Alberta introduced a bill recognizing the parents’ right to choose the kind of education they want for their children.
(LifeSiteNews) – The Premier of one of Canada’s largest provinces announced a bill last week that strengthens homeschooling and charter school options for parents as well as reaffirms that parents, “not politicians,” are best to choose how to educate their kids.
In a May 28 press conference, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney of the United Conservative Party (UCP) announced Bill 15, the Choice in Education Act.
Bill 15 re-words the preamble sections of the Alberta Education Act to include wording from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Section 26.3) that says “parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.”
Bill 15 also amends the language in the Education Act to allow a group seeking to establish a new charter school or homeschooling options to bypass the local school board and apply directly to the Alberta minister of education.
At a May 28 morning press conference, Kenney said this change in wording makes it the first law in Canada that explicitly recognizes this universal human right.
“Unfortunately, there continue to be some in Alberta, special interest groups, and political parties who want to undermine this fundamental human right. This legislation won’t’ let them do so in the future,” Kenney said at the press conference.
“We believe that parents know better than politicians or bureaucrats about what’s in the best interest of their kids.”
Bill 15 was introduced in the Alberta Provincial Legislature on the afternoon on May 28 by Alberta education minister Adriana LaGrange. She said that if passed, Bill 15 would amend the Alberta Education Act to expand education choice for parents and solidify their right to choose where to send their kids to school. It also keeps both the status and funding for independent schools.
“This proposed legislation will affirm that parents, not politicians, have the right to choose the kind of education they feel will be best for their children,” LaGrange said in the legislature on May 28.
“This bill shows our government’s commitment to offering education options that allow parents to select the path they feel will best help their children.”
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