In September 2004, Alberta Education introduced an innovative funding framework giving school boards the flexibility and freedom to meet the unique needs of their students and communities. It is based on three pillars - Funding, Flexibility, and Accountability.

CFIS is melding industry best practices and the support of Alberta Education to create enhanced academics and extra-curricular programmes. We have recently increased our accountability to our families and the community at large and are proud to share our achievements. The accountability reporting instruments are used by CFIS for continuous improvement and evolution of our programmes. They are also key inputs to create and regularly update our Strategic Plan and 3-year Education Plan.

Funding Pillar

In 2008/2009, Calgary French & International School chose to accept additional funding from Alberta Education, referred to as Level 2 Funding. Level 2 Funding obliges CFIS to increase its level of accountability and reporting. We are now required to comply with Alberta Education’s way of measuring performance and to report this performance to Albertans. Alberta Education Level 2 Funding offers accredited private schools an opportunity to see its provincial funding increase to 70% (up from 60% in Level 1) in the following areas: Base Instruction, Alberta Initiative for School Improvement, SuperNet Service, Daily Physical Activity, ESL and Knowledge and Employability. More significant, however, is the increase from 0% to 70% for Plant Operations and Maintenance.

Provincial Testing

Standardized testing is required province-wide for students in Grades 3, 6, 9 and 12 in the core subjects to ensure our education system maintains a high standard. CFIS students are to be congratulated for their continued excellent performance on the Provincial Achievement Tests (PAT). Each year, students in Grade 3 write English Language Arts, French Language Arts (new as of 2008) and Mathématiques. Students in Grades 6 and 9 write English Language Arts, French Language Arts, Études Sociales, Mathématiques and Sciences. Similar to the PATs, Alberta Education administers Diploma Examinations in core subjects for all Grade 12 students. The first Grade 12 CFIS students will write diploma examinations in June 2010.

While we post aggregate results by grade, CFIS does not distribute individual test results. Individal test results are sent by Alberta Education directly to the student's home in September or early October. If by early October you have not received your child's results, feel free to contact Alberta Education.

Accountability Pillar

The Accountability Pillar provides a new way for schools to measure their success, and assess their progress towards meeting their learning goals. As part of the accountability process, schools share their results with their communities, ensuring Albertans see how they are performing. With the Accountability Pillar, all jurisdictions, including private schools, measure the same factors in the same way at the same time, creating timely, accurate, consistent data that is publicly evaluated and reported. Schools can assess successes and identify opportunities for improvement, while also providing students with the best possible learning experience.

ACCOUNTABILITY PILLAR SURVEY
As part of the Accountability Pillar, Alberta Education conducts census surveys of all teachers, students in Grades 4 and up, and their respective parents of private schools to gather information on the quality of education provided by the school. The teacher and student surveys are conducted online and parents are surveyed by mail. Survey participants are contacted directly by Alberta Education. Survey results are provided to CFIS to use in updating our three-year education plans, to report in our annual education results reports and to evaluate performance on Accountability Pillar survey measures.

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