Technology, Research and Education

Grade School

The need to start out life with a good education is a necessity in today's demanding global economy and as such, Alberta's International Region has a progressive and expanded public school system with Black Gold Regional School District. Comprised of 23 public schools and 2 home-schooling alternatives, this region benefits from educational opportunities covering the broad spectrum that you'd expect from a modern school system. Whether elementary, junior high or high school, Alberta's International Region has it all.

The region is also home to a comprehensive bussing system which is available to transport students from all over the region to the schools in the various communities. More information on this sytem is accessible through the Black Gold Regional School District website.

Another option for parents and students are the St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Schools (STAR), a school system serving over 2,000 students across west-central Alberta. The STAR Catholic School system operates three schools within Alberta's International Region and several more in the surrounding areas.

An excellent resource for parents is the Curriculum Handbook for Parents, a source of information for parents on subjects, programs and courses available in Alberta schools. The handbooks are updated yearly as changes are made to the curriculum and span Kindergarten through Grade 12 providing selected learning outcomes for each subject area in the provincial curriculum, information on personal and career development, and links to the Alberta Learning website where more information can be found for both parents and students alike.

Currently, the Province of Alberta is ranked #1 in per-capita education spending in all of Canada. This level of funding ensures students have an excellent opportunity at having a great start in life. Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) assesses the international achievement of 15-year-old students in reading, mathematics and science, and is conducted by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). In 2003, they conducted such an assessment and when compared against countries from around the world, Alberta placed first in Reading and in the top three (against over 40 participants) in Mathmatics and the Sciences.