Alberta Introduces New Literacy Program: Read Less, Ask Fewer Questions

Alberta’s new provincial order on school library materials has entered its most reassuring phase: secrecy.

Following instructions to remove any “explicit, graphic” content from students’ reach, several school divisions have quietly pulled dozens of books from shelves, while declining to say which ones, lest curiosity break out. The Calgary Board of Education confirmed it identified 44 titles for removal, a minuscule fraction of its 700,000-book collection, proving that nothing says “no big deal” like refusing to name the books.

Edmonton Public Schools compiled a similar list of 34 titles from its 480,000, noting helpfully that the list is “living,” meaning it can grow, shrink, or change names depending on the weather.

Officials stressed the process is about safety, not censorship, and that parents should trust authorities to decide what ideas are suitable, without the distraction of knowing which ideas those are. After all, in a well-run system, transparency only encourages thinking, and thinking can be messy.

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