Alberta

Alberta is one of Canada's provinces. It celebrated 100 years as a province in 2005 on September 1st. As part of the Centennial celebration, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip visited the province from May 23 to May 25, 2005.

Education

As with any Canadian province, the Alberta government is the highest authority in education, creating and regulating the school boards, public colleges, universities, and other education isntitutions.

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K-12

The vast majority of Alberta's schools are run by publicly funded school boards (each with its own district of authority). The largest are English language Public school boards. Alberta also has English Separate Catholic boards throughout the province, which serve a substantial minority of students. There is one protestant school board in part of the province. Where numbers warrant, there are francophone school boards (Public and Separate Catholic). All five of these types of boards are fully publicly funded (without tuition) by local property taxes and provincial grants given on an equal per student basis by the province (with some adjustments). The different types of school boards are a necessity under the Canadian constitution, which guarantees the francophones and Catholic communities both the right to their own schools, and the right to administer them.

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Some other Canadian provinces have reformed their school systems on non-religious lines, by seeking a constitutional amendment, but Alberta has not. Often the decision to go to one system or another is not based on religion, but a parent's belief of which system provides a better education.

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Starting in 1994, the province has allowed some chartered schools to operate, independently of any district school board, reporting directly to the province. Homeschooling is officially recognized and partially funded from within the Alberta school system.

Related Topics:
1994 - Chartered schools

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Originally in Alberta, school boards had the power to levy property taxes within their respective districts. However, this meant districts with a low tax base were underfunded, so the province moved to a system that pools the education property tax, and distributes it based on student population and need.

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Post-secondary

The largest two universities in Alberta are the University of Calgary and Edmonton's University of Alberta. There is also Athabasca University, which focuses on distance learning, and the University of Lethbridge. There are 15 colleges that receive direct public funding, along with two technical instituteshttp://www.advancededucation.gov.ab.ca/college/postsecsystem/postsecinst/postsecinst.asp. Students may also receive government loans and grants while attending selected private institutions.

Related Topics:
University of Calgary - University of Alberta - Athabasca University - University of Lethbridge

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