EDMONTON — Alberta's Wildrose party says it will give more money and authority to school boards to hire teachers if it wins the spring election.

Party leader Danielle Smith also says she would also give school principals and parent councils more choice in deciding what to teach and how to teach it.

Reasons and criteria for new schools would be publicized to avoid new buildings going up where they were not needed due to political pork-barrelling.

Smith says the Wildrose would overhaul provincial achievement tests to make them more effective in gauging a student's progress.

And, she says, there would more flexible guidelines to help educators tailor programs for special-needs students.

The Wildrose party is rolling out its policy ahead of the election, which by law must be called by Premier Alison Redford for sometime in March, April or May.