Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
2000 Student Support Needs Assessment Territorial Report
For a number of years, teachers and healthcare providers have warned that there are large numbers of FAS-FAE youth in our schools. Members have regularly heard about the extra student support and teacher time that is required to work with these children to help them achieve their full potential. It was surprising, therefore, that the report on student support needs did not mention FAS-FAE. The committee members are aware that clinical diagnosis is necessary to make a final determination of FAS-FAE and teachers are not trained to make that diagnosis. However, to leave this particular disability completely out of the report suggests that there are gaps in the assessment and seems to reduce the value of the report as a planning document.
The department did provide information on FAS-FAE students in the classroom after the committee raised its concern. However, this does not address the fundamental flaw in the report when it omits this prevalent issue and possibly others as well.
Other School Funding
Committee members note that there is a discrepancy in how funding for schools outside the normal school system is allocated. For example, the Western Arctic Leadership Program is funded through negotiation, while the Koinonia School is funded on enrolment. As with all government programs, there is a need for consistency in how similar organizations access government funding.
Maximizing Northern Employment
While funds for the Maximizing Northern Employment Strategy are not included in the 2001-2002 Main Estimates, the Premier did highlight components of the strategy in his recent address and committee members are under the understanding that it will be implemented in the 2001-2002 fiscal year. With the understanding that the Premier and Cabinet hope to implement parts of this strategy within weeks, the standing committee saw the opportunity to make any comments were extremely limited. Consequently, Members believed that it was important to include our initial comments on the Maximizing Northern Employment Strategy in this report.
At this point, the Maximizing Northern Employment Strategy is a vaguely defined plan with good intentions but very little in terms of substantive detail, definitive implementation plans or clear budgets. Committee members are generally supportive of the thrust of the strategy, but disappointed that the government has chosen to pursue this significant strategy with no opportunity for the committee to comment before the Premier made components of the strategy public. This means there was no chance to discuss linkages with other initiatives that might have had an equal impact on northern employment.
For example, committee members see the Student North Apprenticeship Program (SNAP) as a very valuable program and have consistently encouraged its expansion. This program allows students to attend high school part-time while working towards their first-year apprenticeship in a recognized trade during the other half of the school day. The SNAP program seems to be a good fit with the announcement about program changes to allow students to pursue other paths in high school beyond a strictly academic education. When the details of the strategy are announced, the Committee expects to see clear linkages to SNAP.
Members are aware that some math programs offered in our high schools do not provide sufficient background in math for a student to pass a pre-trades qualification exam. If you cannot pass this exam you usually cannot get an apprenticeship. The standing committee hopes that the program changes the Premier spoke of will include upgrading the math curriculum to meet trades entry requirements.
Another element that members hope to see addressed is a better understanding among students of the program entry requirements for all forms of post-secondary education and training, from university to college to trades to specific technical and specialized training. Without this information, students may not enrol in the necessary high school courses.
Members are interested in the links between the employment training programs and how high school students will be supported and tracked through their post-secondary education and subsequently encouraged to become part of the northern workforce.
Many of the emerging job opportunities in the non-renewable resource sector involve heavy equipment operation. Although the government says preparing Northerners is a priority, there is a lack of a corresponding commitment to the Heavy Equipment Operators Program at the Thebacha Campus. As a result of budget cuts, this program has to train operators on equipment that is often no longer in use by industry.
The government must work on partnerships with employers and aboriginal governments to design a heavy-duty operator's course that meets their needs. There is also a need to consult with employers to determine and acquire the necessary equipment for the Fort Smith Campus to produce employable heavy-equipment operators. It is hoped the Maximizing Northern Employment Strategy will acknowledge this need.
The department's main estimates talked about an increased emphasis on apprenticeship training but there is no new funding and no evidence that the programming will change. The need for tradespersons is great in the non-renewable resource sector and the government should be making a strong financial commitment to address that need.
The committee is interested in the plan to offer term positions to every post-secondary graduate in priority occupations. Given that it is less than three months away from the end of the post-secondary school year, members would like to see the program implementation details, including how priority occupations will be defined. Committee members also expect consultation with the Union of Northern Workers will be necessary to determine how this program relates to the collective agreement.
Committee members are very anxious to engage in the detailed review of the strategy with the Minister quickly so there is time for the committee to provide advice prior to implementation.