free within Alberta dial 310-0000.