Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to thank my colleague Mr. Hawkins.

Recommendation 3

The Standing Committee on Government Operations recommends that the Department of Education, Culture and Employment review both the aboriginal language and culture-based education directive and the inclusive schooling directive in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses of both initiatives.

Recommendation 4

The Standing Committee on Government Operations recommends that the Department

of Education, Culture and Employment report performance according to major categories such as education council, ethnicity and gender, with a recognition that it may sometimes be necessary to aggregate data to protect the privacy of individual students.

Adult and Post-Secondary Education

Forty percent of Aurora College students are enrolled in the Adult Literacy and Basic Education Program (ALBE). ALBE has had consistent enrolment numbers for four years but during the same time period the total of all Aurora College graduates decreased by about 33 percent. This is attributed mainly to the discontinuation of welding and other apprenticeship programs.

The OAG identified gaps in the measurement of the performance of adult and post-secondary students.

The Auditor General found that ECE and Aurora College have reasonable performance indicators including rates of completion of certificate, diploma and degree programs; graduate satisfaction with the quality of the college programs; and graduate employment six months after graduation. However, the OAG observed that ECE has not developed a strategy to achieve established targets. Further, the method of determining program completion rates is inaccurate. Rates are expressed as a percentage of students in their final year and thus there is no accounting for students who leave programs earlier.

OAG Recommendation (Paragraph 67 of the OAG Report)

The Department of Education, Culture and Employment should:

•

work with Aurora College to establish

consistent performance indicators and targets for adult and post-secondary education; and

•

clarify how it intends to achieve its

performance targets.

In its action plan to address the OAG’s recommendations, ECE has committed to working with Aurora College in 2010 to develop an accountability framework that will support the establishment of consistent performance indicators and targets. Annual and multi-year program plans will be adapted to reflect these indicators and targets.

The OAG observed progress in identifying labour market needs and coordinating training.

The OAG expected ECE and Aurora College to assess territory-wide labour market needs to inform its training delivery decisions but no such process happened. To its credit, ECE used many methods: partnering with industries such as mining to produce sector-specific needs assessments; working with the Bureau of Statistics to develop

comprehensive territorial labour market reviews on employment and unemployment trends; hosting forums and promoting the establishment of regional training coordination committees. Still, the OAG observed that the market needs of some key sectors and regions were neglected.

OAG Recommendation (Paragraph 84 of the OAG Report)

The Department of Education, Culture and Employment should:

•

complete an assessment of labour market

needs for all major sectors and regions; and

•

use the assessment information to determine how best to design and deliver its programs to help fill gaps in the labour market.

In its response to the OAG, ECE reports it is working on a Labour Force Development Framework that will address training needs and coordination through the development and implementation of specific strategies to support the NWT labour market based on the assessment of needs.

The OAG advises that the Department’s monitoring and assessment of its post-secondary education and training programs is incomplete.

ECE and Aurora College regularly collect data on the delivery and results of education and training but there are significant gaps. There is no tracking of adults who complete part of their training at the college and then transfer to programs at southern institutions, or take training provided through partnerships with organizations such as the Mine Training Society. ECE:

•

does not analyze data collected to improve

program delivery;

•

does not regularly evaluate the results of

existing training programs; and

•

cannot demonstrate what progress has been made or if existing training programs should be maintained, modified, or new ones considered.

OAG Recommendation (Paragraph 87 of the OAG report)

The Department of Education, Culture and Employment, in consultation with Aurora College, should:

•

identify and collect relevant data on the results of training delivered through partnerships;

•

undertake a more rigorous analysis of the data in order to assess the success of adult and post-secondary education and training programs; and

•

undertake improvements to these programs.

ECE reports that once the accountability framework is developed in 2010, it will work with Aurora College to improve the monitoring, reporting and review processes for training programs, including those undertaken through partnerships.

The OAG advises that monitoring of compliance with the adult literacy and basic education directive is inadequate.

Adult Literacy and Basic Education (ALBE) is an education directive meant to increase low literacy rates among adults in the Territory. Aurora College delivers ALBE programming ranging from basic literacy to grade 12-level courses at all campuses and community learning centres. Reporting requirements for the college include basic information on ALBE programs, including numbers of individuals enrolled and results achieved. However, Aurora College provides limited detail and incomplete information, making it difficult for ECE to assess compliance with the directive.

Mr. Speaker, I will now pass the remainder of the document of Mr. Yakeleya. Thank you.