Pay Now or Pay Later - Navigating 'The System'

How does under-resourcing of our public education system manifest in the day to day experiences of Alberta students and families? We hear often from students and parents about their school experiences, navigating the process of addressing special needs, learning challenges and inclusion. One of our supporters has kindly shared with us her daughter's and her family's experience navigating 'the system'.

I just received a copy of a private assessment I paid for to see if my daughter has progressed any since being diagnosed and coded with a learning disability 2 ½ years ago and was very angry and frustrated by what I read. As I had suspected, she had not progressed much except she now can identify more sight words. My daughter is 10 years old and still reads at a kindergarten level and writes at a grade 1 level at best.

She has a learning disability in reading, writing and math and AD/HD. What I don’t understand is how much do our children have to fail in order to get the targeted, appropriate help they need so they can succeed? My child is very intelligent and if given the proper support I know she can do great things.

Why do I have to pay for a private specialist for something she is supposed to be getting in school? What happens if I can’t afford to do that like many Albertans? Is my child less important than those whose parents can afford it?
I have been waiting for the Education system to help her, and as I wait she falls further behind. I am now forced to find a way to get her that targeted, appropriate help myself as she will be 4 grades behind next year and counting. We can’t afford to have anymore throw away years. The next hardest decision will be what will my family have to sacrifice to give my daughter her basic human right to an education?

Groceries? Summer Camps that build her self esteem and confidence? Technology tools she needs at home that are not provided for at school so she can learn?

My heart breaks for my daughter that the system is failing her and we as Albertans are letting that happen. We need to get children screened earlier for learning challenges and get them the help sooner so they don’t have to fail so miserably before we give them a branch to save them. Why should parents have to beg for supports, resources and timely assessments or obtain them privately? Why aren’t we providing every child with the right to a good education and giving them what they need to reach their full potential?

We need to make Education a priority in our province and we need to fund it properly for it to work. It’s either pay now or pay later in health care costs, justice system and social services costs. These children end up on drugs to cope, in jail or on social services as they are either under employed or unemployed because they drop out or don’t have the skills required like reading or writing. 
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We can’t afford to put off funding Education because we can’t afford it. Our future depends on it.
Children don’t stop growing and the need never goes away.

-Alberta Parent

Our biggest priority is giving space for Albertans to share their perspectives on education issues, please feel free to share with us your thoughts. If you have something to share please let us know
 
Last week we released Levelling the Playing Field: A Comprehensive Resource Audit of Alberta Schools reporting on the results of our 2016 Survey of Alberta Schools. One of the most significant issues reported to us by school administrators was how schools are facing significant challenges because of the increasing complexity of Alberta classrooms. Our analysis showed that there was a deficit and disparity across the province in special needs specialization and training for staff including both teachers and support staff. Principals spoke of not being able to adequately meet the needs of students because they either do not have the resources available or available resources are inadequate. This was an important reality for principals to share and their perspective will continue to inform our advocacy.