Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good Morning. Mr. Speaker, as the only jurisdiction in the country that has a majority of aboriginal people, the NWT is in a unique position to provide leadership in developing school curricula that reflects aboriginal perspective. Education, Culture and Employment staff have been providing this leadership in developing a social study curriculum under the Western Canadian Protocol. Under this agreement, ECE staff are working with departments responsible for education in the four western provinces and the Yukon to develop common school curricula.

The Northwest Territories has strongly promoted the involvement of aboriginal people in developing the social study's curriculum and in ensuring that aboriginal perspective is included. As a result of the NWT's efforts and with the agreement of the other jurisdictions, aboriginal staff from the two territories and four western provinces took part in a recent meeting of the social studies working group in Edmonton. Aboriginal staff are now part of the team designing the document which will provide a foundation for the social studies project. The participation of aboriginal people in this kind of curriculum project signals a change in the way curriculum is written in our country.

The social studies curriculum will reflect issues which have become important across the NWT and Canada. A few of the major issues are: the protection and promotion of cultural identity, the development of a more truly representative and accurate history of Canada and citizenship and Canadian unity. The NWT delegation took a collaborative approach involving aboriginal, Francophone and English language representatives to develop an NWT perspective on these issues. This position was presented at the recent meetings in Edmonton. This is an exciting opportunity for the NWT to lead the country in curriculum development that is appropriate for all learners. We see particular promise in these developments for aboriginal learners, whose rich history and culture will be a valuable addition to the curriculum delivered in Canadian schools. Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.

--Applause