Curriculum and assessment
Approved (and updated) by Provincial Executive Council in June 2025, these declarations reaffirm Alberta teachers' and school leaders' belief that curriculum and assessment exist to enhance students' learning, support growth and development, sustain well-being and strengthen public education for all.
Declaration on curriculum
We, the teachers and school leaders of Alberta, believe:
- Curriculum is about what should be learned.
- Curriculum is not about how a particular curriculum outcome should be taught.
- Curriculum belongs to and must be understood and supported by Albertans.
- In matters of designing programs of study, teachers must take the leading role.
- Business has a legitimate contribution to make, but curriculum must address much more than short-term economic objectives.
- Curriculum should allow room for inclusion, local innovation and adaptation.
- Curriculum design should be guided by a process of collaborative dialogue.
- Assessment and evaluation must be consistent with the curriculum.
- Curriculum implementation must be properly supported and paced.
- It is the responsibility of teachers to support students toward a full understanding of the curriculum, and it is the responsibility of the government and school boards to support teachers in all of their efforts to do so.
Declaration on assessment
We, the teachers and school leaders of Alberta, believe:
- Assessment is about enhancing student learning. Its first task is to inform and help students grow and then to aid in teaching and learning.
- Teachers are the assessment experts. They must lead in designing, implementing, interpreting and communicating the evidence of learning.
- Assessment must be fair, engaging and inclusive, giving every learner multiple ways to demonstrate growth.
- Ongoing feedback and diagnostic information guide learning; it is not for accountability.
- Assessment data and information belong first to students, families and teachers and must never be used to publicly rank schools, judge teachers or drive funding.
- Assessment must safeguard well-being. Learning is about relationships, and no measure or test should compromise mental health or limit future opportunities.
- All assessments must provide meaningful accommodations, respect privacy and allow for student exemptions when a test is inappropriate.
- Student test data is collected to support learning—never for sale or profit. Assessment data must be protected under Canadian privacy laws and destroyed when no longer needed.
- Professional learning and support are essential. Government and school authorities must provide funding, resources, professional development and in-school time, so teachers can assess ethically and effectively.
- Teachers, through their Association, must be majority partners in any provincial assessment program and must be given the time and resources to do the work.
Advocacy timeline—curriculum development
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Spring 2024—Draft social studies K–6 curriculum
The government released a revised K–12 social studies subject overview and K–6 social studies curriculum.
Although teachers were consulted on this draft—an essential step—teachers must be more involved in the actual writing of the curriculum.
The ATA recommended that the subject overview and curriculum be revised to reflect the views of Albertans and the recommendations of teachers.
See the full analysis of the 2024 draft social studies curriculum.
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Spring 2023—Feedback on new math, English language arts, and physical education and wellness curricula
In the 2023/24 school year, K–6 students began learning from new curricula in math, English language arts, science, and physical education and wellness.
In March 2023, most teachers were still unsatisfied with the new math, English language arts, and physical education and wellness curricula.
See the ATA’s infographic and a full report on what we heard from teachers.
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Fall 2021—Analysis of 2021 draft K–6 curricula
In 2021, the government released draft K–6 curricula for math, English language arts, science, social studies, fine arts, and physical education and wellness.
Much of the draft curricula for math, English language arts, and physical education and wellness remained in the final versions implemented in schools in 2023.
Read the ATA’s Professional Curriculum Analysis and Critique of Alberta Education’s 2021 Draft K–6 Curriculum.