Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Monitoring, Evaluation, and Accountability
The committee assessed departmental documents, independent research, and public submissions, and is persuaded that the quality of instruction is generally more important than the number of instructional hours delivered, "quality over quantity." The committee is also persuaded that, to achieve quality instruction, schools must be adequately resourced and teachers assured of time to perform non-instructional duties such as class preparation, marking, report cards, the implementation of student support plans, and assessment, without the stressful expectation of unpaid overtime.
Nevertheless, it is apparent that the three-year STIP pilot project did not originate in the Education Renewal Initiative, which makes only general reference to teacher wellness. Instead, it came from collective bargaining and reflected the government's fiscal targets. We feel strongly that this should not detract from the concerns of educators seeking a healthier and more effective workplace, but also that a project so lacking clarity of purpose is at risk of failing to serve either teachers or students.
To address this, the committee sought the Minister's commitment to provide a detailed monitoring, evaluation, and accountability plan for STIP, addressing both student achievement and teacher wellness, by the end of the 2016-2017 school year. The Minister has made this commitment, and for this, we thank him. During the clause-by-clause review, an individual Member also proposed consideration of an amendment in keeping with STIP's pilot status and helping to address parents' concerns. The proposed amendment would require, at the end of STIP's three-year term, a formal review by a committee of the Legislative Assembly, which would then make recommendations to the department.
Communications
Departmental communications on the bill have been inadequate. Although an agreement-in-principle was first reached with the NWTTA in mid-2016, the committee and the general public learned of STIP in early 2017, when the project was launched. JK implementation policy changed from day to day during the last sitting of the Legislative Assembly. With instructional hours, students and parents were left in doubt of territorial diplomas until rigorous questioning on the floor of the House secured departmental commitment that our equivalency with Alberta would be protected. It is not surprising that confusion and apprehension has flourished in this environment. Ms. Denise Hurley of Yellowknife told the committee that she was, "Frustrated and frankly enraged at the level of misunderstanding surrounding Bill 16…The practicality and reasonableness of the implementation of Bill 16 has been lost in the communication debacle surrounding the legislation."
The committee itself has dedicated significant time and effort to interpreting and clarifying the bill and its potential impacts on our constituents. Although we heard relatively few submissions on JK during our review, we do not consider this evidence of a lack of interest. Several witnesses reported that they had previously raised various concerns but still felt that the government had not heard them. Ms. Lesa Semmler of Inuvik said, "I've spoken vocally and locally on the JK. There's not much more I can add to that." Mx. Jacq Brasseur of Yellowknife also highlighted a shortcoming in both the department's engagement and our own: a lack of direct engagement with students themselves. While the opportunity to present and to provide a written submission to standing committees is open to every Northerner regardless of age, and this opportunity was advertised in various mediums, we recognize that northern youth represent an often-untapped resource demanding particular attention.
The committee sought the Minister's commitment to regularly and publicly report on the outcomes of both JK and STIP, including reporting on identified performance measures. The Minister has made this commitment, and for that, we thank him. We look forward to the tabling of these reports in the Legislative Assembly.
Accommodation of Existing Programs
We heard concern from childcare and early childhood education providers that JK implementation would negatively impact their operations. In Yellowknife and in the regional centres, daycares and non-profit organizations such as the Yellowknife Playschool Society, the Northwest Territories Montessori Society, and the Children First Society were apprehensive of having to fundamentally alter their enrolment models, of lacking sufficient enrolment to continue operations, and/or of receiving critical government direction with little to no advance notice. The committee is also aware of apprehension among community-based providers of after-school care, who may not be prepared to accommodate JK-aged children. There is also the matter of the Aboriginal Head Start (AHS) program. The 2016 final technical report on JK recommended that, "A holistic strategy for early childhood learning and development (which includes JK, where appropriate) needs to be developed, in consultation with the community, to address diverse community needs and contexts (one size does not fit all)."
The department proposes to address this by proceeding with universal JK and encouraging combined half-day programs -- that is, half-day AHS and half-day JK, both optional for parents. Yet while some AHS programs are comfortable operating in tandem with JK, others are uneasy. We heard concerns that in communities with only a handful of three- and four-year-old children, competition between programs is inevitable, with worry that Aboriginal Head Start will emerge on the losing side. Aboriginal Head Start is also uncomfortable with the idea of altering their enrolment model to accept younger children. For combined half-day programs to succeed, close and sincere government collaboration with Aboriginal Head Start is required, including continued government support as well as advocacy to federal funding partners. Particularly given that departmental funding of Aboriginal language and cultural instruction does not currently include JK students, we feel that Aboriginal Head Start provides critical and commendable services to children, as its mission statement describes, "[living] proudly as Aboriginal people in the lands of their ancestors." Mr. Speaker, I now hand this over to the Member for Deh Cho. Thank you.