After members of the Alberta School Boards Association voted in favour of reducing the weight of a diploma exam, the Education Minister addressed the association.

At this time, a diploma exam is worth 50 percent of a student’s final mark – but members of ASBA have voted 82 percent in favour of reducing the weight of the exam to 30 percent.

On Tuesday, Education Minister Gordon Dirks was the keynote speaker at the Association’s convention – and he didn’t commit to making changes.

“I don’t have a personal position at this point in time,” Dirks said. “Other than to say that all of us – trustees, teachers, parents, are all concerned that we have an appropriate accountability and assessment framework for our students and our graduating high school students.”

Dirks said he wanted to look at what other jurisdictions are doing.

On Monday, ASBA President Helen Clease said the way education is delivered to students has changed to include more critical thinking, and how students are marked should change as well.

“That exam maybe made sense back then in terms of having a multiple chance exam, because there was a lot of rote learning going on,” Clease said.

“I know my son, who is in Grade 12, isn’t thrilled that half of his mark on his final is going to be based on a one-day test,” Brad Vonkeman, President of the Alberta School Councils Association said.

Vonkeman said the diploma, as it is weighted now, is not fair.

“All of a sudden you can see a mark that may have been 80s drop down to a low 80s or even drop under the 80 percent mark just because of a bad day,” Vonkeman said.

Officials in British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have already lowered the weighting of diploma exams on students’ final marks.

ASBA is not the only one looking at dropping the weight of diploma exams, the Alberta Teachers’ Association also wants the weight reduced, but to 20 percent.

The ATA said they have been concerned about the weight of diploma exams for years.

“Twenty-four years, and its finally getting some traction, we hope, with the decision of the Alberta School Boards Association,” Dennis Theobald with the Alberta Teachers’ Association said.

A final decision on changing the weighting of diploma exams rests with the Education Minister, and officials hope to work with Dirks on the issue.

“We would call on this minister to sit down and have a frank and honest discussion with all of the groups about this issue,” John Tomkinson with the St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic School Board said.

Dirks said he’s aware of the growing support for a change.

“I understand that the ATA also is in agreement with a change and also the Superintendents Association,” Dirks said.

With files from Susan Amerongen