Thank you. To the motion. Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This is not a new initiative. In the last fiscal year, 1991-92 main estimates, this Legislative Assembly voted for this plan, for $50,000 for the junior/senior high school in Pond Inlet.

Thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion. Ms. Cournoyea.

Mr. Chairman, I think the idea for the junior/senior high school in Pond Inlet is to begin the planning and the organization of the building. Often, these things take a while to do. The project, as the Minister has said, is not a new initiative. It was in the planning process. I would feel very concerned if the initiatives we have are put on hold for all the projects that were in the budget. I am aware of the few that directly affect the Inuvik area, but I do not believe that we should hold up this process to allow the planning and the organization of getting those projects in place. I have a concern, in going through all the processes, that this motion is coming to the floor right now.

Thank you. To the motion. Mr. Todd.

No Coherent Long-Term Strategy Relating To High Schools

The point that is trying to be made by the standing committee on finance was, there is clearly not a coherent policy of long-time strategy that relates to high schools. There are differences of opinion within the Assembly between those who agree that high schools should be in communities or not in communities. Our concern was not to inhibit the construction of the Pond Inlet high school. Our concern is, is this the proper and correct action to take? Therefore, we felt at the time, and still feel, I suspect, that until we can see a well laid out high school policy, which we still

have not seen and which we asked for, our concern would be, should we continue to construct high schools in communities? That was the concern. What is the policy of the government? We have not seen a high school policy. There is concern within the committee, and a number of members on our committee from the Eastern Arctic, and I, for one, am one of them, are not convinced that building high schools in the communities is the answer to the educational needs of our children, and that is the reason behind this and the reason behind the motion.

Thank you. To the motion. Ms. Cournoyea.

I would like to raise a concern, then, in terms of deleting the $5000, is that not inhibiting the project as it has been laid out in the planning stages? Mr. Chairman, I agree that there may not have been a very clear and concise process in dealing with the higher levels of education. I am sure that we have some paper on it, but I do not know whether that would prove adequate. However, I would like to state that in a lot of the regions, the communities do get together, the divisional boards do get together, and they do plan, particularly in Baffin Island, where they would like to increase the grade levels in their community. So they do make those decisions at the regional level, and this has been discussed at the divisional board and at the community level as well.

Certainly in that particular region, Pond Inlet and Pangnirtung, they have supported the extension of grades into their communities, and a high school. These discussions have taken place over the years, to my understanding, and I would say that perhaps not all of us agree and take the same view on whether grades should be increased at the community level or whether students should be sent to an institution at a regional level. However, I believe that the communities themselves have made this decision that they would like to actively pursue that educational facility in that region, and it has not gone without community support.

So, Mr. Chairman, I know that these discussions continue at the community and regional levels, and these communities in the region have agreed and have supported this action. Thank you.

Thank you. To the motion. Mr. Allooloo.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This project was delayed by one year. The department was able to delay this project because the duplex unit classroom that was presently used as a community library and day-care was able to be turned over to classroom needs. When the grade 10 was introduced in 1985, there were 252 students: and when grade 11 was introduced in 1988-89, there were 314 students, and the school was at 102 per cent capacity. In 1989-90 the new school was constructed, Ulaajuk primary school, and the total of students attending that from K to 6 was 332. Ulaajuk School at the time was at 98 per cent capacity. Takijualuk School, from grade four to 12, was at 75 per cent capacity.

The department was able to delay the two projects, renovation and construction of the high school, because we had a portable school duplex that was being used as a day-care and library. The school was able to move into those portables to accommodate the students. If we do not plan for constructing a high school in Pond Inlet, there will be overcrowding, and we will be in a situation where we would have to ship students out of Pond Inlet to other schools where there is kindergarten to grade 12 available. We tried to promote that local education is very important. I believe that would be contradicting ourselves that we will not be meeting the community's requirement for educating kids. We will have to be shipping kids out of Pond Inlet.

Thank you. To the motion, Mr. Pudlat.

(Translation) Mr. Chairman, is the amount of $10,000 right? We all know that they are trying to get a hostel for Pond Inlet, and we are also supporting extension of the grades in Pond Inlet. I wonder if the Minister of Education or the Government Leader could tell me if that $10,000 is the right amount, because of the planning. I think all the communities in all the regions are supporting education. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. Minister.

(Translation) Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The money we had will be used for the new school in Pond Inlet.

Ms. Mike.

Need For Good Quality High School Courses

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. How can we be assured that this high school in Pond Inlet will deliver good quality high school courses for the students? In Pangnirtung there have been instances where the high school graduates are applying for work, and when they are given a test by the potential employer, their grade level is grade six.

If I might, I do not want to intervene into the debate of the motion but the motion itself is to delete $5000, that is the question that is to be addressed at this time. Ms. Mike.

Mr. Chairman, I do have a concern about the quality of high school programs we deliver to our children. How can we be assured that we get good quality education if we do approve this?

Ms. Cournoyea.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to agree with you that the overall concern of quality education is a question. This $5000 is to proceed with some very preliminary planning with the community in that regard, and I would assume that the $5000 would be, at this point in time, used to talk to the community and perhaps have a discussion along those lines in terms of extending grades. This is a very preliminary amount of money, and the larger amounts are for future spending. However, I think there will never be an answer to the question. Eliminating the $5000 it is not going to do the job in reaching that objective. There have been several discussions to move ahead. Even to discuss it is important at this time. Thank you.

To the motion. Mr. Patterson.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I guess as a previous Minister of Education who started grade extensions, after a hiatus for a while in the NWT in the early 1980s, I just want to say that there is no simple answer, in my view, to which is better, community high schools regional high schools, or sending the kids south. It all depends on the support that you get in a community. If you have strong parental support in a community for a program, and if you have parents who are unwilling or reluctant to send their children out of the community to high school -- and Iqaluit is an awfully long way away from Pond Inlet, by the way -- then the quality of education will be affected. Mr. Chairman,

community high schools can work, and I am shocked at the Member for Baffin Centre...

Order please. As I reminded the honourable Member for Baffin Centre, the matter and the question before us is to delete $5000, and I have been quite lenient. But I do want to remind the honourable Member that the matter is a question of deletion and not necessarily the question of the programs and the services. I want to remind Members of that. I do not believe a debate should take place on the relevance or the matters related to programs and services. To the motion to delete $5000. Mr. Patterson.