Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to comment on home boarding, student residences and grade extensions. During my travels in my constituency, I was approached many times by parents of students who will be going away to a larger centre, in this case to Fort Simpson, to pursue higher education. There is much concern raised by the parents because they are sending their grade ten into the unknown. It is very disturbing for many parents. There is cause for many questions. At the present time, the situation in Fort Simpson is that students coming in from other communities are home boarded, no matter what grade they are in, but mainly grade nine and ten. The concern by the parents is there is no coordinated effort to deal with the parents of the students who are going into home boarding.
I have thought about it and I have four children of my own, fortunately, the school goes to grade 12 in Fort Simpson now, so I do not have to worry about it. If we all put ourselves in the place of a parent in Fort Liard, whose daughter is going to be in grade ten next year, it causes great concern. This is the type of problem that has been brought to my attention. Home boarding and grade extension in the smaller communities helps, especially in Fort Simpson, but for the outlying communities with building new schools and better classrooms, there are more students going through the system. There is a balloon of kids going through the system. In about two or three years time, you are going to have a large population leaving the smaller communities, not only in my constituency, but all over the north.
I am sure that this department has thought about it, I hope, and there should be a plan in place to try and deal with this situation. At the present time, I do not see any plan to deal with it. The problem we have should be a part of a long-term plan. The parents are very concerned. They are wondering where they are sending their children to next year and there is no information out there telling them exactly how their children are going to be handled in terms of discipline, a place to stay, what kind of families are they going to live with, and so forth. I know there are parents whose children are sent to home boarding and they have never met the family their children are staying with. If you have a child and you have a certain way of disciplining them in your own home, if you send him to home boarding in grade ten and 11, what kind of discipline is used in these homes? There are many cases, at present, where the child is placed in home boarding and the home boarding parents have never met the child's parents. Where is the connection to deal with ongoing home atmosphere and so forth? This causes me great concern. I think perhaps one way of dealing with this situation might be to look at this particular issue. We have done it for a number of years in Fort Simpson and perhaps in other communities. Why do you not get together and try to look at the problems which arise from this? We should get the parents together to see if we can deal with this situation. I see a major problem down the line with these kids and the anxiety and fear of the unknown of the parents which exists today. It is a policy issue that I am concerned about. It deals with the long-term planning as well as the need for short-term action at the present time. I need to see something done right away to deal with the situation for next fall. Not only in my particular constituency, but all over the north. If the Minister would like to respond to this, I would appreciate it. Mahsi.