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Again, I am very proud that we can expand this program not only in Iqaluit here, but across the two other regions this coming fiscal year.
I am very proud and honoured to ask this question.
My former constituency assistant was involved for three decades with, formerly, the adult education centre.
I am glad to see that there is an increase in the amount of community learning centres that are being assessed with community needs, especially for those wanting informational access to college programs and services.
According to your Nunavut Arctic College business plan on NAC-10, one of the objectives, basically, is “To lead the improvement of programs and services to communities,” “To develop community-based distance learning capacity,” and “To increase accessibility of career programs in the communities.”
I think we should also be reminded that for those who do not wish to leave home, they can access this program to enhance their academic skills or even specialize in certain areas.
There is also distance education or online courses.
Mr. Chairman, with the increased need to have more education, it would be nice to have more awareness as well. As everybody in Nunavut knows, education is the foundation.
Those who have graduated who would like to bridge their education to specified areas in training have that opportunity with the community learning centres.
This is in regard to the amount of funding allocated for the community learning centres.
It’s noted that the projected increase will be slightly across all regions in 2013-14. Do all community learning centres currently have full-time adult educators and what additional courses will be offered with this extra funding?
I would like to thank Mr. Aupaluktuq for the question.
I am very happy to hear that he is very supportive of Arctic College and the work they do and the programs they provide across the territory.
His question is: do all communities have adult basic instructors?
Yes, they do. I am very proud to say that out of the 25 communities, 18 of the adult basic educators are beneficiaries.
I am certainly glad to see that pathway for adult secondary school, or PASS, is being offered as well.
On a personal note, I was quite lucky to be able to attend Nunavut Sivuniksavut in affiliation with Algonquin College.
It was a very beneficial program that was able to help me bridge to be able to attend and apply for Trent University.
With that in mind, I made an earlier comment about distance education and online courses that could be provided as well in partnership to be able to bridge these services for people who would like to maintain their academic skills and enhance them while in Nunavut.
With the Community and Distance Learning Division, we will have a new program in 2013-14, as indicated as PASS, which will account for $1.11 million in funding. Can you describe this program in more detail and explain how it will integrate with the Department of Education’s adult mature graduation program?
As we are in the question period of our review, if you could please shorten the background or commentaries, it would enhance our process.
Again I thank Mr. Aupaluktuq for the question.
This very important initiative called PASS is going to be very valuable to all communities across Nunavut.
As the Premier, the Minister of Education, has outlined what the program is about before too, this is going to give an opportunity to adults who have not attained a grade 12 diploma access to do that, which is very important.
For the details, as I just said, the curriculum is being provided and being developed by the Department of Education, I believe, in partnership with us.
We are going to be the main deliverer of that program.
I would like to maybe just ask Mr. Shouldice to have a few comments as to what that all involves.
Mr. Shouldice: Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
We have been the delivery agent for the past program. All jurisdictions have some method for adults to return and complete their high school. Nunavut certainly has this.
They have called it the PASS program.
There are a number of people who have two or three credits just to finish high school, which is a priority that we would like to address immediately.
It’s a good opportunity to remove another barrier for students so that they can progress. I always think of someone saying that they’re 30 years old with two children and they needed to get English or history just to get their high school.
If they could and a new opportunity came, they would be able to get a different job and progress.
I think it’s a wonderful thing that we’re doing.
We’re going to try to do it. For us, most of the contribution goes to staff members who will coordinate this. For the delivery, we will be using instructors who are on contract or staff and we will be doing some through distance as well.
I mean no disrespect or questioning your authority. I thank you for your direction as well.
I just wanted to share that I think it’s important, for those considering expanding their education, that this committee and most Nunavummiut are also faced with the same obstacles.
Actually what the sitting here as a committee is doing is bridging these needs.
One of your priorities for 2013-14 listed on page NAC-11 is to “Update the Adult Basic Education Program curriculum...” What aspects of this program most needs updating?
We haven’t received a substantial amount of funding from the federal government to develop that further. Into the details, I’ll have Mr. Shouldice respond to that too.
For a number of years, when we transitioned into Nunavut, adult basic education had not changed and needed to be updated.
Much of what we have delivered in the college, I think, really goes up to about the grade 9 level.
We’ve never really had the opportunity to deliver any higher than that for a long time with an adult educator in the communities.
Last year, we were able to get $11 million over the five years with the federal government and we had a plan.
There has been a tremendous amount of things accomplished with it in terms of writing and updating the curriculum both in Inuktitut and English, the testing, and the assessment tests for skills for students.
