Frequently Asked Questions
Questions Asked About Almadina Language Charter
Academy
Are you a public school?
Almadina is a public school of parental choice that is granted a specific charter by the Minister
of Education. Almadina and 12 sister charter schools are autonomous non-profit public schools
designed to provide innovative or enhanced education programs that improve the acquisition of
student skills, attitudes and knowledge in some measurable way. Charter schools have
characteristics that set them apart from other public schools in meeting the needs of a
particular group of students through a specific program or teaching/learning approach while
following Alberta Education's Program of Studies.
The Charter School Handbook outlines the procedures for establishing a Charter school
should you and a group of parents have an innovative idea on how to improve student
achievements and innovations in education. Currently the Alberta government is committed to
having a total of 15 public charter schools.
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How is a charter school different from a traditional public school, public school with a
religious affiliation or a private religious school?
As a public charter school our funding is subject to the same reporting obligations as that of
any other Alberta public schools. Charter schools, unlike religiously based schools whether
private or public, may not be affiliated with a religious faith or denomination. Charter schools
are not private religious schools. Nor are they intended to replace the services offered by
private religious schools. Like any other public school, charter schools such as Almadina may
provide general religious instruction and exercises, as may any other public school.
Specifically, at Almadina students may pray at designated areas during non-instructional time
such as lunch or recess. As part of our commitment to diversity in shared values all religious
are treated with the outmost respect during school discussions related to the Alberta
curriculum.
Almadina’s character education with its Citizen: Values/Virtue initiative is based on seven
virtues/values as found in Michelle Borba’s, Building Moral Intelligence. As Albertans,
Canadians and good global-citizens our students have shown empathy to all victims of disaster
through a myriad of fund-raising and donations to homeless shelters at Calgary.
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Does Almadina charge tuition or any other fees?
Almadina does not charge tuition since it is funded like any other public school. At Almadina all
students receive a basic set of supplies at the start of their school year. Then, parents are
responsible if supplies are lost or damaged. Almadina asks parents to pay a bus fee if they
choose to use our bus service and fees for field trips (other than bus cost) approved by the
parent. If parents opt out of field trip opportunities, the student remains in a class and does
regular work. Sport association fees are picked up by the school campus. However,
supplemental weekend language classes may be offered at a fee covering supervision or treats.
Like field trips these services that may be available from time to time are strictly voluntary
and must be approved by the parent.
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How does a charter board account for public funds and ensure that it follows the School
Act and regulations?
Every year and at times selected by the government, the school funds are audited and the
superintendent and secretary-treasurer must ensure each day that funds are committed and
spent as set out in the funding framework. The auditor issues an audit management letter that
identifies any major issues. The audit is available at both the charter school and government
website.
The charter board members are elected volunteers who may not be paid but are reimbursed for
to cover travel and expenses related to meetings as they carry out their duties. The auditor
ensures that funding commitments related to the board and its delivery of services are tied to
annually approved budget and educational delivery of services as per school priorities, board
motions and approved staffing.
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If you are a public charter school of parental choice, can you deny access to my child?
No Alberta charter can deny your child access, if there is sufficient space, resources are
available and your child is eligible to be a student as defined in the School Act. However, each
school informs parents that its charter emphasis and innovations cater to certain students. For
example at Almadina our focus is on innovative ways to help students from homes in which
English is a second or third language to reach their full potential. Our focus is English language
acquisition and therefore we offer parent a choice of a second language from K to 9 as part of
an overall options course initiative. Therefore our focus is language acquisition through a
specific learning by design and language learning delivery system. Almadina is not equipped to
deal with severe or other types of special needs students.
On our registration form we ask parents to state why they chose Almadina. We also inform
parents that all children registered at Almadina must be tested for language needs and
abilities. Our commitment to language acquisition to immigrant, ESL or parents who seek an
international language option form K to 9 is so strong that we issue both a Language Benchmark
Report and an Academic Report. Student language and diagnostic assessments are ongoing at
Almadina.
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Can I, as a taxpayer, appeal a decision made by Almadina?
