Joe McFarland Profile picture
Aug 2, 2020 9 tweets 4 min read Read on X
Hey friends! As I have said previously, there has been so much news lately, but I have stayed relatively off-radar, focusing more on the little family. Wanted to weigh in on the #ABleg decision to reopen schools in September. Another thread is on the way... #AnotherJoeThread
Let me start off by saying: I think this was the end-game from the onset. When the province outlined the 3 options, I said on the show that full opening would be the goal for everyone involved. Online learning wasn't viable long-term the way it was done in March. #ABleg
What I am disappointed in is how the whole plan was rolled out. No extra funding, no guidance on PPE, no real leadership. Just offloading decisions to individual schools & boards. Which is okay because each community & region will face different issues. #ABleg
However, when boards used up reserves to pay for cuts from a year ago & then the "additional funding" given to boards was used to bring some staff or programming back, what did #ABleg expect when boards started pushing back? They face shortfalls when you compare proper #'s.
That's neither here nor there though. The bottom line is it is up to individual Albertans, families, teachers & communities to stand up for each other. Stop waiting on #ABleg to do it because @AdrianaLaGrange & Co. have shown their cards. "It takes a community" right?
It is going to be up to everyone to show these kids why it is so important to wash their hands properly, to wear masks & to limit their physical interactions with their classmates. It can be done, but that education needs to start now. #ABleg
Aside from that, families need to come up with backup plans for when their kid is told they appear sick & need to stay home. Teachers need to take their own precautions. And if they feel like their safety is at risk, speak up. Don't hide behind the union. #ABleg
Maybe it is time to show what your own individual classroom looks like with or without separation. It's time to advocate for yourselves to your respective communities. The #ABleg vs. ATA political battle isn't going away. But communities can stand up for each other.
Everyone needs to make the best decision for themselves. Hopefully they also make the right decisions to keep everyone in their community safe. Who needs #ABleg to make moral decisions for us to look after each other? I know I don't. Rant over. #AnotherJoeThread

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Joe McFarland

Joe McFarland Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @JoeMcFarland

Apr 6, 2022
It's been a while since I've gone on a lengthy Twitter 🧵 about #ABleg & #education, but I've been thinking a lot about the debate about the new curriculum & certain pundits who believe our kids' grades in English language arts are cratering. Before I begin, lemme preface...
...that yes, my wife is a teacher. But that doesn't preclude me from being able to articulate my opinion, which is based off my own life experiences + what I hear from her + what I've witnessed in her classroom as a volunteer in the pre-COVID days. Okay...here we go. #ABleg
Something that has bothered me about the select few who are trying to treat our illiteracy issues as a "curriculum" issue are either being wilfully ignorant or are being misleading. Does that mean the curriculum shouldn't change? Of course not. But it's not the silver bullet.
Read 16 tweets
Mar 4, 2022
It's been a while since I've written an #ABleg 🧵. To be honest, I've just grown tired of it all. After a while, it starts to feel like yelling into the abyss. Realistically, it's all noise in what's become a really noisy space, where nuance & reason are foreign ideas. #Alberta
That being said, I did wanna put pen to paper on something that I've been thinking a lot about lately. I hate that we've reached the point where it feels like we're cheering against ourselves. Even when good news comes, it feels like it's bad. And that's not healthy. #ABleg
This has been going on for a while. I remember how Alison Redford could say the sky was blue & Danielle Smith would hold a news conference to say the sky was red. That's how ridiculous the divide in this province seemed to be. It continued with the NDP & now continues with UCP.
Read 13 tweets
Aug 3, 2021
Looking back, 7 different people sat in #Alberta's highest office while I was in radio (Klein, Stelmach, Redford, Hancock, Prentice, Notley, Kenney). Interviewed all but one while they were in that office (Kenney, despite numerous attempts). Also interviewed numerous opposition.
I don't recall a time where a leader, a cabinet & a party had such contempt for anyone who wasn't an active cheerleader for them. I don't recall a time where asking tough questions of a leader or cabinet minster led to demonization of any member of media. #ABleg
I also don't recall a time where so many backroom people within government acted like children. Granted, never before has social media been used like it is. But can you imagine Rod Love taking to Twitter to troll Albertans who didn't agree with Ralph's decisions? #ABleg
Read 5 tweets
May 27, 2021
Time for another patented #ABleg thread from yours truly. I went down a bit of a rabbit hole this morning, as it irritates me that @jkenney & @AdrianaLaGrange are painting people who aren't in favour of their proposed curriculum as "leftist activists." This isn't about politics.
This is about what my child will have to learn in a few years if this curriculum is implemented. As a parent, I have wanted to do my research because, at some point, I will be asked to help my child with their homework. So I went down a rabbit hole. #ABleg
If you head to the province's curriculum website, you can sort each subject by grade. Then each outcome is sorted by "knowledge", "understanding" & "skills & procedures." The latter is essentially what each child is expected to be able to do by the end of the year. #ABleg
Read 16 tweets
Dec 29, 2020
Time for another one of my patented threads on #education in #Alberta. I couldn't let this one from @DavidStaplesYEG go unchecked. I know he tries to carry water for @jkenney but this one misses a lot of key points. Here we go... #ABleg edmontonjournal.com/opinion/column…
I don't know what it is but there seems to be a belief that if we could only slay the beast known as "discovery math", all will be good in the world. For anyone who has actually been in a classroom in the last decade, they know its more complex than that. #ABleg #education
Full disclosure (again because people tend to claim I have some sort of hidden agenda): my wife is a grade 3 teacher. I volunteer in her school fairly often. I've also covered education as a reporter & I'm a product of small town public schools. So I have observations & opinions.
Read 22 tweets
Oct 26, 2020
Alrighty, my friends, time for another world-famous #JoeTwitterThread. I wanna give a little more background on this #ABleg curriculum review & rewrite. Firstly, yes my wife is a teacher. I volunteered in her classroom often & have seen all of the work her kids do. #Education
Secondly, I have a son who will be entering the system in a few short years. So yeah, I have pecuniary interests in how this all shakes down. Thirdly, I spent a lot of time reporting on #education issues in this province as a reporter & news director. And there's a fourthly...
And that is I have been involved in #education myself. A few years ago, I approached @JoyBowenEyre to get a pilot program going, aimed at teaching kids about game-day presentation, sports & public speaking. I ended up running it for 2 years before taking a break. #ABleg
Read 20 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(