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Two Federal Approaches to Education
Of all the Canadian school age children attending classes this winter there remains a select few that fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government. Education in Canada is a responsibility of the provinces (unlike most Western industrialized countries there is no federal department of education), with two exceptions; First Nations students and Department of National Defense dependent students.
Canadian First Nations students attending school on reserve fall under sections 114 – 122 of the Indian Act and not under the jurisdiction of the provincial Public Schools Act(s) or Education Administration Act(s) of their home province. Likewise, until the 1980’s, schooling on military bases in Canada was under the control of the local Base Commander (and an appointed school board of commissioned and non-commissioned members), but has since been passed into the hands of provincial school divisions through negotiated agreements. Dependents of Canadian Forces members attending school abroad however still fall into a category equivalent to First Nations students. They are a federal responsibility, yet are governed not by the Indian Act but by Dependent Education Management, a branch of the DND. Being a First Nations educational administrator who in the past served in the military I was surprised to first see the discrepancies in approach taken by INAC and DND.
In an ideal world, the supports and standards for education in both of these groups would be roughly equivalent, as both groups of students’ education is the responsibility of the federal government. In an ideal situation my children would have generally equal access to education whether they attended schools as dependents (if I were still in the military), or if they attended on reserve in a band-controlled setting. In reality the opportunities are astoundingly different.
The intent of DND’s Dependent Education Management for those serving in the military is “to ensure that their dependent children obtain elementary and secondary education which approximates Canadian standards and which enables the child to re-enter the Canadian school system with as little disruption as possible.” In order to achieve its mission DND benchmarks its support and services on the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board. Because of this benchmarking they come close to achieving educational parity. One predictor of student outcomes is per pupil expenditure as student outcomes are directly influenced by per pupil expenditures. The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board has a yearly per pupil expenditure of $9,400.00. DND wisely sets a baseline for support.
First Nations students in Canada can only dream of supports that approximate Canadian standards and which would enable them to re-enter the Canadian school system with ‘as little disruption as possible’. Not only is the per pupil expenditure significantly lower, for example around $6,400 in Manitoba, but the access to facilities is dramatically below provincial and federal norms. In many First Nations communities the schooling takes place in temporary trailers, strung together row upon row. Air problems from poor circulation are common, lack of physical education facilities is frequent and overcrowding is the norm. Further, the access to provincial advances in curricular development suffers from the lack of resources and distance from most provincial education centres. The already insufficient Capital budgets of regional INAC offices (responsible for building First Nations schools) is often dipped in to when deficits are encountered. Because capital expenditures are a ‘non protected envelope’ money can be taken from capital plans to fill ‘protected envelopes’. For those of us waiting on a new school, conducting our daily routines in extremely overcrowded conditions, this means delay, after delay after delay.
The gap in educational opportunities is frequently referred to as ‘the First Nations education crisis’. If the solution to the First Nations educational crisis lay in taking the approach followed by DND bases across Canada in the 1980’s, and signing away First Nations authority to the provincial school boards was a viable option First Nations administrators would eagerly do so. Sadly it is not. For those communities that have signed away their hard fought jurisdictional control of education to provincial public school divisions there has been little positive impact on student learning outcomes. The Council of Ministers of Education of Canada have declared Aboriginal education to be a priority because of the poor performance of Aboriginal students in the public system (CMEC Aboriginal Education Action Plan). Those First Nations students attending mainstream public educational institutions also suffer from lower learning outcomes than their counterparts even with the increased spending per pupil. The loss of First Nations control of First Nations education results in poor academic performance.
So what is the solution? Well, for a start, First Nations students have to be given access to educational opportunities and supports which ‘approximate Canadian standards’. This means immediately increasing the per pupil expenditures for on reserve students to rates comparable to the provincial averages (or the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board average). We need an indexed baseline benchmark. Secondly, we as First Nations educators must take a role in developing and enforcing accountability measures comparable to those articulated through provincial Public Schools Acts which would ensure that our students achieve educational success – and hold ourselves and the federal government accountable if they do not. Right now we are given either control or adequate resources, never both. Lastly, facilities in our communities must grow and be supported at rates equivalent to our population growth. Having a school built for 600 students holding 1100 students, and having schools run students through in shifts, as is happening in some communities in northern Manitoba, will not help our students transition into mainstream schools -- these conditions hinder their success.
Equity in education is a right that is taken for granted across Canada, yet it is a fallacy in First Nations communities. It is imperative that our leadership get down in the trenches with educators from their communities across Canada. Because the education directorate of INAC headquarters has no educators on staff it is imperative that they either consult with First Nations academics, or give authority to First Nations professionals that do the job day by day.
