Alberta Teachers’ Association discuss challenges in and out of classrooms
Posted May 17, 2026 11:25 am.
The Alberta Teachers’ Association’s (ATA) 109th annual Representative Assembly is drawing teachers from all over the province to discuss policy and debate the future of education.
Around 450 teachers from across the province are gathering in Calgary.
ATA president Jason Schilling says the union’s biggest challenge is getting on the same page with the provincial government.
“Sometimes I find that government and other individuals will dismiss the truth that teachers are telling them, and gaslight them into thinking everything’s ok. That will be the challenge, trying to make sure that we get that message out there,” Schilling said.
President of ATA local 55, Lee Martin, says that union members have been discouraged since the use of the notwithstanding clause, and that it’s been challenging to keep morale high. He adds that at the classroom level, teachers are still facing the same issues as before the strike: large, complex classrooms.
“That’s the problem here. We’re thinking about how do we nurture these children here. We nurture them in great environments. If we let the environment burst, then how can they learn?” he explained.
According to Clint Johnston, president of the Canadian Teachers Federation, these issues are seen throughout the country and are not specific to Alberta — aside from the province’s Bill 2 legislation, which invoked the notwithstanding clause to end the teachers’ strike.
“That heavy legislative hammer, the notwithstanding clause use. That’s a specific one here, which we hope stays here,” he told CityNews. “It’s been used in other ways in Saskatchewan right next door to you, but to take away labour rights, that was kind of a first for us.”
But Schilling is hoping the public will continue voicing their concerns.
“I know through the strike we had a ton of parental and public support. We know that they are on our side, so we know the public will pick up the messages and the truth that teachers say this weekend, and share that going forward,” he said.