Absolutely. You have a right to appeal to the Minister or to the local Zone 5 Education Manager
any decision made by Almadina to provide or deny any educational services.
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Do charter schools such as Almadina delivery the same Alberta curriculum as local public
schools?
Absolutely. Every charter school is obligated to deliver the Programs of Study as set out in the
School Act and regulations. This is so that your child can transfer in and out of any school in
Alberta from start until his high school graduation.
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What guarantee do I have that my child will not be punished by another school for
enrolling at Almadina?
In Alberta all schools must deliver a common standard as per the Programs of Study and
regulations for instruction. The files of students are transferred and your child has the same
student ID from the time that he or she enters classes until graduation.
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Why does the Almadina charter board not hold elections at the same time as all the
regular public school boards, during a Municipal election?
Almadina parents and other charter school parents had to form a Society as part of their
application to the Minister. The Society must meet the conditions of the Society’s Act and
great a mechanism for a charter board that governs the school. Put simply, the Almadina
School Society (6021) Directors operates Almadina Language Charter Academy as granted by
the Minister. The By-Laws of the Society state that Board members (7) must be elected every
year and be made up of mostly parents. At renewal of the charter or at other times, the
Society must petition the Minister if it seeks changes.
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What are the powers of a charter board such as Almadina School Society Board?
Briefly, the board members are accountable to parents, students, public and the Minister of
Education who needs evidence that the members are making policies and providing general
leadership in ensuring that all statutes and regulations are followed. The board members work
through their chief executive officer, the superintendent, who ensures that both the interests
and policies of the board as well as those of the Minister are implemented. The school campus
administrator run the daily operation of the school and ensure that the Program of studies is
delivered consistent with the Charter and School Act and regulations.
Unlike the trustees of a public boards that can delegate hiring and firing to superintendents,
charter boards may directly hire and fire. Hiring and board commitments such as contracts and
leases should be no longer than a time span or term limit set by the charter as granted by the
Minister.
Since the number of students and facilities available to a charter school are limited to the
conditions of a charter, the Almadina board has standards of admission and appeals. At
Almadina, there is a spring drive to see which of the current students want to return and then
students are enrolled on a first come first served basis. They are tested and parents are
advised of student status. Any decision by administration may be appealed to the board or
Minister through the Zone 5 Ministry office.
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May I as a member of the public or a parent attend an Almadina Board meeting or
review the board minutes?
Absolutely. The members of the public, parents, staff or media may attend a board meeting
and sit at a designated place reserved for the public. As per policy, you may listen but not
speak unless you asked the board’s executive secretary to be put on the agenda.
The approved board minutes are posted on our website and conform to FOIP and PIPA privacy
standards.
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Does the Almadina have a parent school council?
Almadina has a parent school council for each campus. The council members and
interested parents meet once per month with the principal and council members to discuss
issues, plan activities or offer advice to school or board members. At these council
meeting an ad hoc or permanent committee of the Almadina board may meet in the
school or be invited for a presentation.
The campus school council chairs from each campus are invited to get on the board
agenda and offer advice or share concerns at a duly convened board meeting. Almadina
follows the regulations set for Alberta’s School Councils and even participated in the
recent review of Alberta school council regulations. Essentially, school councils may:
• Function differently from one school and jurisdiction to another. Involvement can
range from minimal to active, collaborative decision making on school policies
and goals.
• Advise the principal and school board on: school policies (such as discipline and
fundraising), program development (such as extra-curricular activities, new
programs and resources), budgets, use of achievement tests to improve student
learning, and methods of reporting student progress (for example, report cards).
• Develop meeting procedures and define its role
• School councils must follow regulations related to fund-raising and PIPA.
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How does Almadina make sure that all its students are legal immigrants who have a
right to an education in Alberta?
At time of registration each parent must bring the following original documents: 1)Canadian birth certificate or immigration papers 2)Alberta Health Care Card These are then checked and verified and reported through the Student Information
System.
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Are charter school teachers and instructors as qualified as other teachers and staff?
