Joey Gentile, principal of Southview School, takes part in a "town hall" meeting held by School District 76 at Higdon Hall on Tuesday evening. -- NEWS PHOTO EMMA BENNETT

Amanda Stephenson
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What kind of education do you want for your child?
That question was at the core of a town hall meeting hosted by the board of Medicine Hat's School District No. 76 on Tuesday night. The small crowd of parents who came out to Higdon Hall were given markers and paper and asked to share their vision for the future of the school division.
It was the first time Medicine Hat's public school division has reached out to the community in this format, and trustee Rick Massini told the News now is a great time to do it. From a new Education Act to new ways of looking at special education, there are more changes going on right now in Alberta's education system than have been seen in years.
"There are big discussions going on right now around the transformation of education, and the Minister (of Education) is asking us what this should look like," Massini said. "(As trustees), we may have preconceived notions of that, but we have to get real. We have to know what the kids really want, and what the parents really want."
Trustee Deborah Forbes said Tuesday's forum was aimed at getting answers to the big-picture questions that school divisions across Alberta are grappling with as the education system tries to adjust to the changing needs of 21st century society.
"I would say that the schools of the 19th and 20th century were based on the factory model, where you did the 'average' best for the 'average child,'" Forbes said. "And what we're hoping to do in the 21st century is look at all the diverse kinds of learners we have, and provide atmospheres and environments so that those children can learn in a way that's authentic to them."
As parents worked in small groups to identify the things they want from the education system, everything from extra-curricular activities to peer mentoring to school-based reading programs and in-school family support services came up.
Superintendent Grant Henderson told the News that the information gathered at the town hall meeting will be used to guide District No. 76 in planning for the future. He said while some of the ideas will be dependent on funding, some could be implemented right away.
"There might be some things that are easy to do," Henderson said. "They might not require a lot of additional resources — they might just be good ideas we hadn't heard before."