We have looked at our distance delivery. We have looked at our instructor manuals. We have prepared a number of those things.
That’s what we propose to do with that over the next three years and improve our system with ABE.
I will have a question subsequent to my short preamble.
I appreciate the minister’s plan to build a training simulator in the area of equipment training in the equipment training centre.
I think there is a high potential for the ambitions of young people who wanted to be able to drive those big, earthmoving equipment.
The potential is that we have a plan in the planning stage of a megaproject. I’m talking about the proposed Nunavut-Manitoba road.
In the western Kitikmeot region, there is another potential for an NWT-Nunavut road. I’m talking about our mining industry.
The minister has indicated that the government and industry are partnering in the heavy equipment training programs. We have different airports in different communities in different regions and these infrastructures are aging.
These infrastructures are being overcrowded by community growth.
The list goes on. How soon does the minister think that this training simulator will be in operation?
I would like to thank Mr. Ningark for that question and his preamble.
I think he’s absolutely correct in what he says.
The demand by industry and economic growth in Nunavut is going to be there for a requirement for these types of skilled people to operate heavy equipment, all types of equipment, and other jobs that are going to happen in the mining industry.
We are very interested in providing as many programs and training as many people we can in the skills that they need.
In fact, I think we will probably have trouble keeping with the demand that’s going to be out there.
The simulator in Rankin Inlet is being installed, I believe, at present. The simulation program that we’re going to offer will be starting in September of this year, in this fiscal year.
I think this question was already asked, but I didn’t hear it. (interpretation ends) Do all community learning centres currently have full-time adult educators? What additional courses will be offered with this extra funding?
That was already asked, but you didn’t hear it. Perhaps Minister Shewchuk can answer the question again.
That question was asked and I’ll just clarify it again.
There are adult basic educators in all communities. I did mention before that out of the 25, 18 of them are beneficiaries in communities.
The extra funding will just be in enhancing existing programs and delivering any new programs we may deliver.
Ms. Ugyuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) The college took over the operation and programming of Piqqusilirivvik, the Inuit cultural facility, in July of 2012.
Can you describe any changes in the program delivery brought about by the transition and if there are any difficulties for staff or students in that transition?
Again, a good news story about the cultural school in Clyde River is that not only does it have a foundation and a base where it’s operating the way we would like to see it operate; the intake into the program has expanded. I think we are pretty much full there now. If you could give me the numbers there, Mike, but there are 35 students there now, which is very good, from all regions across Nunavut that are taking part in this programming.
The curriculum is being enhanced and more curricula completed.
There are satellite programs in Igloolik and Baker Lake. In Igloolik, it’s having a great effect on the community and intake in the community is well taken. In Baker Lake, I think we’ve had some difficulties there because there is so much economic boom happening in Baker Lake and there are a lot of employment opportunities there.
From what we see from when we have taken over the cultural school, it’s a good news story and things seem to be growing and increasing.
Ms. Ugyuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) Can you provide some details on what you envision with the establishment of an Inuit Language and Culture Centre?
I just caught the end of that, establishing the Inuit Language and Culture Centre. There are plans to integrate to that. I’ll have Mr. Shouldice respond to that.
I actually spoke about this last year in Committee of the Whole, if you recall. What we wanted to do in the college is to kind of put our best foot forward. We have a research institute.
We have Igloolik with the oral history. We have a publishing section in the college. In fact, I found out in the last while that we have published nearly 60 different things in the last 10 years, which I thought was quite good for a small college.
We have expertise in teacher education. We have a lot of language speakers on staff with the Inuit Studies Program and interpreter/translator.
We realize that the core business for us needs to be our language and culture. We have a committee struck that is working on a business case to put this together to see how we will build this as the foundation of the college. Lucky us, Piqqusilirivvik came into the college last year.
It adjusted our time schedule a wee bit on that.
We need to know if we really strengthened our ability in language and culture, so we need to incorporate them into this process or the planning process. We intended to be finished this January, but we’re not yet. We’re a couple of months behind schedule.
I think we will prepare and finish this and be able to present it in the spring.
Thank you for that answer. (interpretation ends) One of the college’s priorities for 2012-13 was to deliver the Bachelor of Business Administration Program and an MOU was signed with Grant MacEwan University.
Is this program now underway? If so, how many students are currently registered?
Yes, this program is in place and it’s ongoing. We currently have nine students enrolled in the program.
Ms. Ugyuk (interpretation): Thank you. (interpretation ends) Despite the desperate need for bilingual teachers in Nunavut, on page NAC-12 of your business plan, it appears that the amount allocated for teacher education in 2013-14 will only increase somewhat from 2012-13.
