Alberta Education has been engaged in reviews and reforms of special education, and attempting to describe and move toward more inclusive ways of supporting students with disabilities since 2008. These efforts have, at times, resulted in more progressive and inclusive education policies and, at times, seemed somewhat halting. The obstacle to…

For 20 years, charter schools have held a precarious existence in Canada. Implemented in the province of Alberta in 1994, only a handful of charter schools remain in the entire nation. In this article, I explore the ideas of school choice and charter schooling and how they have largely disappeared as educational policy issues for Canadians. While…

The 2012 federal Budget marks the beginning of a painful and unnecessary fiscal retrenchment. Despite boasting one of the lowest debt-to-GDP ratios amongst industrialized countries, the Conservative government is pressing ahead with deep cuts of more than $5 billion across departmental budgets by 2014-15. For post-secondary education and research,…

Factors contributing to the failure of a community wellness center in rural Alberta included arbitrary choice of the community by regional health authorities, power issues, lack of leadership, and different interpretations of what a wellness center is. Solutions include having community members identify community needs and finding a project…

Using Porter's five-forces model (potential entrants, suppliers, buyers, rivalry, substitutes) to analyze competition in Canadian university business schools, the authors conclude that schools are becoming increasingly vulnerable to competitive pressures and that strategic reorientation is necessary. (SK)

A survey of 11 home economics teacher education programs in Canada found that, compared to a 1989 survey, 3 programs have ceased; 3 lack full-time faculty; there is a trend toward longer, postdegree programs; a low number of teachers are qualifying for certification; and enrollment in both undergraduate and graduate programs is low. (SK)

Asserting that liberal education is at risk in Canadian universities, attempts to explain why such policy shifts are occurring; points to the continuing cultural, social, and intellectual value of liberal education; and, drawing from recent census data, demonstrates that liberal education produces generally positive economic benefits to the…

Discusses the 1993 termination of postsecondary education programs in Canadian prisons. Contrasts this with a follow-up study of 654 released offenders, showing the effects higher education had on their successful post-prison lives. (SK)

Cites a shift toward a more conservative political agenda in Australia that parallels trends in Canada; analyzes the development of the child care system in one province of Canada to demonstrate that despite manifold distributions to the child care system, the lack of a constitutional dimension has left the program vulnerable. Presents the example…

Research shows that stability is one component of quality child care. We investigate the understudied phenomenon of the stability of child-care facilities over time, focusing on the province of British Columbia, Canada. Although net figures show growth in the number of providers between 1997 and 2001, they obfuscate a dramatic level of closure…

An outdoor educator whose teaching position and field center were eliminated reflects on the importance of publicizing the value of outdoor education in developing ecological understanding and promoting student connection with the natural world, both of which are essential to learning to live a sustainable lifestyle. (LP)

In Alberta, reductions in educational funding and a "back to basics" mentality have resulted in reduced support for outdoor and environmental education. Elementary/secondary programs have responded by taking the programs directly to the schools to avoid transportation costs, and by cutting the more adventurous programs. Postsecondary…

Addresses the implications and impacts of a board of education decision to close an outdoor education center. Stresses the rationale for outdoor and environmental education, the connection between classroom curriculum and outdoor education, and the reduction in systemwide services that would result from the closing. (LP)

Describes efforts of an advocacy group of parents, outdoor educators, and classroom teachers to preserve outdoor education in Peel in the face of budget cuts. Despite efforts, a task force recommended the elimination of numerous teaching positions, resulting in reduced programming at outdoor education centers. (LP)

The Canadian university library members of two consortial e-journal deals were surveyed t o determine how many of the corresponding print journals had been cancelled as a result of their participation in the online package purchase. The survey indicated that the number of concurrent print subscriptions held by the libraries had notably decreased.…