Key Challenges

Support for Social Studies Implementation 2004 – 2011

Some Key Challenges Included:

• The ERLC consists of a large number of districts with diverse needs including jurisdictional and AISI priorities. Competing priorities including new provincial initiatives can have a detrimental impact on implementation as time and resources are limited.
• The ERLC is made up of a large geographic area. Some districts must travel a distance to attend sessions in Edmonton, (e.g., 6 districts include schools more than 3 – 5 hours away from Edmonton).
• Districts are increasingly using technology to access professional development.  Technology infrastructure, maintenance and training of presenters to be effective in using these new media are costly and time consuming.
• Jurisdictions have limited access to supply teachers.
• Districts that have a significant percentage of new teachers including teachers from out of province who are not familiar with the Alberta Program of Studies.
• Some teachers, especially at the high school are unwilling or unable to leave their classrooms in order to access learning opportunities.
• Support of French Immersion teachers continues to be a challenging area.  Sessions for FI teachers generally do not have high registration perhaps because teachers attend many sessions offered in English. There are few skilled facilitators for FI sessions.

Lessons Learned:
Lessons learned are based on feedback from the advisory committee, participants’ evaluation forms, and observations and experiences of the executive director, regional team and coordinator:

Collaboration

• Because the needs of districts are diverse there is a need for flexibility in how implementation resources are used to support curriculum implementation. 
• Multi-year funding provides a basis for more cohesive implementation planning.
• A comprehensive plan that aligns district needs for PD Leadership Development with learning opportunities is most effective. 
• The creation of a regional team to support social studies implementation in districts has been successful. 

Practice

• Time for implementation is necessary.
• Over time there is a need to go deeper into the curriculum as teachers develop familiarity and skills. Needs of teachers change as the curriculum is implemented.
• Assessment and the use of technology to support student learning are areas that continue to be identified as areas needing support.

Adult Learning

• Resources for implementation are necessary. 
• There is a need to minimize competing priorities; e.g. avoid implementation overlap of curricula.
• There is a need to sustain professional development in social studies and other curricula. Teachers new to the profession and especially teachers coming from other provinces may not be familiar with the social studies curriculum.  Some districts in the ERLC region have significant change in staff.
• Sustainability issues must be addressed throughout the entire implementation period. 
• High school teachers tend to be subject area specialists and may have different needs. High school teachers are cautious about leaving their classes. Providing choice and variety and ongoing consultation with high school teachers is crucial.
• Teachers have greater access to technology and there is an increasing demand for delivery of professional development though existing & emerging technologies such as videoconferencing, webinars, blogs, and podcasts both live and archived.  However the use of technology comes at a significant cost to consortia.
• A variety of formats and choice to access professional learning is important. Supper sessions and videoconference sessions have become increasingly popular.
• Support of French Immersion teachers continues to be a challenging area. Sessions for FI teachers generally do not have high registration perhaps because teachers attend many sessions offered in English. There are few skilled facilitators for FI sessions.