Calgary students participated in a provincewide school walkout on Thursday following the resolution of the Alberta teachers’ strike. The initiative was led by Alberta Students for Teachers, a group that coordinated walkouts at various high schools in the city. Arya Mishra, a Grade 12 student at William Aberhart High School and one of the organizers, emphasized the importance of students voicing their concerns independently of adult opinions.
After the provincial government introduced back-to-work legislation for striking teachers on Monday, students returned to school on Wednesday. The legislation, known as Bill 2 or the Back to School Act, brought an end to the job action that had led over 50,000 members of the Alberta Teachers’ Association to strike more than three weeks earlier.
Students rallied in support of teachers, advocating for classroom size limits and optional January diplomas. An online petition calling for the optional status of Alberta’s January 2026 diploma exams has garnered over 27,000 signatures. Despite the return to school due to the back-to-work legislation, students like Mishra expressed frustration at the lack of tangible changes.
In southern Alberta, students from various schools also joined the walkout, including Canmore Collegiate High School and Lethbridge Collegiate Institute. The students aimed to emphasize the significance of teachers’ rights and the impact of educational decisions on their futures.
While Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides acknowledged students’ right to peaceful assembly and protest, he emphasized the importance of attending classes for uninterrupted learning. Both the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) and the Calgary Catholic School District (CCSD) clarified that the protests were not endorsed by the school boards, and students were expected to attend classes unless excused by a parent or guardian. The CBE and CCSD outlined that participating in the walkout would result in an unexcused absence and students would not be supervised by teachers or administrators.
