General Operational Questions
Is school cancelled for the rest of the year?
No, school is not cancelled for the year. Until further notice, students are no longer attending in-school classes. The Chief Medical Officer of Health and other government officials are monitoring the situation closely and will make further decisions as necessary. Wolf Creek Public Schools will continue to follow their direction in this regard.
Can my child go to school to pick up materials and personal items?
Access to schools by students is not permitted at this time. Parents can contact a school if they are still missing items, in order to make arrangements for a parent or guardian to pick up the item.
I have heard students will continue to learn at home. How is that happening?
Student learning is continuing. Within Wolf Creek we have set up an online environment of resources that our teachers are accessing and using to determine how best to support at-home student learning. This could include online learning tools or other forms of delivering content and resources.
When will my teacher or school make contact with my child or myself?
Teachers should be in contact with parents and students. If by April 3, you have not heard from your child’s school, please contact the school office by phone.
What happens if schools are allowed to resume in-person classes before the end of the school year?
If that happens, we will take our direction from both Alberta Education and Alberta Health. Students will continue at-home learning until further notice.
Are you considering extending school into the summer?
Until further notice, students will no longer be attending in-school classes. It is too early to know how long this situation will continue and there are currently no plans to modify the summer break.
Student Learning
How will schools be providing at-home online learning?
Within Wolf Creek, all children in Pre-K programs and Kindergarten to Grade 12 will be offered at-home learning opportunities, either through online means or through other accommodations, such as course packages and telephone check-ins.
Alberta Education expects that every student, regardless of their geographic location or socioeconomic status, will continue to learn while in-school classes across the province are cancelled. Alberta Education also provided guidelines for at-home instruction, which can be viewed in regards to Wolf Creek Public Schools at: https://www.wolfcreek.ab.ca/covid-19-faqs-for-families-and-staff/continuing-student-learning
My child has diverse learning needs or disabilities, how will they be supported?
Staff will provide specialized support and services to children and students with disabilities in consultation with families. Our school division and school leaders will continue to be flexible and will work with you to provide support for your child. The support during the COVID-19 pandemic emergency will need to look different from traditional school supports.
We don’t have computers or Internet access. How will my child access at-home learning resources?
Prior to Spring Break, Wolf Creek Public Schools asked families to identify these challenges and respond to a survey. Arrangements are being made to support families that responded to that survey indicating a need for a device. Recent government subsidized program for internet access has been announced to support families.
How is this going to work? How well are students going to be able to learn at-home? What subjects will be covered/taught?
Information and direction has been provided from Alberta Education and passed along to teachers and school administrators. Currently, teachers are evaluating what has not yet been covered in their classes and will prioritize remaining learning outcomes based on what is manageable for students learning at home. Teachers will plan specific tasks and projects to help students learn while in-school classes are cancelled. Teachers at all grade levels will be expected to work with their students and/or parents on the delivery of these materials.
Content delivery for each grade is broken down as follows:
Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten programs
- Pre-Kindergarten teachers will determine which parents wish to have supports provided during this time.
- In Pre-K and Kindergarten, there will be a focus on essential outcomes, including a focus on purposeful play, literacy and numeracy.
- Goals, supports and services outlined in Individual Program Plans (IPPs).
- In accordance with the direction from Alberta Education an average of five hours of work per student per week will be provided to students/parents.
Grade 1 – Grade 3
- Education content will focus on language/literacy and mathematics/numeracy outcomes of the provincial curriculum.
- In accordance with the direction from Alberta Education an average of five hours of work per student per week will be provided to students/parents.
Grades 4 - Grade 6
- Education content will continue to focus on language/literacy and mathematics/numeracy outcomes, and there will be opportunities to incorporate science and social studies outcomes through cross-curricular learning.
- In accordance with the direction from Alberta Education an average of five hours of work per student per week will be provided by teachers.
Grades 7 - Grade 9
- Education content will focus on core mathematics, language/literacy, science and social studies curriculum outcomes.
- In accordance with the direction from Alberta Education an average of ten hours of work per student per week will be provided by teachers.
Grades 10-12
- Education content will focus on specified and core courses required for high school graduation requirements, including language (English, French and French language arts), Social Studies, Mathematics, Sciences including Biology, Chemistry and Physics.
- Content from other courses (such as CTS courses) will be delivered where possible in alternate delivery forms. We recognize this may not be possible for all CTS courses therefore accommodations for students unable to complete courses are in place in order to not disadvantage them from receiving credentials.
- Students are expected to make a strong effort towards addressing the work that teachers are providing under these focus areas.
- In accordance with the direction from Alberta Education, teachers will assign an average of three hours of work per course per student per week. Teachers will be expected to work with their students and parents on the delivery of these materials.
With the guidelines focusing on math and literacy, will the early grades still learn science and social studies during at-home learning?
Foundational to any student learning is literacy and numeracy. It remains vital for all learners but it is very important for early year learners to maintain and develop literacy and numeracy competencies. Teachers bring with them a breadth of professional knowledge, skills and experience. Our teachers are in the best position to determine what is best for their students during this unique situation, and do the best they can with the tools and resources they have. There are guidelines for Science and Social studies instruction for students starting in grade 4 and up. Teachers will also find methods to apply numeracy and literacy in cross curricular ways for older students in Grade 4-6.
What is the plan for high school courses that aren’t Math, English, French, and Science related?
Teachers will use their professional knowledge, skills and experience to determine what is best for their students during this unique situation. It remains important for teachers to have the flexibility to decide how to best meet the needs of their students. For any courses that have started, schools will complete them with the student to the best of their ability and provide a final mark and award credits. If the student is unable to complete a course that would have led them to achieving a high school diploma, such as a work experience, dual credit, or a career and technology studies course, principals have the ability to award unassigned credits to ensure the student graduates.
