Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Monfwi.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For question to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

Okay, so how is the GNWT going to change the education levels in the regions so no kids will be left behind?

Thank you, Member for Monfwi. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So we made the decision to basically look at the education system we have, figure out what's working, and fix everything else. We are embarking on a process of modernizing the Education Act in partnership with Indigenous governments. We looked at the curriculum, and we are adopting BC's curriculum and modifying it to the needs of the territory. We're making investments, and we're partnering with the Government of Canada in early learning and childcare to expand the number of spaces and ensure that early learning and childcare workers are paid more so that we can attract more people to that field and are receiving the training and education that they need to help students.

So these are all things to do exactly what the Member was stating. Earlier the Member had a reply to the budget address and she highlighted issues of poverty and issues of lack of education and that's -- those are the issues I think about every day when I make decisions. I always say that there's some people who they are born into the circumstances that are, you know, very fortuitous and they're going to do well in life because they have supports that they -- they have supports around them. There are other people who need a little extra support from the government, and they need us to take those extra steps and that's what I think about when I make decisions. So I'm working for the Tlicho people and all people of the territory. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. What community-led solution has the GNWT supported to keep kids in school and to help raise graduation rates, especially now after pandemic? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There was a program a few years ago to, you know, encourage kids to go to school. I think it was maybe relatively successful or somewhat successful but nothing to the level that we need.

The rate of attendance in the Northwest Territories is low, and for the past seven years, it's been getting lower every year. Here in Yellowknife, it's pretty stable. I think it's probably around 87 percent attendance rates. You go into the regional centres, you're looking -- you drop down to the 80s -- or sorry, the 70s, and it's even lower in the small communities. So what we need is community-led initiatives. It needs to be people in communities valuing education and wanting their kids to go to school. The education system has to make them want that. So we do have a part to play but it really is grassroots are. If kids aren't in school, if they're missing, you know, one out of every four days, they're years behind by the time they get up into the upper grades. So I agree that we do need initiatives, and we work with the education bodies who are really the ones on the ground to help them, support them when they advance those initiatives. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you. So what percentage of teachers are Indigenous? I should have told him earlier.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have the number somewhere. I gave the number to the Member not long ago in response to a written question. I can't -- I don't have it off the top of my head. But definitely not the majority, I can say that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Monfwi.

Thank you. Does the department have a plan in place to increase the Indigenous teachers and to increase the numbers? And has the department considered doing a community-based training? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I've spoken many times about the teacher education program that was offered by Aurora College and wanting to ensure that we have something in place once that review is complete to do exactly what the Member is saying and train local teachers. So that is going to be a large part of the plan going forward. And perhaps I can leave it at that, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And this is a topic of discussion for, you know, students in the JK to 12 system as well as post-secondary students. But I don't want to give people the impression that, you know, these students, we need to teach them faster. And we need to work with them where they're at and support them where they're at.

As the Member -- as I've said many times to the Member and this House, it turns out I don't have the authority to just add extra days to the school year. The number of instructional hours, minimum numbers, are in the Education Act. Most -- or if you look across the territory, schools have between 946 of the 1300 hours of instructional time during a year, anywhere from 167 to 182 days. So there is flexibility in the calendar for schools to add instructional time to their schedule. They can start earlier in August. I mean, I don't think there's any reason they can't start August 1st and, you know, kids would only get a month of school but I think studies have shown that it's better to, you know, have students in school with shorter breaks. And heeding your words about keeping my answers precise, I'll leave it at that. Thanks, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to get into the school funding formula a little, which was based on enrolment. I know during COVID, the Minister agreed to essentially freeze enrolment at the 2019 numbers because a lot of students, as school went online, stopped going to school. And now as we move into the 2022 school year, I know a number of schools, their enrolment are down. They're trying to get those kids back in the classrooms but the school boards are anxious to know what enrolment numbers will be used. And I was hoping the Minister could provide a bit of an update about whether we're going to be using the pre-COVID numbers, whether we're going to be using some hybrid system, or whether some of these schools are going to see a shock to their budget as kids have not returned or dropped out during COVID? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And the Member is correct, there was some hesitancy in sending students back to school. So to account for that, the period over which the enrolment was counted was extended in the hopes that more students would have returned to school. And so we will be using -- we won't be doing the best of two years as we have done previously. We will be using the normal funding formula. However, there are methods to adapt to increased enrolment.

So if a school is funded for a certain number of students but in reality they actually have a large influx of students that they're not funded for, there are ways to ensure that they are provided funding for those students. There are some criteria that they have to meet. But, you know, we don't just leave them hanging. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'll have some more questions on the nuances of the funding formula when we get to Education today, the main estimates.

But I wanted to talk about, you know, it's not just the academic that during the last two years students have not been able to do lots of the regular activities in school. And admittedly, Mr. Speaker, I've lost the plot a little on what is currently allowed in schools. I know the schools -- we have new public health orders but the schools have plans, and then ultimately it's up to the school boards what they are going to do for the remainder calendar year. But my question to the Minister is, are children allowed singing in schools yet, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So our goal is to keep schools as safe as possible, because we don't want parents to send their kids to school -- or sorry, we don't want parents to be scared to send their kids to school. Let Hansard reflect that I did correct myself. And we want to ensure that when kids are in school, they are safe and they're not getting sick. So because of that, the enhanced measures and the protective safety measures are still in place in schools and we are working with the CPHO to, you know, provide new recommendations as necessary. Of course, everyone sees things are changing and so I expect that there will be some changes. But as of right now, no singing. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Yellowknife North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Another kind of issue that got brought to the forefront was the terrible quality of internet in the Northwest Territories, and the switch to online learning was difficult for many.

I'll note that the GNWT's IT budget, you know, in the broadest sense of that term, is about $50 million a year. And I know all departments, they get billed back quite a bit from the TSC, something over the $5 million ECE is paying. And I guess I'm just wondering can the Minister speak to what efforts are being done to get better internet in schools? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So this really is a Finance and Infrastructure issue so I don't want to step on anyone's toes. But I can say that there have been substantial increases to the bandwidth in about half of the communities over the last number of months here in the Northwest Territories, and we expect there will be substantial increases to a number of communities still. As well, my colleagues have spoken about investments being made by Northwestel and the Government of Canada in increasing broadband.

So that being said, you know, we've all been on meetings here and sometimes they're great; sometimes everyone has to shut their camera off so you don't get dropped off. So the internet is up and down everywhere in the territory, and it's not ideal to have to learn online. So while we do want to increase broadband, we want kids in school. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.

Merci, Monsieur le President. I want to turn to the issue of the labour market supplement policy that was kind of discussed in the House yesterday. The policy is on the Department of Finance website, but it's marked draft and it's unsigned. I'd like to know from the Minister of Finance whether the policy's been finalized and approved by Cabinet? Mahsi, Mr. Speaker.