Contested Classrooms. Education Globalization and Democracy in Alberta PDF
Preview Contested Classrooms. Education Globalization and Democracy in Alberta
Contested Classrooms Education, Globalization, and Democracy in Alberta This page intentionally left blank Contested Classrooms Education, Globalization, and Democracy in Alberta edited by Trevor W. Harrison and Jerrold L. Kachur The University of Alberta Press and Parkland Institute First published by The University of Alberta Press 141 Athabasca Hall Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2E8 and Parkland Institute Faculty of Arts, University of Alberta 11044 - 90 Avenue Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2E Copyright © 1999 The University of Alberta Press Printed in Canada 54321 ISBN 0-88864-315-2 Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data Main entry under title: Contested classrooms Copublished by: Parkland Institute. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-88864-315-2 I. Education — Government policy — Alberta. 2. Politics and education — Alberta. 3. Education and state — Alberta. I. Harrison, Trevor, 1952- II. Kachur, Jerrold L. (Jerrold Lyne), 1955- HI. Parkland Institute. LC9I.2.A4C66 1999 379-7123 C99-9IOO3I-9 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be produced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any forms or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise — without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Printed on acid-free paper. Printed and bound in Canada by Hignell Book Printing Ltd., Winnipeg, Manitoba. The University of Alberta Press acknowledges the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Book Publishing Industry Development Program for its publishing activities. The Press also gratefully acknowledges the support received for its program from the Canada Council for the Arts. Canada To Kelli and Nik, Jayna and Keenan, and the rest of Alberta's children. This page intentionally left blank Contents Acknowledgements ix Contributors x Introduction: Public Education, Globalization, and Democracy: Whither Alberta? xiii Globalization and Educational Change 1 Passing Fancies: Educational Changes in Alberta 3 Kas Mazurek 2 Constructing the Perpetual Learner: Education, Technology, and the New Economy 21 Lee Easton 3 The "Alberta Advantage": For Whom? 33 Trevor W. Harrison 4 The Marketing of the University 45 Tom Pocklington The Politics of Educational Restructuring in Alberta 5 Orchestrating Delusions: Ideology and Consent in Alberta 59 Jerrold L. Kachur 6 Re-Investment Fables: Educational Finances in Alberta 75 Dean Neu 7 Deep and Brutal: Funding Cuts to Education in Alberta 85 Frank Peters vii 8 From Boardroom to Classroom: School Reformers in Alberta 99 Alison Taylor 9 Privatizing Public Choice: The Rise of Charter Schooling in Alberta 107 Jerrold L. Kachur 10 Challenging Restructuring: The Alberta Teachers' Association 123 D.J. Flower and H.L. Booi Re-organizing Schools: Scenes from the Classrooms 11 Is it Just a Matter of Time? Part-Time Teaching Employment in Alberta 139 Beth Young 12 Board Games: The New (But Old) Rules 151 Judith Evans 13 The Principalship at the Crossroads 165 Norm Yanitski and David Pysyk Conclusion 177 Appendices 183 viii Acknowledgements This book began as a passing conversation, gathered steam at an actual meeting in February 1997, and finally crystallized in the fall of the same year. Like any other project of this sort, it could not have been put together without the efforts of a great many people. First and foremost, of course, are the contributors themselves. Their diligence and hard work, in meeting our stringent deadlines and accepting some of our suggestions (while properly rejecting others), made putting this book together a positive experience. We also want to acknowledge the support provided by Parkland Institute and the University of Alberta Press. Particular thanks go to Dennis Haughey, Gordon Laxer, Bill Moore-Kilgannon, Glenn Rollans, and the members of Parkland's Research Committee, including the anonymous reviewers, for their critical questioning and valuable suggestions as the book evolved. We would also like to thank several individuals — Bob Barnetson, Anne-Marie Decore, Susan Belcher El-Nahhas, Calvin Fraser, Noel Jantzie, Bev Lyseng, Eric Newell, Annette Richardson, Victor Soucek, David Watt, Diane Wesley, and Deanna Williamson — for their contributions which remain inserted, if only unconsciously, within the margins of this text. We also owe enormous thanks to David Odynak and Derek Briton for their technical support. Finally, we want to acknowledge the many sacrifices made by our families over the past many months and the time we stole from them as we worked to complete this book. We will all be rewarded if this book makes this province a better place. This book involved a genuinely collaborative effort on the part of the editors. No primacy to either party should be read into the order of editorship or authorship. Any errors or omissions contained herein are the sole responsibility of the editors. — T.W.H. andJ.L.K. ix
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