Alberta elementary school ditches library and other rooms because of ‘significant growth'

CTV News

a day ago

Rocky View Schools says several of its schools, such as Airdrie's École Edwards Elementary, are making changes due to 'significant growth' without provincial support. (File/Google Maps)
Parents of a southern Alberta elementary school are being informed of some big changes that could affect their students' learning in the fall.
Administration at École Edwards Elementary in Airdrie, Alta., says the school will be adding a grade in September as the institution shifts from a K-5 to a K-6 school.
Enrollment will jump from 675 students to approximately 850, according to a letter sent to families on Monday.
To accommodate these students, administration said the school's library, music room and wellness centre will all be converted into classroom space.
In addition, École Edwards says it will adopt a 'team-teaching' model for some grades, where multiple teachers will teach students in the larger spaces.
Administrators said a request to the province was made for modular classrooms but 'was not approved.'
'Nooks and shared spaces'
Staff said library books will be moved to different locations throughout the school:
five classroom libraries will be created in the new Grade 6 classrooms;
a smaller collection of books will be provided to K-3 students; and
additional books will be distributed in 'nooks and shared spaces.'
'These changes allow us to meet the instructional needs of our students within our existing footprint, while continuing to prioritize access to quality resources and enriching learning environments,' administrators wrote in the letter.
'Had to be creative'
Rocky View Schools (RVS), the board that operates École Edwards, says the changes at the facility are due to an influx of students in the district.
A spokesperson for RVS said the board has been trying to make do with available resources.
'RVS has been experiencing significant growth for years without new schools or enough modular classrooms to keep pace,' Tara de Weerd, RVS communications director, said in an email to CTV News Tuesday.
'The government recently approved new schools but with the three to four years it takes to build a school and only five modular classrooms approved this year, schools have had to be creative about balancing space within their schools maximizing every single room.'
de Weerd says other schools in the district have had to make similar moves to École Edwards.
'I can assure you our administrators do an excellent job of continuing to prioritize literacy, wellness and other important aspects of student learning,' she said.
Meanwhile, École Edwards says classrooms will be packing up and moving to the new spaces throughout June.
'We recognize that change can bring many emotions. Our focus is to ensure all students feel supported, valued and excited about their learning experience at École Edwards,' officials said.
CTV News has reached out to Alberta Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides' office about these changes.