Can you explain why there isn’t more investment in this area?
I think we had a problem with the translation there. We never heard the question.
Chairman (interpretation): Ms. Ugyuk, perhaps you can repeat your question because we had technical difficulties with the interpretation.
Ms. Ugyuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation) Despite the desperate need for bilingual teachers in Nunavut, on page NAC-12 of your business plan, it appears that the amount allocated for teacher education in 2013-14 will only increase somewhat from 2012-13.
Well, we do have a great investment in this area right now.
Actually, we have 11 communities that we are offering the NTEP program in and that will be carried over into the next year.
There is a great investment in the NTEP program across Nunavut.
You said there are 11 communities. (interpretation ends) How many students are currently in the college’s Bachelor of Education program and when will they graduate?
I think she is asking for the numbers of students that we have in the 11 programs and the total number is approximately 100 students in the 11 programs that we’re offering right now.
Ms. Ugyuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) On page NAC-13 of your business plan, one of your priorities for 2013-14 will be to develop a business case for funding to deliver the Early Childhood Education Program at the community level.
How many communities have expressed a need for this kind of programming?
I thank the member for this question, a very important question too on early childhood education.
We are in the process of hoping to get funding from the federal government to establish and deliver this program.
In regard to the details of the communities and the locations, I will pass it on to Mr. Shouldice.
Currently, with funding from the Department of Education, we have been able to offer the certificate program in Baker Lake, Hall Beach, and Pond Inlet.
It’s a priority within the government, so we have put the Early Childhood Education Program in, under the responsibility of our NTEP program, the Nunavut Teacher Education Program, and they have taken the responsibility of finding third party funding to continue to deliver our certificate.
They are asking the federal government for funds, which has been well received. What we have been told is that we are actually waiting for signatures.
We’re looking at seven communities.
For many years, the programming had been offered though Kakivak in this region. We are tending to focus more so on the other two, the Kitikmeot and the Kivalliq regions, for early childhood education.
I thank the deputy minister for his response. (interpretation ends) One of your departmental priorities for 2012-13 was to “Deliver the Practical Nurse Education Diploma Program in Cambridge Bay.”
However, this could not happen “Due to the low number of applicants meeting the admission criteria…” What steps will be taken to address this situation?
I don’t think it was really the admission criteria that were the issue here. The issue was that we had no people who were interested in taking the program, so the intake was not there.
Ms. Ugyuk (interpretation): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (interpretation ends) How many students are currently enrolled in the social service program?
Currently enrolled in the social service program, we have seven students in the certificate stage and four students in the diploma stage.
One of your departmental priorities for 2012-13 was to “Establish university partnership for a Bachelor of Social Work...” Which potential university partners have been identified for delivering this program and when do you anticipate having an agreement in place?
We are currently in discussions with partnership with the University of Regina. It’s a well-developed, incredible program that they offer there and the other two territories are involved with the same university.
Chairman (interpretation): Thank you, Minister Shewchuk. (interpretation ends) I have Mr. Enook.
I don’t have a whole lot of questions. First of all, I just want to show my support to Nunavut Arctic College.
Last year, in Pond Inlet, the students graduated from the Environmental Technology Program.
Mr. Minister, I want to tell you that Mr. Shouldice was able to come to Pond Inlet and we are glad about that.
I wanted to express my thanks to the minister because we were able to have this program delivered in our community.
This indicated to the residents of Pond Inlet, Nunavummiut, and Nunavut Arctic College that programs can be delivered in the communities.
Even in the smaller communities, they can proceed and succeed.
The Environmental Technology Program was a two-year program in Pond Inlet. They started off with 14 students and all of them graduated.
When we’re taking schooling in our home communities, things tend to go smoothly because we have relatives, friends, and community members that we are getting support from.
I am grateful that Pond Inlet was able to hold this program.
The program went very well. Perhaps having programs in the communities, such as Pond Inlet, go very well. Maybe you can consider that more programs be held in the communities.
The Environmental Technology Program is very convenient for the people in the north because it has potential to create many different jobs through research, environmental programming, and so on.
It was only a pilot project.
It was convenient not only in Pond Inlet. Hopefully this program could be made available in the smaller communities besides Pond Inlet.
However, if you want them permanently to be held in Pond Inlet, we are all for it.
I just want to urge your department and the officials at Nunavut Arctic College to use that as a foundation.
I urge you to hold more of these programs in the smaller communities.
