Message from Administration and Staff
We are looking forward to a rewarding year working with our students and their families. We recognize that early adolescence years can be both challenging and full of opportunity for the students in our care. During their years with us, our students will face significant life choices and will benefit from the support of school, family and community in making wise and healthy decisions.
It is our belief that, if we listen to our students’ voices, while respecting and honouring their concerns and engaging them in relevant, challenging, integrative and exploratory educational experiences, our students will be better prepared for the promise their futures hold.
In order to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally in a democratic learning environment, trust and respect, and active involvement with family and community needs to be integral to their experience.
We believe that each student has the capacity to learn, grow, and develop into a knowledgeable, reflective, caring, ethical, and contributing citizen. In order to achieve this, they must have access to the very best programs and practices our school can offer. As educators, we embrace the opportunity to work with this age group and are committed to our own lifelong learning and professional development and growth, in support of learning for every student in our midst.
All students at Samuel W. Shaw are supported to achieve their potential. They are encouraged to believe in themselves and their learning community. Students are challenged to actively engage in their learning. They are encouraged to demonstrate their learning creatively and with innovation.
Our middle school is an exemplar of inclusive public education and learning in the 21st Century. Active engagement of students in inquiry-based learning and meeting the needs of all students. The foundation of the school is that learning has to be rich, relevant, rigorous, and recursive. The school promotes meaningful relationships and learning within the entire middle school community. The goal is to be an outstanding middle school that meets the needs of adolescents for today and in the future.
We recognize that learning is best supported when:
- Students feel safe and supported
- The learner-teacher relationship is central to the learning experience
- Students feel listened to
- Students feel respected and cared about by peers, teachers, parents, and administration
- Strengths are reinforced and needs addressed
- Students have ownership of and involvement (voice and choice) in the learning environment and process
- Lessons encourage diverse thinking skills and exchanges of ideas
- Learning is a celebration of diversity, understanding and achievement
- Teachers and peers model effective behavior and strategies
- Students, teachers, parents, and the community are partners in student success
- The school climate and environment are focused on effective learning and caring
- Students take responsibility for and have a commitment to their own learning
- All students are valued for themselves
- Creativity and innovation are valued by students, teachers, and classes
- There is a shared ownership by parents, students, staff, and the community to build positive relationships as the foundation for success
Students are expected to actively engage in learning to the best of their ability and positively contribute to the learning of others in the school. Positive citizenship is expected of all students and staff. All students are expected to act in a manner that will show care and respect:
- for themselves
- for others
- for their environment
Students must be given the opportunity to accept responsibility for their actions.
Who was Samuel W. Shaw?
Our school carries the name of Samuel W. Shaw, a Calgarian whose influence reached far beyond a name on a map. Shaw was a trailblazer, innovator, and visionary. The communities of Shawnessy, Shawnee Slopes, and Shaw Meadows in Fish Creek Park were named in his honour, and his mill once stood within the park.
Always ahead of his time, Shaw established Calgary’s first telephone line, linking his Midnapore store with one in the downtown core. He was a person who saw possibilities where others saw limits, and through his efforts, he helped shape a brighter future for our city.
At Samuel W. Shaw School, we carry forward his spirit as an innovator, trailblazer, and visionary in our learning and work together.
Samuel W. Shaw School at a Glance
- Our middle school is organized to meet the unique learning needs of adolescents.
- Innovative and experienced educators are organized in subject specialist teams.
- Students are supported to understand themselves as learners, set goals, develop strategies, and assess their learning through the development of student learning plans.
- We have two Paced Learning Programs
- Students have many ongoing and rich opportunities to experience integrative learning through an inquiry approach
- Rich curricular, co-curricular, and extra-curricular programs are offered
- Lunch supervision is provided for Grade 5 and 6 bussed students as well as for registered program users.
- Daily physical education program is provided by our PE teaching team
- Learning is supported within virtual and physical spaces that provide rich digital and text resources.
- School-wide activities that promote healthy, active living and an exciting school culture
- Parents are encouraged to volunteer in the school.
Our School's Commitment to Truth and Reconciliation
We are committed to acknowledging and supporting the implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission 94 Calls to Action specific to education. Our school, along with all CBE schools, made a Truth and Reconciliation Commitment to Action, on June 21, we renewed our commitment.
View Our Truth and Reconciliation Commitment | 2025 2026
School Development Plan
Each year, our school prepares a development plan with input from teachers, school staff, students and parents. We review many sources of data, including report cards, provincial achievement test results and school surveys. Based on this information, we create our plan identifying targeted areas for growth. Our school development plan is not meant to represent all of the work that takes place in our school, but rather it focuses on specific areas for improvement.
View Our Samuel WShaw School Development Plan 25 26
School Improvement Results Report
Our school also prepares a results plan, which looks at our previous school year. It shows our students’ achievement and progress in meeting the goals and outcomes as set out by the CBE and Alberta Education, outlines some of the highlights of our school development plan and gives an overview of our school. You can look on the CBE website for system-wide results.