Larger class sizes increase the expectation of independent learning

CBC recently reported new enrollment figures showing an extra 2000 students in catholic schools in the fall.  Additionally, Calgary’s population increased by 30,000 in 2012.  This has put tremendous pressure on the school system to keep up. Gary Strother, chief superintendent of the Calgary Catholic School District has stated that “we need more schools in the district”.  According to the school board, the numbers of students have increased throughout all grade levels.

It sounds like there is talks of more funding for school districts to accommodate the growing class sizes.  However, it will take time to build more schools & hire more teachers.  So what should student’s do in the meantime?

Students & parents have been expected to take a portion of their learning experience home & on the computer, with many students going to extra resources such as online video tutorials and in home tutoring.  It would be naive to think that in a class size of 35 to 40 students, teachers are able to individually attend to each student as well as mark papers & exams especially if the teachers have several classes.  In some ways, it is becoming more like a lecture style teaching system.

As long as the class sizes remain high & student enrollment increases, there will be a high demand for extra resources for students.  Some resources that students can find useful material on youtube.com, learnalberta.ca and Quest A+