Almadina has a contract with the Alberta Teachers’ Association and all our teachers must have
an Alberta approved teacher’s interim or permanent certificate. The superintendent ensures
that they do. Also, when we cannot find a qualified teacher to teach a heritage language, we
hire a language instructor and ensure that the person is supervised by a certified teacher as
well as the principal. The School Act allows for other personnel as long as they are supervised
under a qualified teacher.
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Can your Almadina Language Charter Academy be closed down or limited?
Since the Minister of Education reviews or grants charters for a maximum of five years basis, all
charters may be terminated at the will of the government. There are several considerations for
terminating a charter school and these are in no particular order: 1) enrollments are below
100 fulltime students or so low that programs of study cannot be delivered 2) charter has lost
its innovative edge and students are actually performing worse than their provincial
counterparts at both the acceptable and excellence PAT levels 3) the charter has not
demonstrated improvement in delivery or reforms since its last external evaluation by the
Ministry 4) all charter schools are due to terminate in 2012 and the government has decided
not to renew an extension 5) a charter may be limited or directed to do certain things by the
Minister as specified in the School Act 6) since Almadina leases schools or buildings we are
subject to market forces and the availability of existing surplus schools.
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How long will it take my child to learn English?
Learning English is a long, uneven process. Each child learns at a different pace. The
process is influenced by level of first language proficiency, age on arrival in Canada,
educational background, personality and learning style factors. Children generally
acquire conversational fluency, or basic interpersonal communication skills (BICS)
in about 2 years. It takes much longer – 5 – 7 years – for children to develop the level
of cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP) to succeed with learning tasks
associated with academic work. Much of the academic specialized words have Greek and
Roman roots. These academic words are also challenging for native Canadian students.
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Does first language development help or hinder second language development?
First language development helps in second language development. First language
development can play a major role in the development of a second language such as
English. Older students with full or mature first language proficiency have a greater of
automatic linguistic and academic bank to draw on in transferring to and advancing the
development of English language proficiency. Academic abilities in one language are
transferable to another based on Jim Cummins research of the “dual threshold”.
Therefore a student with advanced math skills in one language will have an easier time in
learning math in another. However, since most of the Almadina curriculum is delivered
in English the home must play a major role in first or heritage language development and
retention. Our public charter school may offer only a maximum of 100 hours
international language option, as set out in the Alberta International Languages Guide.
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What Does Acquiring the Second Language Look Like?
As a student begins to acquire a second language, a language iceberg of daily words
emerges above the water line. The student initially struggles with the surface features of
the second language (e.g. pronunciation, common greetings, acquiring the first 2500
words), but underneath the iceberg there is a common underlying proficiency factor
(CUP). The human brain is hard at work trying to make order out of disorder. It uses
this common underlying proficiency, thought by linguists to be “hard wired” in human
genetic makeup, to transfer and translate all that is already developed in L1 to efficiently
learn L2.
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How do children develop proficiency in both languages?
a. Children With Weak First Language Proficiency and English Dominant
Second Language
Children with weak first language proficiency, have fewer resources from which to draw
when learning the second language. English must become their dominant language for
communication, thought and for completing academic work at school. Keeping both
languages growing puts an enormous pressure on the student. The must develop new
ideas and thoughts in the new L2 language that is still not fully under control. A L2
student requires a great deal of differentiated teaching and learning approaches. Teachers
who know something about the first language proficiency level of the student in their
classes can help the students deal with stress and challenges of acquiring a second
language. First language teachers have to work closely with the regular sheltered
classroom teachers. At Almadina the L1 and L2 teachers use the same planning and
teaching tools. They are encouraged to work collaboratively and use common tools such
as graphic organizers and visual aids.
b. Developing full proficiency in both languages.
Children who have more first language proficiency can generally learn the
second language more efficiently and quickly. They can often be strategic and
translate what they already know in their first language, into English – the second
language. Over time, the second language should begin to approach the level of
the first language, given instructional support to reach this goal. The result
would be full and balanced bilingualism.
Families who want their children to maintain proficiency in both languages are
reminded of the need to plan holidays and visits to the child’s country of origin
during the summer.
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Is there a “critical age” for developing second language proficiency?
