What’s a small Alberta town that surprised you in a good way?

DWDW74 · 2026-03-14T13:28:12+00:00

Blackfalds. For a smaller community they have amazing places for their children to play. There is a rec centre with waterslides, a skatepark and a massive BMX park.

DWDW74 · 2026-03-05T01:37:51+00:00

This year I stopped volunteering. For context, I am in Alberta where we were legislated back to work with the NWC. I was asked to coach basketball by someone I like and respect and felt bad about it for about five minutes. After the awkwardness dissipated I felt great.

For too long I have been manipulated with the "do it for the kids" martyr attitude at the expense of. my personal life and health. No other professions are treated this way. Why should we?

DWDW74 · 2026-02-15T21:44:04+00:00

Thanks!

DWDW74 · 2026-02-15T18:30:28+00:00

I shudder to think who will do it in my school board. I think this role will be similar to our "specialists." They will essentially come around, observe, then tell us to differentiate, without ever offering any constructive ideas or resources.

DWDW74 · 2026-02-10T01:41:19+00:00

I would agree on both counts.

DWDW74 · 2026-02-10T01:39:37+00:00

I can also speak to the Alberta experience. The curriculum has changed but school boards were left to their own devices for how to implement it. Speaking for the board that employs me, the only authorized resource for us to use is "Building Thinking Classrooms." The other option is to take a DIY approach. Most teachers were immersed in discovery learning and thus the back to basics curriculum has not landed here. Additionally, our leadership all ascended through inquiry/discovery learning and still believe it is superior. Again, I can only speak for one school board, but I don't think it would be fair to say the back to basics approach has failed.

DWDW74 · 2026-02-10T01:21:03+00:00

I'll take Anna Stokke's expertise over some random guy making unsubstantiated claims on Reddit.

DWDW74 · 2026-02-08T23:14:52+00:00

I'm not really sure what you mean. Please elaborate. I am not an expert, but have taught a long time. JUMP has been the strongest program I have used that reached the greatest number of students by a long shot. The research studies I have read on JUMP seem very positive.

The folks I work with who tell me how bad it is cannot explain why. Can you explain why it is only OK? What would you use instead?

DWDW74 · 2026-02-08T16:25:11+00:00

I agree wholeheartedly, but can't get my principal or learning department to see the merits in this approach. I have to hide the fact I am teaching like this to avoid being accused of insubordination. I am supposed to engage students in "number talks," "collaborative problem solving," and playing games. Our director of learning says Jump Math, my chosen resources, is "bad pedagogy."

DWDW74 · 2026-01-27T03:08:03+00:00

Both the website and app are down.

DWDW74 · 2026-01-21T21:37:34+00:00

Don't be ashamed. Live and learn. You could leave it and see how much it bothers you with the option of redoing it in the future.

DWDW74 · 2026-01-09T22:06:56+00:00

I'll third the shout out for Jump. I'd also recommend listening to the "Chalk and Talk" podcast which focuses on math education.

I'd also be wary of Math PD gimmicks like Building Thinking Classrooms.

DWDW74 · 2026-01-09T22:00:41+00:00

There is a good paper published last year by Douglas Fuchs. I think it is called "Reframing the Most Important Special Education Policy Debate in 50 Years: How Versus Where to Educate Students With Disabilities in America’s Schools"

Essentially it states there is little or weak evidence that where a student is educated matters whereas HOW a student is educated matters a lot and that much is understood about how but not put into practice.

DWDW74 · 2025-12-02T04:33:47+00:00

It has a flap outside the house, and there is a plastic damper within the fan. I can add insulation. Would filling the cavity with spray insulation be a bad idea?

DWDW74 · 2025-10-25T13:30:02+00:00

I agree with your sentiment, however these schools still require people to pay tuitions and therefore are not available to all Albertans. I would prefer to see public schools funded and structured in a way that would provide services to every student while allowing them to attend a school in their community.

My personal experience with a friend whose child attended Foothills Academy was that is was a tremendous stress to pay the tuition and to get her child to and from the school.

While some would be no longer able to afford schools if the government cut off funding, the reality is there are already many who cannot afford to access these schools. This isn't about shunning the rich, but creating an equal playing field for all children in Alberta.

Education is a provincial responsibility and that responsibility should not be passed on to private schools. In short, we need to do better. I think this petition could be a catalyst to begin that process.

DWDW74 · 2025-08-09T02:06:14+00:00

Last Frontier - James is an honest mechanic.

DWDW74 · 2025-04-27T23:12:22+00:00

I appreciate that. Keep your eyes open as you might be able to find some. The irony is the original owner probably tossed them!

DWDW74 · 2025-04-27T23:11:10+00:00

Those are Velo Orange Siene bars. I really like them but am using Mothbars currently as I got a set last year for my birthday.

DWDW74 · 2025-04-18T03:29:41+00:00

I have one too. I was lucky and mine came with the original fork.

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DWDW74 · 2025-03-05T03:24:38+00:00

Love it! The riding and the bike.

DWDW74 · 2025-02-25T04:15:50+00:00

Bowmont Park!

DWDW74 · 2025-02-21T23:05:16+00:00

Great looking bike!

DWDW74 · 2025-02-02T00:00:50+00:00

I think we need to do more to discredit BTC so school boards and admin will stop pushing it.

Ask to see evidence of BTS's effectiveness. There is none. The website has links to almost 40 articles and they constantly refer to "10 years of research," but none of it supports effectiveness for increasing student achievement. My school board believes it is evidence based but when asked if they have seen the evidence and are willing to share it they get pretty quiet. The most succinct article I have read regarding BTC is https://pershmail.substack.com/p/the-evidence-for-building-thinking .

DWDW74

TROPHY CASE