Two Federal Approaches to Education
Of all the Canadian school age children attending classes this winter there remains a select few that fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government. Education in Canada is a responsibility of the provinces (unlike most Western industrialized countries there is no federal department of education), with two exceptions; First Nations students and Department of National Defense dependent students.
Canadian First Nations students attending school on reserve fall under sections 114 – 122 of the Indian Act and not under the jurisdiction of the provincial Public Schools Act(s) or Education Administration Act(s) of their home province. Likewise, until the 1980’s, schooling on military bases in Canada was under the control of the local Base Commander (and an appointed school board of commissioned and non-commissioned members), but has since been passed into the hands of provincial school divisions through negotiated agreements. Dependents of Canadian Forces members attending school abroad however still fall into a category equivalent to First Nations students. They are a federal responsibility, yet are governed not by the Indian Act but by Dependent Education Management, a branch of the DND. Being a First Nations educational administrator who in the past served in the military I was surprised to first see the discrepancies in approach taken by INAC and DND.
In an ideal world, the supports and standards for education in both of these groups would be roughly equivalent, as both groups of students’ education is the responsibility of the federal government. In an ideal situation my children would have generally equal access to education whether they attended schools as dependents (if I were still in the military), or if they attended on reserve in a band-controlled setting. In reality the opportunities are astoundingly different.
The intent of DND’s Dependent Education Management for those serving in the military is “to ensure that their dependent children obtain elementary and secondary education which approximates Canadian standards and which enables the child to re-enter the Canadian school system with as little disruption as possible.” In order to achieve its mission DND benchmarks its support and services on the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board. Because of this benchmarking they come close to achieving educational parity. One predictor of student outcomes is per pupil expenditure as student outcomes are directly influenced by per pupil expenditures. The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board has a yearly per pupil expenditure of $9,400.00. DND wisely sets a baseline for support.
First Nations students in Canada can only dream of supports that approximate Canadian standards and which would enable them to re-enter the Canadian school system with ‘as little disruption as possible’. Not only is the per pupil expenditure significantly lower, for example around $6,400 in Manitoba, but the access to facilities is dramatically below provincial and federal norms. In many First Nations communities the schooling takes place in temporary trailers, strung together row upon row. Air problems from poor circulation are common, lack of physical education facilities is frequent and overcrowding is the norm. Further, the access to provincial advances in curricular development suffers from the lack of resources and distance from most provincial education centres. The already insufficient Capital budgets of regional INAC offices (responsible for building First Nations schools) is often dipped in to when deficits are encountered. Because capital expenditures are a ‘non protected envelope’ money can be taken from capital plans to fill ‘protected envelopes’. For those of us waiting on a new school, conducting our daily routines in extremely overcrowded conditions, this means delay, after delay after delay.
The gap in educational opportunities is frequently referred to as ‘the First Nations education crisis’. If the solution to the First Nations educational crisis lay in taking the approach followed by DND bases across Canada in the 1980’s, and signing away First Nations authority to the provincial school boards was a viable option First Nations administrators would eagerly do so. Sadly it is not. For those communities that have signed away their hard fought jurisdictional control of education to provincial public school divisions there has been little positive impact on student learning outcomes. The Council of Ministers of Education of Canada have declared Aboriginal education to be a priority because of the poor performance of Aboriginal students in the public system (CMEC Aboriginal Education Action Plan). Those First Nations students attending mainstream public educational institutions also suffer from lower learning outcomes than their counterparts even with the increased spending per pupil. The loss of First Nations control of First Nations education results in poor academic performance.
So what is the solution? Well, for a start, First Nations students have to be given access to educational opportunities and supports which ‘approximate Canadian standards’. This means immediately increasing the per pupil expenditures for on reserve students to rates comparable to the provincial averages (or the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board average). We need an indexed baseline benchmark. Secondly, we as First Nations educators must take a role in developing and enforcing accountability measures comparable to those articulated through provincial Public Schools Acts which would ensure that our students achieve educational success – and hold ourselves and the federal government accountable if they do not. Right now we are given either control or adequate resources, never both. Lastly, facilities in our communities must grow and be supported at rates equivalent to our population growth. Having a school built for 600 students holding 1100 students, and having schools run students through in shifts, as is happening in some communities in northern Manitoba, will not help our students transition into mainstream schools -- these conditions hinder their success.
Equity in education is a right that is taken for granted across Canada, yet it is a fallacy in First Nations communities. It is imperative that our leadership get down in the trenches with educators from their communities across Canada. Because the education directorate of INAC headquarters has no educators on staff it is imperative that they either consult with First Nations academics, or give authority to First Nations professionals that do the job day by day.