Still Worried About Recent Budget Cuts to Alberta Schools?
Here’s Why You Should Be
As school resumes after the holiday break, many parents are left wondering how the recently announced budget cuts will affect their child’s classroom. While districts in Calgary were able to avoid layoffs for now, there have been significant decreases in educational grants, causing districts to scramble mid-year to find funds to maintain teaching positions. These funds have come from various sources, including reserve and maintenance budgets and have caused a freeze on all additional spending.
These cuts are significant because our current system is already struggling to keep up with the diverse learning needs of today’s classrooms. Numerous teachers are faced with more than the recommended number of students in their classes, with a variety of learning styles, special needs and ability levels. The more students in a class, the more delicate of a balance it is to ensure each student is progressing well and getting the support they need when they have trouble learning a particular subject or concept.
A freeze on non-essential spending means that if resources were not already put in place, there will no longer be budget available for them. These resources support struggling students, enrich those who are excelling and help to ensure students are not falling through the cracks. Meeting the challenge of this budget has left school boards with little option but to freeze spending and has left parents wondering how they will ensure their children are maximizing their learning opportunities.
Parental involvement becomes especially important when teaching resources are limited. You can best ensure your child is on track by regularly keeping in touch with their progress. We recommend the following:
-Talk to your child often - Negative attitudes towards a subject, concept, test or teacher are good indications of a lack of challenge or frustration point
-Review completed work & tests together - Do they understand the areas they can improve or where they were inaccurate? Does it seem too easy for them?
-Observe homework progress - Is their work complete? Does it show a clear understanding of the material? Are they completing it very quickly?
If you notice your child is showing signs of difficulty in a particular area look to provide additional guidance right away to ensure they don’t fall behind or become underchallenged.
Like many parents, you may not have the knowledge or time to provide instructional support and you may not know if your child needs more of a challenge or extra help. Using a tutor can be a very effective way to ensure your child gets all of the help they need. A tutor can provide an informed assessment of your child’s unique learning needs and can recommend a program to keep them on track. A tutor is also an excellent ongoing option to provide your child consistent reinforcement where they need it.
For many students, math is a polarizing subject that they will find overwhelming, or underwhelming, at some point in their school year making a dedicated Mathnasium tutor an excellent learning partner for your family. Mathnasium tutors have specialized training, are familiar with the current Alberta curriculum and provide a set time & space for your child to learn. Whether as an intervention need or for preventative maintenance, our team will schedule a personalized assessment for your child - set yours up today!
