Aboriginal Education Task Force Announced

Monday, October 29, 2007 05:23 PM

School District 57 introduced The Aboriginal Education Task Force today.

The Aboriginal Task Force was formed after a consultants report by R.A. Malatest indicated that the school district has made little progress in improving education for its growing number of aboriginal students.

The new task force is comprised of representatives of several partner groups. They include Lois Boone, chair of the task force. Marlene Erickson , vice chair , Jeanette Kovacs, elder, Alex Barnard and Paul Michel , parents, Mary La Marre and Stacey Wakabayashi, teachers, Lynn Kennedy and Denise Miller, aboriginal education workers, Gerry Sheanh and Bruce Ballantyne, school principals, Timma Blain, curriculum and instruction administrator and Rob Little Assistant superintendent.

The task force will present a progress report to the Board before the end of December, with a final report expected by the end of February.

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Posted on Monday, October 29, 2007 05:23 PM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: lunarguy on October 29 2007 10:10 PM

Too bad they didn't invite the district parent advisory council as a partner in this as without the district parent support this task force will be hampered.

Posted by: northman on October 30 2007 8:27 AM

How about improving education for EVERYONE!!

Posted by: Andyfreeze on October 30 2007 9:18 AM

Exactly northman!
Last night on the news it said that the government had come up with a plan to help out the forest industry on COAST!
Nothing for up here...what are we?
Obviously just a pain in butt to the overpaid politicians!

Posted by: Howrd_B_Stern on October 30 2007 9:19 AM

Well Northman, if you bothered to even read the report, not EVERYONE is in such dire straits when it comes to education. When 70% of everyone drops out, or EVERYONE is grossly over represented in special education categories, or EVERYONE's parents don't even feel compelled to come into a school, then I guess we'll look at improving education for EVERYONE won't we?

It's too damn bad that EVERYONE doesn't learn to read the report or ask the questions that need to be asked before making such ridiculous statements. What part of 70% dropout is so difficult to understand?

And DPAC has their involvement in the two parents who sit on the task force. It is to my understanding that if you have a child in school then you are automatically a part of your childs school PAC aren't you?

Posted by: lunarguy on October 30 2007 3:27 PM

Actually no you are not automatically a member of your school's PAC, like everything else in life it is a choice. Plus something like that should be vetted through the DPAC level.

This is just another example of exclusivity in education that in the long term caused problems like what now they are trying to clear up.I support the task force but they are missing a valuable resource that could have been brought on board to help out with this.

Posted by: Howrd_B_Stern on October 30 2007 3:50 PM

Yes, two Aboriginal parents who have gone through the school system and succeeded where many have failed, bring absolutely nothing to the table? From what I have read about one of the parents, not only is her a director at UNBC, but also holds a Masters degree in education. Seems like q fully qualified parent to me.

What's the issue?

Posted by: Howrd_B_Stern on October 30 2007 3:51 PM

and my goodness, Bad Speelers UNTIE! ha ha ha. My spelling teacher would be appalled. (Did I speel that correctly?)

Posted by: billposer on October 30 2007 6:01 PM

Northman and AndyFreeze might also note that improving education for aboriginal kids will benefit others. Kids who aren't doing well and/or are not interested in school hold back the ones who are by requiring more attention from teachers, making teachers split their time among more things at more different levels, and not contributing as much in group work.

Posted by: northman on October 30 2007 7:03 PM

Actually my comment was based more around that im sick of the segrigation that is taking place in this country.. Why cant they do an audit on the whole system and get the whole thing up to snuff not just focus it on one minority group.. For as many native kids that are doing crappy in school there are probaly just as many white kids if not more but has there been a study on that?? if so provide me with the figures and i will humble. I personaly have been denied training classes becasue the classes were native only or they had been funded for natives only.

Posted by: Andyfreeze on October 30 2007 8:56 PM

billposer,you misunderstand...
The point obviously I failed to make was that everything is done for the lower mainland and nothing or very little for people up here.
Seems we have to beg for the tokens they see fit to throw to us,even when it's better education for everyone.
My comment had nothing to do with aboriginal education as such.
My apologies for being off topic, but I do believe northman is correct.
There are far too many training/upgrading classes that are not available for non-aboriginal students.
No matter how I look at it,it IS a form segregation.
And, if there are classes for natives,there should be an equal number for non-native.
Seems much more democratic to me!

Posted by: Howrd_B_Stern on October 31 2007 9:22 AM

Actually my friend has kids in one of the schools where Aboriginal support is offerred and he said his kids benefit from the lady who works in the school as she works with not only Aboriginal kids, but most kids in the school. He says his kids are learning stuff about native people that he didn't even know about and he's glad his kids are being exposed to it and of course other cultures in the school.

Andy you are right when it comes to Northern schools. I know for a fact that the Richmond school district receives the same amount of funding for in district travel for employees as SD57 receives. The big difference? In Richmond the furthest school away from the board office is a 10 minute drive while Valemount is a 3 hour drive in good weather.

That's the problem with funding formulas. They just don't match the needs of the students.