WHEREAS the Northwest Territories has the highest student/teacher ratio in Canada; and
WHEREAS the teachers in the Northwest Territories are facing increasing challenges, including diverse and multi-grade classes with fewer and inadequate resources; and
WHEREAS nearly one half of the students in the Northwest Territories require specific supports in the classroom, and approximately half of these students receive them; and
WHEREAS the majority of Northwest Territories students who participated in the national School Achievements Indicators Programs tests ranked below an acceptable level in most areas; and
WHEREAS there are 18,000 adults in the Northwest Territories who can be classified as illiterate or semi-illiterate; and WHEREAS most communities in the Northwest Territories do not have stable funding for adult basic education with only 35 Northwest Territories communities having permanent adult educators; and
WHEREAS adult basic education includes academic upgrading, pre-employment training and personal skill development; and
WHEREAS alternative delivery approaches, supports for students, community involvement and accredited programs are necessary to achieve success in adult education; and
WHEREAS most jurisdictions have been revising their curricula to place more emphasis on the core subject areas of reading, writing, mathematics and science; to return to more objective criteria and expectations; and to return to more traditional teaching methods; and
WHEREAS about 45 percent of new jobs created in this decade will require a minimum of 16 years of education; and
WHEREAS the Northwest Territories high school graduation rate is only 25 percent of enrolment, while the national average is 68 percent.
NOW THEREFORE, I MOVE, seconded by the honourable Member for Iqaluit that the Legislative Assembly strongly recommends the Executive Council increase base funding to the Department of Education, Culture and Employment in the 1998/1999 fiscal year with a minimum of the 6 percent reduction that occurred over the past two years. Thank you.