I just have a quick question and that was in the whole area of student support. Again, we spoke about classroom sizes. I think the difficulty, in my opinion, is there is more in the area, that there is such a diversity in the classroom and different needs in the classroom that is creating the problem. I am wondering if the department is addressing this whole area of student support; for instance, the need for teacher counsellors, teachers' aides, in language acquisition, when it comes to English as a second language, learning assistance teachers and so forth? Can the Minister tell us if they are addressing this particular area?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. From my conversations with teachers, I would agree that most teachers seem to feel it is in the area of support in the classroom that they face their biggest challenge. Are we moving to deal with it? As the Member knows, we have not been given any extra money to deal with the problem. I think we have tried to recognize the importance of teacher supports increasing the amount of the formula which is allocated to special needs over the past few years. That has meant decreases in other areas in the formula, of course. As I have stated, the councils are still free to make shifts in the monies once they receive them. Just because the department has chosen to increase the amount of funding that goes into special needs, does not mean that the councils have to put the money in that area. They could put the money into the pupil/teacher ratio, for instance. It is a difficult situation. I do not think anybody thinks that we are close to an ideal here. It is certainly a situation where our system is strained because of the special needs in the classroom and the teacher support that is somewhat behind where it should be, but we are doing the best we can with available funding. Teachers and divisional education councils are doing the best they can with what we provide. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, a previous speaker did say that we had taken money from adult education and put it into the K to 12 side, that is not accurate. What has happened in the overall scheme of things is that the cuts on the adult side have been larger on a percentage wise than on the K to 12 side. I think it is important to remember that a big part of the cuts that came on the adult side were because of just the sort of program the Member talks about where after a program was instituted, it was withdrawn. That was the cost-shared program investing in people. That was a program in which both the federal government and the territorial government shared equally for three years. At the end of that period of time, the federal government, which, to be fair, had initially said they would only participate for three years, did not opt to renew the program. We found the program to be so successful, that this government carried on with its investment, but we did not have the where withal to make up for the federal reduction. The program has continued through this year, with territorial government funds, but that is only 50 percent of what was available previously. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, the funding has been maintained at the same level for this current year as in last year. Whether the programs will be in exactly the same communities, I cannot say. It would be up to the regional approval bodies to determine where the funding is being spent. In terms of speaking of next year's budget, at this point I do not believe that we have the money within our target to guarantee that the program can continue. It will certainly be something that we will work at identifying though.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. My question is in line with the other Members. It seems, because of the reduction in the number of teachers, the increase in the size of the classrooms and the differences that you see in a lot of the classrooms in the skill of the different students where you have students who may be in grade 7 or 8 and who are 15 or 16-years-old, compared to some other students who might be 12 or 13 years old, then combine that with the special needs students within those classrooms; it seems to really put a stress and a burden on the whole education system.

I think one thing that I have heard a lot about are the cuts that have taken place in the last couple years in regard to the Beaufort Delta region, where they have had to make special efforts to deal with this increasing problem which is basically in the area of students with FAE/FAS and that the special need's teachers are inadequate to deal with the problem. As I mentioned in my statement yesterday, what I got from the principal in Fort McPherson, from Kindergarten to grade 10 there are some 36 students who are in need of some sort of special need's team to assist them on a day-to-day basis.

I would like to ask the Minister exactly what is being done to improve that general sector, especially where it seems to be the majority of the problem are the large numbers of special needs teachers and the number of students they have to service within the education system today, which is really having a burden on the whole quality of education that is being delivered to all students, not just a small sector of them. I would like to ask the Minister, is there anything that they are looking at in this area to deal with the problem of special needs and the problems we see in our classrooms with FAE/FAS students?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I think we need to give credit to the Beaufort Delta Divisional Education Council for their reaction to our fiscal pressures. The council has, over the past couple of years, chosen to reinvest a surplus it had into keeping the pupil/teacher ratio lower in that region than has been possible in other regions. The Member is talking about a situation that other communities had run into a few years ago and is now becoming more apparent in the Beaufort Delta because the surplus is being used up and they are quickly approaching the same pupil/teacher ratio as in other regions.

The reason for the change in funding was because these were the targets that we were given. We do not have the ability to provide more funding to education councils. I agree, the system is under stress. I wish I could say that I had funding available to provide to solve the problem, but I do not. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Is the Minister able to, or willing to, sit down with the Department of Health and Social Services and the federal Department of Health to look at the whole area of FAE/FAS and see if there are funds available to assist in dealing with, not the educational side of the student, but the medical and physical stress that these students are under because of the conditions that they find themselves in with the alcohol related effects that they are born with? Which, basically, is no real fault of their own, but in order to educate them, there has to be a consideration of dealing with the emotional and mental ability of these students. This may mean looking at the health aspect of this condition. I think that is one area that has to be seriously addressed and it has to be taken into the whole and not only leaving it to the education sector to deal with, but also the medical community has to be involved in this sector through community wellness money or monies that are available through the Department of Health, or even federal dollars through the federal government. Will the Minister make an attempt to look in that area?

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The departments regularly meet as part of the social envelope, but I can assure the Member that I will make an extra effort to do just as he has suggested. Thank you.