As of the date that I am writing this issue’s Off Script, we still do not know who will be the winner of the UCP leadership race and our next premier. There’s been a lot of speculation, guessing, polls, tweets and talk about who will win, should win, could win and just how that will change our landscape — and change things it will.
But this is not new to those of us who have been around for awhile. Every election, every leadership race, every new minister of education causes the education system to change—the big question this time is whether the change will be for the better or will it make matters worse. The optimist in me hopes for the best, but my inner cynic knows that we will still be in a continued fight to protect public education.
No matter who wins the leadership race and how, or if, they shuffle cabinet, we need to remain focused on our students, each other and public education. Our Stand for Education campaign focuses on making public education a key priority for the 2023 election, centering on the concerns we have about curriculum, class sizes, funding and the complexities of our students’ needs. Keeping this focus will become the work of all of us in public education.
It would be easy for our voices, our hopes for the future for education, to become lost in the noise around the changes this election will surely bring. This is why the October 22nd rally to support public education is so important, not only to our profession, but to the overall campaign to make education a top priority in the spring election.
During the same weekend as the rally, both major political parties will be having meetings or conventions—setting their priorities for what they want to see in province. We cannot let them write the narrative of what public education should look like. Teachers and school leaders need to use their expertise in creating a comprehensive plan for what education looks like in our province and make that message loud and clear to our political leaders. I hope you attend the rally on October 22 and add your voice. ❚
I welcome your comments. Contact me at jason.schilling@ata.ab.ca.