I wanted to ask this question. If the smaller communities wanted to have a training program, such as the one in Pond Inlet, perhaps this program can be undertaken through Arctic College in Pond Inlet.
What is the process? How do they usually proceed?
Let me remind you to concentrate on questions and shorten your preambles.
I thank Mr. Enook for the comment and his question.
I think his comment, though, is very important to the question that he asked because this project in Pond Inlet was very successful.
It was a pilot project and it shows that programs such as this can be offered in other communities with success.
To develop a program and for something like this to happen in the community, it takes a lot of partners. That’s very important too. It can be initiated by a community where they are interested in offering such a program.
The Environmental Technology Program is so applicable to Nunavut, where the interest in communities and working in the environment are very high. If a community is interested, they can approach Arctic College and just begin the discussion stage, but it takes more than Arctic College to be involved.
It takes partnership by the community, industry, other funding agencies, and Arctic College, but we would be open to all kinds of interest. It’s a matter of developing partnerships, which was successful in Pond Inlet and the program was offered.
Thank you for reminding me of our rules.
Very briefly, I wanted to ask about the Piqqusilirivvik Inuit Cultural Learning Facility in Clyde River. We’re proud of it and we want it to continue to have success.
If I’m correct, the Inuusiqsiurvik is also in Clyde River.
It’s also very important. They are very capable of performing their duties.
Do Piqqusilirivvik and Inuusiqsiurvik work together?
Yes, they do work together. One is their own entity and their program and we’re responsible for the cultural school, but they absolutely do work together.
We almost didn’t ask questions to the minister about the $31.8 million budget.
I want to ask the minister as well. My question was already posed by another member. It was my understanding that there are 18 Inuit students taking the NTEP program at Nunavut Arctic College.
Out of those 18 students, how or what do they instruct?
I would like to thank Mr. Oshutapik for the question.
Yes, he is right in the number.
It’s not NTEP; it’s 18 adult basic educator instructors across the territory in the 25 communities who are beneficiaries.
They instruct the curriculum that we have set up for the programs in the community learning centres.
To expand on that, Mr. Chairman, I would like to turn it over to Mr. Shouldice.
Chairman (Mr. Enook): If you were asking permission for Mr. Shouldice to speak, I grant you permission.
I would just like to add the additional information that there are a number of instructors in the college who are Inuit as well, in the NTEP program, people who are just regular instructors with the college. With the CARS program that we offer for Nav Canada, both instructors are Inuit. Our senior instructor is not.
I’m just trying not to leave you with the impression that those are the only Inuit who are working at the instructor level within our organization.
We have a number of internships for folks to move into instructor positions, one in the Nursing Program in particular, one at the trades training centre, and we have Inuit instructors in the trades training centre as well. We’re moving in that direction and we strongly support it. We’re constantly looking for the ability to do that.
I appreciate that response as I now understand the issue.
I know that they aren’t the only instructors who are Inuit beneficiaries under the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement.
Even if the numbers were to exceed the number that he spoke about in his response, the 18 full-time instructors, my question, which may apply elsewhere, is whether the trainee instructors who aren’t beneficiaries receive different salary ranges.
If there are different rates for non-beneficiaries, do you have that information or will the usual response that the answer will be provided in writing apply in this case?
I think the question was: are the rates of pay the same for everybody?
Yes, the rates of pay are the same for everybody and there are bilingual bonuses for some of the Inuit instructors too.
I want to ask this. Quite a while ago, using the English wording, they used to be called adult education centres.
We don’t see some of the programming that was available at that time anymore.
What is the reason? I would like a response in one day.
They were very effective programs, especially for social wellness.
Why are some of these programs not available anymore?
I’m not aware of what programming or what the institutions were called back then or back years ago, but I think what Mr. Oshutapik is saying is that a place of delivery of education was called something different where we call them community learning centres at this point in time.
Maybe Mr. Shouldice can expand; he might have more history on that.
I think we just changed the name over the years to community learning centres because it was more appropriate.
We don’t call it upgrading anymore as well because we found that adult basic education is more appropriate. I think it was as simple as that.
In the older days, yes, there were a lot of life skills programs and things like that, financial management, sewing, and cooking. I think all of those are still possible within the community on a part-time basis, though.
You will see that now the pre-employment programs and life skills programs have been built into the curriculum. Many of the communities were offering similar things, but they’re actually part of our full-time curriculum.
We have really sort of progressed in offering more certificates and diploma programs into the communities across the territory.
It’s part of the growth of the college.
The reason I asked that question is because it appears that some of the programs are no longer available and that you have to request for funding and whatnot.