Nunavut government to host Education Act consultations

Starting this week, the Government of Nunavut is hosting a handful of consultations across the territory to gather feedback from Nunavummiut on proposed changes to the territory’s education act, which has been in place since 2008. (FILE PHOTO)

Want to weigh on proposed changes to Nunavut’s Education Act?

Starting June 6, the Government of Nunavut is hosting a handful of consultations across the territory to gather feedback from Nunavummiut.

Nunavut’s current education act came into force in 2008. Since then, the legislation has been through major reviews by the territory’s legislative assembly as well as the Office of the Auditor General of Canada.

Among changes to the act which have been proposed:

• increasing standardization across the territory, including instruction minutes and language of instruction by subject and grade level;

• shifting more responsibility onto educators and administrators, rather than to district education authorities;

• re-focusing the role of DEAs on advocacy, policy governance and local programming;

• defining the roles and responsibilities of principals and teaching staff;

• better defining lines of accountability and responsibility between the GN and the territory’s only French-language school board, the Conseil scolaire francophone du Nunavut; and,

• clarifying the role of Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit within the legislation.

Nunavummiut are invited take part in these upcoming discussions:

• Rankin Inlet on June 6 at 6 p.m., at the Maani Ulujuk High School gym;

• Cambridge Bay on June 8 at 6 p.m., at the Kullik Ilihakvik Elementary School;

• Iqaluit (CSFN) on June 13 at 7 p.m., at the Trois-Soleils School;

• Pond Inlet on June 16 at 6 p.m., at the Nasivvik High School gym; and,

• Iqaluit on June 20 at 6 p.m., at Inuksuk High School.

The GN said a second phase of consultations will be announced in August 2016.

The deadline for the public to provide feedback is Sept. 2 and Paul Quassa, the education minister, says he hopes to have a new act in place in the fall of 2017.