Children of different ages learn in different ways. Younger children under the age of 8,
though still needing structured support to learn L2, seem to acquire the pronunciation and
patterns of daily grammar naturally. They achieve basic interpersonal communication
skills (BICS) seemingly effortlessly through play, television, and active engagement with
the language through meaningful learning tasks that are designed for the specific goals of
acquiring BICS. Children of this age have little usable first language proficiency that
they can transfer into academic studies. Beyond the BICS level, these children often find
L2 development to be a struggle. Their parents are often confounded by this plateau
effect because the children “sound good” and appear to be fluent in English, though only
at a conversational level. These children require on-going support and more time to
develop L2. Remember that the academic words for a subject are specialized and also
challenging for the native speaker.
Older children between ages 8 to 11, have just enough L1 proficiency useful to transfer
to the task of acquiring literacy in the second language. These children also have time on
their side. With proper support, the majority of these children should acquire sufficient
English language proficiency to be successful with academic work at school. Their first
language often falls behind over the years. They maintain enough L1 for conversational
and family discourse purposes, and socializing with first language friends.
Children between the ages of 11 – 15 have not developed full linguistic maturity in their
first language. Children who immigrate to Canada at this age are severely disadvantaged.
They must learn a high volume of new content area materials and concepts in English at
the junior high level at the same time they are learning basic English. These students
often require extensive English language support for more than 3 years in order to
compete academically in senior high school. They are chasing a “moving target” in
attempting to keep pace with their native English speaking peers as well as keeping up to
the high volume of academic assignments. This is tough and these are the most
disadvantaged students.
Newly arrived students over the age of 15 have the advantage of possessing rich
linguistic and cognitive resources in L1 to draw on and to transfer into English, assuming
they have been fully schooled and are proficient at grade level in L1. They can see
language as an object of study in itself, and can use metacognitive/reflective strategies to
advance their L2 development. They can benefit from some direct grammar explanations
and exposure to idioms. These students often are acutely aware of the need to learn
English quickly for educational purposes or for reasons of finding suitable work. For
these reasons, they are often self-motivated and disciplined to study English. If they have
acquired some English (i.e. to an Intermediate level) in their first language school
experience in their homeland, these students often can do well academically.
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Do some students “get stuck” between the two languages?
Absolutely. The danger for many young L2 learners is incomplete language development
in both languages, or what may be thought of as impoverished bilingualism. Many of
these children struggle at school, especially in grades 4 to 6 where there is a greater
emphasis on content learning, and language acquisition is assumed. They tend to fall
farther and farther behind. They are often found in special education classes, nonacademic
programs. They tend to experience failure and become dropout statistics.
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What does this mean for first language maintenance and development?
For the younger children English tends to take over as the dominant language for daily
thought and academic work at school. Many of these children need to maintain at least
conversational proficiency in the first language in order to communicate with the older
generation of caregivers (e.g. grandparents who live with them), or even their parents
who many not acquire English language proficiency in Canada. For many of these
children, a certain level of L1 proficiency is central to their socio-cultural identity within
their ethnic community. Almadina offers a nurturing environment for maintaining
conversational L1 skills informally, and also through its international languages option.
However, full bilingualism is not the goal for these children.
Should parents desire their children to develop literacy skills in their first language at the
same time they are acquiring literacy in English, they can register their youngsters in a
Saturday school or summer language camps. Almadina Language Charter Academy is
not a bilingual school.
Older children who have developed literacy skills and have the ability to use their first
language proficiency directly to advance L2 development can benefit from maintaining
and enhancing their first language by way of the up to hundred hour option through the
international languages program. Full bilingualism is a desirable consequence but not a
realistic goal for many of the students at Almadina.
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How Can I Help My Child Learn English?
The single most important challenge facing your son or daughter is to learn English. You
can help your child learn English by ensuring that homework assignments are completed.
Almadina has a mandatory homework policy. Parents need to seek out opportunities
outside of school hours to engage in listening, speaking, reading and writing English:
• Sign your child up for a community sports team: soccer, baseball.
