Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, cultural programs have only been introduced in the education system, perhaps within the last 10 to 15 years. When I went to school there were no cultural programs. It was strictly the European style of education system. I have been successful in completing all my grades, perhaps, because I was not expected to learn two different cultures and try to exercise them. I do not know. I would think that is one of the determining factors.
It is not up to us to decide what the committees should have in the areas of education, or cultural programs. I think, Mr. Chairman, that we, as politicians, should be able to say that we do have two very different cultures, and having them in one institution and delivered in that one institution does cause for confusion of the students.
I would think that the parents taking responsibility for the culture is good, but I think we should allow the communities to take cultural programs, and have it so that they have their own institutions to teach those programs and the European programs allow them to be in the existing schools as it is now.
We do have two valued systems, two very different cultures, and I do not think that right now, if I go to the school in Fort Providence, 99 percent of the material there is going to be all, non-aboriginal. What we have in the delivery of cultural programs are strictly just token programs, second class programs, or down graded programs. I am saying that if you allow the communities to take on those programs, the professors are all there in the communities, they are the professionals, they know the values of the Dene, they know the stories of the Dene people, the music, the history, and the practices.
It is not a matter of trying to shape, but trying to guess on what really is the Dene culture. I am sure whenever some of these programs are delivered a lot of imagination and a lot of guess work takes place. If you allow the communities to control those programs, I would think that they would do a 100 percent efficient job. It would be delivered 100 percent by the communities as opposed to what we have now, that is any given classroom, I do not know what the requirements are, and as the Minister said, Mr. Chairman, it is determined by the local education authorities. It would vary right across the territories.
My position is, I think this is one area in which, even in the Education Act, you should be able to say, yes, these are the subjects and these are the laws governing those students. It is required, or compulsory for them to take these subject courses in order for them to advance. On the other hand, the communities could be responsible for the cultural component of those programs. In other words, a child would have to get out of school and go to a community centre, a community hall, the adult education centre, or the friendship centre. They would go to a different environment to study their own culture.
I think that there is a lot of confusion here, because if we allow the local education authorities, or boards or committees, to determine that, yes, it would vary from community to community, to region, to territory, to provinces. It would vary. I think that we should be able to say, in order for us to achieve good standards of education, these are what we have to do. One of the steps that we should be taking is allowing the communities to take control of aboriginal programs, which they should be experts on. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.