Alberta's Released Curriculum
- English Language Arts and Literacy (K-6)
- Mathematics (K-6)
- Physical Education and Wellness (K-6)
- Science (K-3, optional: 4-6)
- Français langue première et littérature (K-3, optional: 4-6)
- French Immersion Language Arts and Literature (K-3, optional: 4-6)
Alberta Education's Future Plans
In 2024-2025, Grades 4-6 Français langue première et littérature, French Immersion Language Arts and Literature and Science curricula will be implemented in all elementary classrooms starting in September.
In 2024-2025, school authorities will have the opportunity to pilot the draft K – 6 social studies curriculum in classrooms.
Source: Alberta Education. (2023). K to 6 curriculum renewal: How we got here: Overview of the curriculum development process. Alberta.ca. https://www.alberta.ca/curriculum-how-we-got-here
Connecting the Architecture of New Curriculum to the Assessment of Student Learning
Architecture Components
ORGANIZING IDEAS: Represent the different topics and concepts within a subject or discipline area. The concepts in these statements are at the broadest level, they are universal and abstract. This means these statements can span across several different grades.
GUIDING QUESTIONS: The guiding question helps teachers to identify the big understanding in the learning outcome. The big understanding is the intended learning goal and what teachers will assess.
LEARNING OUTCOMES: Describe what the students are required to know, understand and be able to do by the end of a grade. Student achievement of the learning outcome must be assessed and reported (summative assessment)
KNOWLEDGE, UNDERSTANDINGS, SKILLS AND PROCEDURES: These components are often referred to as the KUSPs. These are the subject-specific factual, conceptual, procedural knowledge and skills students will develop as they achieve the learning outcome. There can be one band (section) of KUSPs associated with a learning outcome, or there can be many.
Points to Consider:
1. Teachers assess and report on the student’s understanding of learning outcomes (LO) as a measure of achievement. All students have until the conclusion of the academic year to showcase their proficiency in the LO. This practice ensures that students requiring additional time to master the outcome have the opportunity to do so throughout the year.
By allowing students to attain mastery of an outcome before summative assessment, we are engaging in a fair and effective assessment approach.
2. Maintaining transparent and effective communication between instructional leaders, teachers, students, and parents is essential when reporting student achievement. Teachers and instructional leaders can establish trustworthy and collaborative connections with students and their families by cultivating interpersonal skills.
These relationships are the foundation for parents to actively engage as genuine partners in their child’s educational journey.
3. The KUSPs are not intended for standalone summative assessment. Evaluating them in isolation turns them into a mere checklist of separate activities rather than a cohesive set of interconnected knowledge and skills.
When teachers explicitly interweave the KUSPs together, students come to understand how the concepts of study relate to the world around them.
4. Many KUSPs can be grouped to create a comprehensive performance assessment. Regardless of the type of assessment, they must align their assessments not only to the concepts of study in the outcome but also to the level of cognition. Formative assessment can occur at various cognitive levels in the KUSPs.
For student assessment results to contribute to a final grade on the report card, the cognitive level in the assessment must align with the level specified in the outcome.