Critical thinking skills main focus of Alberta government K-6 social studies survey

The majority of nearly 13,000 Albertans say critical thinking skills should be the priority focus of social studies classes in Alberta, according to a survey released by the province.

The United Conservative Party survey conducted by Leger was published in December following the draft of its K-6 curriculum, which was first published in March 2021 for review.

Many said the draft failed to address racism, sexism, and other forms of bigotry, as well as the use of language that promotes bigotry. It was revised in December that year.

Watch: Significant changes coming to controversial k-6 social studies curriculum

The survey itself was conducted from September to October 2023 as part of the government’s public engagement process for its social studies curriculum.

Leger says 58 per cent, or around 7,000 of respondents, were parents of school children between K-21 grades and 14 per cent were educators. Meanwhile, 21 per cent, or around 2,700 of respondents, were labelled as “interested Albertan,” and one per cent were students.

The poll included the ranking of four questions on the level of importance in a social studies class and one qualitative open-ended question — which was answered by less than half of the respondents.

Nearly 44 per cent of respondents said they believe critical thinking should be the focus of social studies education, with understanding historical events a distant second at 18 per cent.

About nine per cent ranked understanding Canadian and global events or “respectfully interact with others who have different ideas and opinions” as their top priority.

The open-ended questions were categorized into four categories, which focused mainly on “curriculum” at 80 per cent. Within that category, history was the primary focus.

A little over 50 per cent of the answers were categorized into “foundations of curriculum development.” This category found that around 14 per cent of respondents say the class should focus on factual, evidence-based information and should not be based on a narrative.

A social studies draft curriculum for K-6 will be released in the fall of 2024.

The province says there will be more opportunities to provide feedback on the draft curriculum and say more information will be released once it becomes available.

-With files from Phil Wood