Friend of mine posted this (her daughter is a teacher) and I responded by telling her none of the issues described are education issues, they are social issues that need to be addressed. None of the issues mentioned will be solved with higher wages or benefits for teachers but real meaningful changes in education. Discipline needs to be implemented and we need to go back to special institutions or classrooms for kids with complex needs and determine if an education setting is even beneficial for these students. Parent volunteers in the classrooms assisting the teachers would solve the EA issue if each parent volunteered one day a month.

What floors me about Alberta right now isn’t just the chaos in classrooms, it’s the chorus of people who’ve never taught a day in their lives deciding what teachers “deserve.” Is the logic really: “you get summers off, so quit whining?” That’s what I see, over and over again, in comment sections. That’s what I hear, over and over again, from anyone who doesn’t work in education. I would never feel such entitlement as to think I’m justified in determining the appropriate working conditions (or salary) for a profession in which I have absolutely no expertise. Yet, somehow, folks who’ve never set foot in a Grade 1 classroom during a meltdown feel qualified to do so.

To those insisting teachers are “more than fairly paid” and “get so much time off,” great news: Alberta says it needs a lot of teachers. In fact, the government is even exploring “alternate pathways” into teaching so you no longer need a Bachelor of Education. If the job is cushy and the pay is more than enough, by all means, hop in. Let me know how fair it feels the first time: a child throws furniture; a student claws at your skin until it turns purple; you must leave 26 six-year-olds unattended because there’s no EA funding to help toilet your wheelchair-using student; or students threaten to kidnap and assault their classmates. Let me be clear: that’s not sensationalism. Those are MY lived, personal experiences as a teacher in Alberta - and that’s in a “regular” classroom, not a specialized program. This is no longer the exception, it’s become the rule.

I no longer work in Alberta, life took me to BC. Now that I’ve taught in both provinces, here’s what stands out:

Schools in BC are actually staffed with specialists, like Learning Assistance, Special Education Resource, counsellors, etc. These teachers plan differentiation, help with pull out support, and most notably, write all the IPPs for your students. In Alberta, the classroom teacher remains responsible for the IPPs, all the differentiation, and directing EAs. Translation: in Alberta, teachers shoulder more paperwork, case management, and coordination ON TOP of instruction.

BC caps division 1 at 20 (K) and 22 (Gr 1–3). Alberta’s classes frequently swell far beyond that; recent EPSB numbers show K–3 classes up to 37. That gap matters. Twenty-two six-year-olds is one thing; thirty-plus is a different planet - for marking, prep, behaviour, and parent contact - with no cap to stop it.

BC commonly builds in early dismissals so parent teacher conferences occur during the workday. In Alberta, divisions often push interviews into evenings and then toss teachers a day-in-lieu.

Lastly, Alberta’s old wage advantage has eroded; even BC - once known as the province with the lowest paid teachers in Canada - will soon outpace Alberta. If you want to argue against better classroom conditions, at least retire the myth that Alberta is writing fat cheques for cushy jobs. Salaries for teachers are publicly available, you can check for yourself if you don’t trust the union.

Please, make it make sense: what is so special about Alberta that smaller classes and embedded supports - the basics other provinces have managed successfully to restore - are treated like luxuries? It seems the celebrated ‘Alberta Advantage’ requires an asterisk - reserved, in practice, for those deemed ‘worthy.’

Whatever your opinion of teachers may be, consider the fact that children spend a significant portion of their waking hours at school, and then ask yourself this: what do you think your child deserves? That’s what Alberta teachers are fighting for.