Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I want to move on to another area. I just want to say that the theme units are not curriculums. The theme units are just giving a theme, for example, on family, how families live. It could be on traditional structures. Then the teacher has to develop the program around the theme. When we say curriculums in the standard sense, you get an English text book, for example, and you read about the sonnets of Shakespeare or whatever. That is the curriculum. The theme is when you are just given an overview. It could be ten pages or whatever and then you have to develop your curriculum around the theme unit. That is the way I understand it. I am pleased to see that the department has looked at grades 7, 8 and 9 in this area for development. I do not see anything funny about the statement I made.

No, seriously, I am addressing a serious concern here. I do not see anything funny about it. I am getting the letters. You have received the letters. I think people want to know what is happening, Mr. Chairman.

I would like to move off this subject and talk a little bit about the academic and the general programs that Mr. Miltenberger had asked about earlier. The Minister replied saying, well we need carpenters and plumbers and so on. I think the point that should be made here is that it does not matter if you are going to school in Clyde River and getting grade 12 or if you are in school in Pond Inlet and getting grade 12 or Lutselk'e or wherever, when you finish your grade 12 you should have the opportunity to go from those communities, from Clyde River, Pond Inlet, Iqaluit and take post secondary education in universities and transfer those academic marks that you received. Not necessarily are we talking about just the vocational programs. You should be able to take academic courses and transfer that from Clyde River, Hall Beach or wherever and be able to go into schools of higher learning. Then you could make that decision if you want to be a teacher later on or if you want to be an electrician. I think that is the point that has been made. Many of the graduates that we have, when they come out of the general stream, do not have an academic grade 12 and then are not able to get into some of the other institutions. As a former adult educator I had several students who applied to institutions with a grade 12 and were not accepted because of their academic level. I think that is what the other Member was pointing out.

That is why you need to have some type of standard of testing in place so that you can see what is working and what is not working. Right now that system is what is failing. When you speak to parents, and as a parent myself, if you speak to teachers they point that out all the time. Over the last 20 years this government and other governments have put millions and millions of dollars into the education system. It is a lot better and we do have grade 12 at the schools, but there is a long way to go. I do not think any student should be limited when they get a grade 12, whether it is academic or general, but they should be able to go on to wherever they want. That is applying on a job in Edmonton, going to University in Calgary or staying in their home community and taking a journeyman's course in carpentry or electrician. They have to have that foundation in education at the grade 11 and grade 12 level to be able to do that. I do not think the question was answered properly earlier. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.