Learn English with Alberta s new K-12 Social Studies Curriculum. In this episode, Premier Rachel Notley talks about the process of developing a new curriculum for Alberta s K-6 students, and provides an overview of the proposed curriculum.
00:00:00.000After my appointment as minister in June of 23, I directed my team to immediately begin building a new consultation framework that would involve our partners and members of the public to inform the development of a new draft curriculum.
00:00:14.140We developed a new five-staged approach to drafting and implementing the new curriculum.
00:00:20.240Phase one began in August, which involved the ministry sitting down with key partners to have some initial conversations.
00:00:26.400We met with the Alberta Teachers Association, school boards, including Edmonton Public and Edmonton Catholic.
00:00:51.800Once we had a general agreement about the scope and sequence of the new curriculum, we were able to move into Stage 2.
00:01:00.340Stage 2 included a public survey so that all Albertans could also have their chance to provide direction at the very beginning.
00:01:07.540I want to thank and commend the almost 13,000 Albertans who completed the survey.
00:01:13.200They told us that they wanted students to learn both Canadian and general history, as well as structures of government, early settlement and exploration, trade and the global economy,
00:01:30.080I am proud to say that we are delivering on what Albertans are looking for.
00:01:34.280During Stage 2, we also spoke with First Nations Education Authorities, the Alberta Teachers Association and Social Studies Specialist Group,
00:01:45.060the Alberta Anti-Racism Advisory Council, the Premier's Council on Multiculturalism, Francophone Organizations,
00:01:51.360the Canadian Arab Friendship Association, Jewish Community Organizations and other multicultural communities.
00:01:57.360Department officials also met with curriculum development specialists and other stakeholders to explore and discuss content.
00:02:06.880A full list of these stakeholders is available online on alberta.ca slash curriculum.
00:02:11.940In addition, staff from my team attended teachers' conventions across Alberta throughout February to deliver information sessions on the development of the new draft social studies curriculum
00:02:23.740and collect feedback on what teachers would like to see.
00:02:27.700Stage 2 also included conversations with content specialists.
00:02:31.680That included professors in history, politics and economics and also included a teacher consultation group that included teachers with subject matter expertise who were nominated by their respective school divisions.
00:02:45.420Having received all that input on content, we are now ready to move into Stage 3, which involves some more public engagement and a review of the draft K-6 social studies curriculum.
00:02:58.620Stage 4 will involve piloting, which will commence in September of 24 through to June 2025.
00:03:06.260And Stage 5 will be final implementation of the new K-6 social studies curriculum in September of 2025.
00:03:12.940Today, in addition to the new 2024 draft K-6 curriculum, my department is also releasing an overview of proposed draft for the K-12 curriculum for Albertans to view and provide feedback on.
00:03:29.440The draft K-12 social studies overview provides a summary of what students learn in each grade and shows how learning progresses as students transition through the grades.
00:03:39.160The new 2024 draft K-6 social studies curriculum outlines what students are expected to know, understand and what they should be able to do at the end of each grade level and was developed using the draft K-12 social studies subject overview as a guide.
00:03:57.020I want to be very clear that this version of the draft K-12 social studies curriculum is new.
00:04:04.560Last year, as I highlighted, we returned to Albertans with a clear intention to start fresh.
00:04:09.940Now, let me provide you with a quick overview of what Alberta's new social studies curriculum may look like.
00:04:16.320The new social studies curriculum will contain five streams of learning, history, geography, economics, political science, and civics, and citizenship.
00:04:28.220Students will be exposed to topics in each of these areas in each grade.
00:04:32.600In kindergarten, children will explore culture.
00:04:35.420They will explore tradition and community.
00:04:38.420They will learn about culture, traditions, and places in community, civic responsibilities, and needs and wants.
00:04:44.020In grade 1, students will explore local communities and culture.
00:04:49.520They will learn about respecting diverse cultures, key features of our physical world, and learning about buying and selling.
00:05:05.020In grade 2, students will begin to explore Canada.
00:05:07.940They will learn about Canada's Indigenous communities, our physical regions, our provinces, our territories, the leaders in Canada, including Prime Minister, Premiers, King, and Indigenous leaders.
00:05:20.440They will also learn the importance of opinions, forming opinions, and how to distinguish fact from opinion.
00:05:27.140In grade 3, students will explore Alberta and the prairies.
00:05:32.640They will learn about Alberta's first inhabitants.
00:05:52.440They will also develop an understanding of voting, charitable giving, and volunteerism.
00:05:58.960In grade 4, students will explore colonial Canada and confederation.
00:06:03.860Here, they will learn about the establishment of New France and the transfer of French Canada to British rule.
00:06:10.780This will take students up to confederation as they learn about the forces that drove confederation.
00:06:15.900In grade 5, students will learn about ancient civilizations and empires.
00:06:22.420They will explore diverse societies, including in Mesopotamia, Persia, India, Greece, Rome, and Mesoamerica.
00:06:30.820They will also explore how ancient civilizations and empires influence our society today.
00:06:36.880In grade 6, students will focus on democracy.
00:06:39.640They will learn about the history, principles, and operation of democracy, and explore the historical evolution of democracy.
00:06:47.720They will recognize the difference between representative democracy and direct democracy, and explore how economic freedom and personal choices are vital to the operation of a democratic state.
00:06:58.660Curriculum for grades 7 to 12 will be developed in the coming months, but Albertans can explore the subject overview and the draft content that would be covered in each of these grades online at alberta.ca.
00:07:12.300I'm proud to share that beginning today until March 29, Albertans can provide feedback on key learnings with the new draft K-12 social studies curriculum through a feedback form on alberta.ca.
00:07:25.000Their feedback will be used to further refine the draft K-6 social studies curriculum before it is expected to be released in the spring, so that we can help teachers prepare for optional classroom piloting.
00:07:40.040By taking these steps, I am confident that we are developing a social studies curriculum that meets the learning needs of all students and positions them for success.
00:07:48.460I'd like to conclude today by thanking our incredible partners in education, community organizations, and Albertans at large, who provided input into the development of this new draft social studies curriculum.
00:08:01.940Your contributions will help ensure Alberta students learn from a curriculum that builds their critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, and empowers them to be active citizens.
00:08:12.680Once again, I encourage all Albertans to share their feedback on key learnings with the new draft K-12 social studies curriculum by completing the online feedback form at alberta.ca.