• Go to the local library and choose books, videos, tapes. Make this a weekly habit.
• Subscribe to an English newspaper. The Calgary Sun is written at a lower level than
the Herald. Pictures, visuals, large headlines make the stories easier to understand.
There are often puzzles and other activities to do.
• Sign your child up for a group or club: Brownies, Cubs, Scouts, choir, band.
• Listen to your child read each evening.
• Encourage your child to keep a personal journal or diary.
• Borrow videos that have an appropriate story line for your child’s interests and age.
• Choose and watch appropriate TV programs together with English sub-titles. Talk
about them later.
• Encourage your child to make friends in the neighborhood with native English
speakers. These playmates become “built in teachers” and provide opportunities to
practice English.
• Older students can take part-time or informal jobs, or do volunteer work that will
bring them in contact with native English speakers.
The best opportunities for learning and practicing English outside of school require active
parental involvement and communicative exchanges with native speakers. Watching TV
is passive, singing in a choir is active. Encourage your child to be a risk taker and to be
actively involved in his or her own learning. Think of it as having fun with language
outside of school.
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How Can I Help My Child Continue to Develop His or Her First Language?
Remember that everything your child knows in the first language will transfer to the
process of learning in English. Your first language is an enormous resource!
• Continue to speak your native language at home. Continuously challenge your child
to think about and talk about more complex ideas and issues. Move beyond the
simple conversations of the “here and now”.
• Consider registering your child in Saturday school or summer language camps.
• Expose your son or daughter to interesting and challenging activities that require
more complex interaction in the first language.
• Continue reading in the first language.
• For students who have well-developed first language literacy skills, continue to
choose challenging reading materials. Also, check out grade level translations of
well-known novels, plays, etc. that you may be asked to read at school. This
background knowledge will help you in English (e.g. To Kill a Mockingbird, for high
school).
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What should a parent know about what priorities Almadina administration
shares with its staff?
1. We practice respect for diversity in shared values and promote a caring and safe school
environment. The Citizen: Values/Virtues initiative is based on monthly themes and each
classroom teacher has students participate in a theme project or integrate the theme into a
core subject such as Language Arts or Social Studies.
2. Almadina is a languages acquisition school that uses language development as a tool to
deliver the Alberta curriculum. We do not have the capacity or public charter to deal with
other English or language acquisition needs of the student.
3. The official language of instruction at Almadina is English. We have students whose
second and third language at home is English. Our challenge is to ensure that students
reach their full potential, especially in the area of language acquisition. Teachers use the
Jim Cummins BICS/CALP Model as well as the Canadian Benchmark Model to identify
strategies for language acquisition along four variables: listening, speaking, reading and
writing.
4. Almadina is not wed to any one pedagogical philosophy or methodology. Teachers are
expected to use the most innovative practices for English and language acquisition as
well as to communicate with parents and students in order to solve problems
collaboratively.
5. Each year, administration and teachers set targets and priorities as Almadina strives to
achieve its public charter vision and mission.
6. Our students are to receive homework that they can do at home. Parents and teachers
should communicate by use of an Agenda book.
7. The daily “Read and Write” is tied to the Language Arts program and is meant to give
students opportunities to read at their ability levels and write in journals or reflect about
their learning. Specifics and resources for this initiative are to be worked out
collaboratively by each campus principal and school staff.
8. Our International Languages option is based on parental choice. This year we are offering
up to 100 extra hours of Extra English, French, Somali, Kurdish and also Urdu if parents
so choose.
9. At Almadina we use four complementary “understanding” tools to promote student
learning strategies: cognitive, metacognitive, social and affective. Suggestions for use of
these tools are found in the Learning By Design Unit planning system, available at the
University of Calgary website, and in the Alberta Programs of Study and in the Almadina
Language Strategies For Communicative Competencies. In addition, teachers access a
variety of resource books and professional development opportunities by consulting with
the campus principal.
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Where can I get more information about Alberta’s charter schools?
Alberta Education: www.education.gov.ab.ca/educationsystem/charter_hndbk.pdf
Each charter school has a website address at: www.charterschools.ca
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