ALBERTA SOCIAL CREDIT PARTY

5.1 Empowerment Of Parents: The Alberta Social Credit Party believes that the single most important factor in educational achievement is a supportive home life. Therefore, the Alberta Social Credit Government would work to empower parents in the educational process.

5.2 Voucher System Choices: The Alberta Social Credit Government would allow parental choice by instituting a voucher system of financing education where the funds follow the student to any accredited public, separate, private, religious, or home school.

5.3 Annual Achievement Testing: The Alberta Social Credit Government would institute annual testing of all students on provincially established evaluations in all subjects studied. A passing grade would be a simple 50% with results being given in actual percentages and not simple pass / fail terms.

5.4 Consensus Consultations: The Alberta Social Credit Government would take immediate action to bring together representatives of parents, school boards, teachers and government to develop respect, understanding and a spirit of teamwork in order to address the issues facing Alberta's Education sector.

5.5 Professional Governing Body: The Alberta Social Credit Government would establish a professional governing body for teachers that are separate and distinct from the Alberta Teachers' Association.

5.6 Additions to Educational Curricula:

5.6.1 History Courses: The Alberta Social Credit Government would include Canadian and Alberta History courses in all junior and high schools in Alberta.

5.6.2 Abstinence Based Sex Education: The Alberta Social Credit Government would institute "Chastity-based" sex education courses to be offered in Alberta schools as an alternative to the "Contraceptive-based" courses now available. Parents would have the choice of options for their children.

5.6.3 Policy on Teaching of Origins: The Social Credit Government would advocate the mandatory inclusion of the teaching of the Origins Theory of Intelligent Design or Creation as a viable model alternative to the theory of evolution. True scientific evaluation of both theories and their probabilities should be applied, letting the chips fall where they may.

5.6.4: Social Credit Theory: The Alberta Social Credit Government will educate secondary school students about Canada's debt-based monetary system and alternative systems.

5.6.5: Driver Training In Curriculum: The Alberta Social Credit Government would implement a high school driver education and training program as part of the school curriculum.

5.7 Post Secondary Admissions & Tuition: The Alberta Social Credit Party supports post-secondary education in Alberta. We would ensure that Alberta citizens be given priority for admission over out-of-province students.
The Alberta Social Credit Government would provide "fixed term tuitions" to freeze the tuition rates for post-secondary education students for the duration of their program.

5.8 Interest Tax Credit: ASCP will provide students who attend Alberta Universities with a tax credit towards the interest paid on student loans if they choose to remain in the province.

5.9 Support for Public System: The Alberta Social Credit Government will make a renewed commitment to the publicly- funded school system.

5.9.1 The Social Credit Government will ensure that through proper planning, sufficient financial resources will be made available to maintain necessary infrastructure and educational programming, including the increased use of teacher's aids to assist "at risk/special needs" children.

5.10 Long-Term Post-Secondary Education Plan: The Social Credit Government will consult with business and the public sector to determine their requirements for professional and skilled workers over the next ten years. Then the Government will meet representatives of Alberta's post-secondary institutions and develop a plan to provide the necessary facilities and instructors to educate these workers.

5.11 Wrap-Around Schools: The Alberta Social Credit Government will take a "holistic" approach to education which recognizes there are many needs of children and youth which the current educational and social structure fails to meet. Better and more efficient service can be provided by Alberta's social services to children and their families by operating many of these social agencies from schools which have surplus space. These "community learning centres" will provide better service to student needs while saving taxpayers money and minimizing school closures by locating multiple social services within many of Alberta's schools.

6. Government