Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in education our greatest successes are seeing the faces of students realizing that they have accomplished something remarkable. To see a student graduate with pride in their achievements, surrounded by their families, friends, and communities is one of the focuses of the Department of Education, Culture and Employment, and a priority of this Assembly. We are working to ensure our students have the opportunities and resources to realize those accomplishments. We are striving to provide a responsive, sustainable, and meaningful education system for our students, starting from our earliest learners to our older students. We have developed a continuum of education strategies to address the needs of our learners. Right From The Start, the early childhood development strategy, focuses on pre-school needs, providing services, programs, and opportunities for families with children to have the best start in life. We incorporate principles of play-based development and physical and mental stimulation in all of these programs. This is the period where children are learning to think, solve problems, create relationships, and learn. This is the most critical time in a child’s life, to lay the foundation for future success. Once a child enters the school system, junior and senior kindergarten are bridges between early learning principles and more formal education. Education Renewal in the NWT is already underway, focusing on the JK to the grade 12 system. Students are learning differently now than they did even ten years ago, so we have to teach the way they learn. Education Renewal is targeting the different needs of students and focusing on their strengths and competencies. Self-regulation, resiliency, teacher and student wellness, identity, and connections to culture and tradition are all woven throughout the strategy. This is a continual process of building on successes, introducing initiatives, and working with education boards and councils to determine what is working and what needs improvement. Beyond JK to 12, the Skills 4 Success strategy focuses on improving employment success for NWT residents by closing skill gaps for in-demand jobs and more effectively responding to employer, industry, and community needs. With the Northwest Territories Labour Market Forecast and Needs Assessment and the Labour Market Information Resource, we can help northern residents with the opportunities available in the next 15 years. Mr. Speaker, in 2015, we had the highest secondary school graduation rates in ten years, at 67 per cent across the territory. We certainly still have work to do, but the incremental increases we are seeing are encouraging. As well, Aurora College celebrated 111 graduates this spring, with degrees, diplomas, and certificates from the Schools of Business and Leadership; Education; Health and Human Services; Arts and Sciences. Mr. Speaker, education is critical to the success of our territory. We must work together to provide a system that helps all students, regardless of where they live, how they learn, and what struggles or barriers they may need to overcome. We have the responsibility to provide an innovative and responsive education system accessible to all kinds of learners, which will create limitless opportunities for northern youth. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Ministers’ statements. Minister responsible for the Status of Women.
