Contested Classrooms. Education Globalization and Democracy in Alberta

228 Pages·1999·12.507 MB·English

by  T. W. Harrison, J. Kachur (eds.)

Contested Classrooms
Education, Globalization, and Democracy in Alberta
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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.
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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