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Education strategy faces big hurdles

Jeanne Gagnon
Northern News Services
Published Monday, August 15, 2011

NUNAVUT
The Inuit education strategy released in June is a step in the right direction but the territory doesn't have enough Inuit teachers yet to make its recommendations for bilingual education a reality, says the president of Nunavut's teachers' union.

First Canadians, Canadians First: The National Strategy on Inuit Education was unveiled in Ottawa by the National Committee on Inuit Education made up of representatives from the federal, provincial, territorial and regional governments, school boards as well as regional and national Inuit organizations. The strategy focuses on education in early childhood, K-12 and post secondary programs in Canada's four Inuit regions, including Nunavut. The National Committee on Inuit Education spent two years on the strategy.

One of the strategy's main recommendations is to increase the number of bilingual educators and programs.

Robin Langill, president of the Nunavut Teachers' Association, called the strategy a "step in the right direction," however many of the recommendations, including increasing the number of bilingual teachers, would be hard to implement.

"The issue on that one there is the NTEP (Nunavut Teacher Education Program program is simply not turning out enough teachers to meet that goal," said Langill.

A lack of Inuit role models, especially Inuit teachers in schools, is an issue the association has been concerned about for a long time, said Langill.

"In Nunavut, it's especially profound. There are certainly not enough Inuit-speaking males working in the schools," he said.

He said the strategy also does not address poverty issues.

"The idea of engaging parents in the education of their children, I think, is really fantastic, but I think parents need help and especially in Nunavut," he said. "How many of our students that are in school right now are living below the poverty line? How many are in very overcrowded houses? How many are sleeping on the couch or on the living room floor? The issue of poverty has a lot of the social issues I think need to be addressed, too."

The Coalition of Nunavut District Education Authorities is happy with the strategy and supports it, said chairman Willie Nakoolak. He added the strategy's goals are realistic.

"We agree parent engagement in schools as a top priority; bilingual education and students with special needs require more attention ... ," he said. "I don't really have many concerns because we're very much working on this right now."

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