Mr. Chase: Mr. Speaker, funding cutbacks are causing boards to eliminate segregated programs for special-needs students. 

This government’s flawed school closure process has targeted a school for complex learners in Calgary-Varsity. With concerns growing, the government can only gesture to a review of special education two years in the making. Parents, students, teachers, and staff need answers now. To the minister: what does the minister have to say to parents concerned that special-needs students are being pushed into traditional classroom settings prematurely?

Mr. Hancock: It would be quite inappropriate to do so, Mr. Speaker. We have a special-needs review process which has been under way for some time. It’s been under way for some time because it’s a very important area. We’ve had extensive consultation. We’re now working to do the collaborative processes between health, education, children’s services, and then we’ll work again with school boards and stakeholders and parents to design the implementation process. This is something that’s particularly important, that every student be included in the education process, and it needs to be done right.

Mr. Chase: Special-needs funding has also been frozen for two years. Given the developments in the Calgary public and Edmonton Catholic boards will the minister release any details about his plan for special-needs education, or will he continue to hide behind his ongoing review?

Mr. Hancock: Mr. Speaker, we are actively engaged in the process of getting internal policy approval, and as soon as I have approval to move forward, we will be obviously including the same people and more who were included in the discussions leading up to the setting the directions task force report. That will happen, I hope, very quickly.

Let me be perfectly clear. Nothing is going to change overnight. This is a change in culture relative to moving from a diagnostic process to a learning-needs-based process. It’s going to involve a lot of work, and it has to be done right.

Mr. Chase: I hope that when it finally gets done, special ed children will be protected.

Why is this minister spreading even more uncertainty by publicly musing about getting rid of the evaluative practice of coding without indicating what the new system will be? Clarify.

Mr. Hancock: Mr. Speaker, I try to respond to questions when they’re put to me, whether we’re in this House or elsewhere. People have asked about coding. As late as at noon today on the inappropriately named Wildrose program on CBC I spoke directly to the question of coding. The fact of the matter is: we’re not getting rid of coding necessarily; we’re moving the funding model and the special-needs model to an all-inclusive model. It requires work. Students will still need to be diagnosed. There still will need to be health professionals involved, but they won’t necessarily drive the learning process.

Alberta Hansard, April 20, 2010

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