Will you run CTS classes for students in small groups and allow them to be physically distant in that environment?
No. School buildings have been closed to all students at this time until the Chief Medical Officer of Health and other government officials deem it is appropriate to allow students to return. Accommodations to allow CTS to continue in a digital form, where possible, or to award credits to students potentially impacted by schools being inaccessible has been communicated to school administration.
Student Assessment
How will teachers grade or assess at-home learning content?
Teachers will be responsible for assessing a student’s progress and reporting on their progress including assigning a final grade. Wolf Creek remains committed to ensuring parents are consulted and kept informed of how assessment will be determined in this unique circumstance. We are also discussing some of this direction with Alberta Education to ensure consistency, where possible, is applied across our district and province.
Who is responsible for ensuring students are keeping up with assignments?
Alberta Education has expressed that students, with support from teachers, are responsible to continue learning. Teachers will provide relevant and applicable learning experiences and assignments during this pandemic emergency. Students who were on track to progress to the next grade or subject prior to the COVID-19 pandemic will be assigned to the next grade in September.
If your family is having difficulties connecting or completing the work being provided, we encourage you to speak directly with your school.
Wolf Creek Public Schools has been working hard to help remove roadblocks and help all of our students continue their learning at home, in flexible and reasonable ways, during this time that in-school classes are cancelled. In return, we expect students to make a reasonable effort. In cases where teachers have specific concerns around attention to assigned work during this situation, they will also be reaching out directly to the students and their parents to discuss this on a case by case basis.
Will students still get final grades?
Every student will receive a final grade and students who were on track to progress to the next grade will do so for the next school year. Provincial assessments, such as provincial achievement tests (PATs) and Grade 12 diploma exams are cancelled through to the end of June 2020 to allow teachers and students to focus on the learning process instead of preparing students for provincial assessments. We trust the professionalism of teachers and education leaders to assess their students’ progress, no matter the learning environment, to determine suitable final grades.
A district process will be put in place in the coming weeks and months to address the assignment of final grades to ensure consistency from school to school.
Will every student receive a final report card?
Yes, students will receive final grades and a report card, appropriate to their grade level. Report cards might not be exactly how they were in the past, but schools will still provide final report cards for this school year. More information on this will be provided at a later date.
Will Grade 12 students still graduate this year?
Alberta Education has advised school boards that every student who is eligible to graduate from Grade 12 this year will graduate. This means the students needed to be enrolled in courses that would lead towards successful graduation requirements. Students will have an obligation to work closely with their teachers in the coming weeks and months. Students who are moving on to post-secondary studies will not be penalized. We have been assured that the government will be working with post-secondary institutions to ensure that these extraordinary circumstances do not prevent students from being eligible for admission to post-secondary studies for the upcoming school year.
What is happening for Grade 12 diploma exams?
All Grade 12 diploma exams are cancelled through to the end of June 2020. Students currently registered to write diploma exams during April and June sessions will receive exemptions, without the need to apply for one.
How will students receive enough credits to graduate high school? Please explain how students will still achieve the 100 credits they need to graduate?
Students on track to receive 100 or more credits through the program plan that was built earlier this year with their school will still be eligible to graduate and receive a high school diploma. For any courses that started in semester two, teachers will assign work for students to complete to the best of their ability, provide a final mark and award credits.
How will classes in option courses such as fine arts, music, culinary arts, automotive mechanics work?
Where possible, schools will work with high school students to complete their courses to the best of their ability, providing a final mark and awarding credits.
Alberta Education and Wolf Creek Public Schools recognizes this might not be possible with some courses having hands-on learning or requiring specialized equipment. If a student is unable to complete a course that would have allowed them to progress to the next grade, principals have the ability to award credits to ensure student progression.
For grade 10 and 11 courses, can unassigned credits be used to move students to the next level?
A student’s grade is important in high school as it indicates a certain level of knowledge and learning was demonstrated by the student. Student learning for grade 10 and 11 courses is continuing, and teachers have the flexibility in determining alternative ways for students to still learn the course material and to use their professional judgement to assess the student and assign a final grade. There will be some courses where there just is not an effective alternative to in-class learning with specialized equipment, such as automotive or hairstylist classes and students won’t be able to complete these courses in this school year. However, our education system has the flexibility to find ways for students to still complete the courses they want to at a later date and to address gaps in learning.
How are high school graduation ceremonies/farewell ceremonies going to be affected?
Events like the end of Grade 9 (Farewell) and Grade 12 (Graduation) are special opportunities that students, parents, family, friends, staff, and community members look forward to celebrating together. During the COVID-19 pandemic, all ceremonies have been postponed across all schools in Wolf Creek Public Schools and the province due to the current Alberta Health restrictions on the size of gatherings.
Please see a letter from Jayson Lovell, Superintendent, that was sent to parents on May 1, 2020 regarding graduation and farewell ceremonies at the link below.
Grad and Farewell Letter to Parents (COVID-19)
Other Considerations
This is a stressful time. What considerations are being made to support student mental health?
With this disruption in their education, students will be experiencing a range of emotions and will deal with the stress in a variety of ways. Wolf Creek Public Schools staff continue to reach out to health partners to ensure supports are in place for students during this difficult time. Our School Social Workers are also working closely with families in need.
Are fees that were paid going to be refunded?
This is an issue that all school authorities are currently looking at and consulting with Alberta Education on. Information on fee refunds or prorated fee credits, where applicable, will flow from Wolf Creek to parents in further communications in the coming weeks.
