Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. (Translation) Mr. Speaker, a long time ago, I went to school in Fort Providence and Fort Simpson. At the time we were only taught in English. When we said something in Slavey we were punished for it. As a result of that, when I went to school in 1967, that is the only way I have been taught. We rarely did things in Slavey; we only did things in English.
These days, when kids go to school in Fort Providence, they get taught in Slavey, but the place that they are taught is a white man's setting, and I do not feel this is right. What the government is saying, right now, is that if the communities want to govern something they would be able to help them. What I am saying, Mr. Speaker, is that if we are going to be taught in the native way I think the people at the community level should be the ones who are in charge of it. The way they sing, the way they tell stories -- these things should all be looked after by native people.
If the children were taught outside of the school setting, they would be taught better. If they were taught in the native way, the native people should be in charge of teaching them. The Department of Education should be giving some thought to these kinds of things. The people are concerned about the way the students are being taught in English and the government should be helping them. The way I see it, the songs and the native stories, the way the native language is taught right now, I do not think it will survive. I think it has to be taught outside of the school, and that way I think they will be able to preserve it. Thank you.