Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I have raised the issue and problems with home boarding of students in Inuvik several times in this House. Students from Tsiigehtchic and Sachs Harbour have nowhere else to go to complete their high school studies, but all too often home boarding does not work out and the students drop out of school entirely. What is the Minister doing to secure a residence where students can stay during the months they have to study in Inuvik?
Thank you, Mr. Blake. The honourable Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Lafferty.
Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. This is an area that we closely monitor with the regional school board, and that would be the Beaufort-Delta. My department, Education, Culture and Employment, has informed me that there are approximately 20 students home boarding in Inuvik, including eight students from Sachs Harbour, 10 students from Tsiigehtchic and two from Fort McPherson. All students are in place except for the two that we’re still working on to place them in the community of Inuvik. So that is closely monitored by the superintendent and also the school board on those placements and the teachers are working closely with the students. So that’s an area that we continue to work with the school boards at this time. Mahsi.
One of the reasons home boarding doesn’t always work out well is that the students just don’t fit in where they are assigned to stay. How are families chosen to board students from Tsiigehtchic, Sachs Harbour and now Fort McPherson, and how are they screened to ensure they are the appropriate choices? Thank you.
The school board that we work closely with, especially the superintendent and the parents, to identify the students and where they should be staying and identifying the home boarding, the place of residence. Most especially the teachers have been closely monitoring where the students are staying. Eighty percent of the students we’re home boarding completed in the school year as well. There is a mechanism for teachers to closely monitor where the students are staying, if their homework and attendance are accurate, and continuously monitoring that.
When it comes to the students that are home boarding in Inuvik, there is a process in place where the school board would have to be informed by the parents and vice versa, and work together with our department, as well, so we can work closely with the Inuvik school as well. That’s part of the process that we continue to work with within our system.
Will the Minister be open to a proposal from either the Gwich’in Tribal Council or the Inuvialuit Development Corporation to offer home boarding for the students from the smaller communities?
I believe we are open to proposals that may be before us when it comes to opportunities to deal with these students. We’re more than willing to work with the Gwich’in Tribal Council, if that’s the case. I will be meeting with the board chairs, as well, in December, to talk about the complexities of the home boarding and other educational factors that are before us, such as early childhood and other ASA and Aboriginal Languages Strategy. That is the discussion that we will be having. This will be part of the discussion that will be put on the table in the December meeting as well.
Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. Final supplementary, Mr. Blake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do believe I heard a yes there. I have no further questions at this time.
Thank you, Mr. Blake. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
