Mr. Speaker, this government is committed to providing quality early childhood development programs that will help our children reach their full potential.  We want our youngest citizens to have the best opportunity to become healthy, educated, successful adults who are well prepared to embark on meaningful and rewarding careers.

One of the programs that support this commitment is Junior Kindergarten for four year-old children in the Northwest Territories.  Junior Kindergarten emerged as a result of comprehensive stakeholder engagement with community leaders, parents, families, Elders, educators and early childhood professionals, and is underpinned by international and national research. 

Free, safe, play-based early childhood programming, such as Junior Kindergarten, provides every parent and caregiver with a quality, early learning choice for their child.  For some, it may be the only early childhood education option in their community.  In larger communities, where there is a range of choices available, it provides another option for children to learn and grow, and prepares and familiarizes them for the future school setting.  While it is up to us, as territorial leaders, to provide optimal early learning and development opportunities for all children across the North; it is ultimately up to the parents and families to make their own choice about what is best for their child.

Mr. Speaker, while we believe that Junior Kindergarten is the right thing to do, its initial implementation raised concerns from some stakeholders.  As a result, Junior Kindergarten was made optional in our 29 smaller communities and we committed to postponing further implementation beyond those communities until a comprehensive, external review was completed.

The results of that review were shared with you last month, provided to our stakeholders and made public.  The report demonstrated a positive response from parents and educators in Junior Kindergarten settings, who identified multiple benefits to their children and families. 

It recommended that Junior Kindergarten continue in the existing sites and that expansion to additional locations must take into account community contexts, strengths, and needs.

Any further implementation must also consider quality early childhood learning programs already available in communities, a review of the funding model, a clear communication strategy, implementation plan, professional development and a targeted curriculum with the necessary supporting materials.

Mr. Speaker, I welcome the recommendations the independent consultants put forward.  Our next step is to talk to key stakeholders who were part of the review, to ensure a transparent and inclusive approach in moving forward with this initiative.  Once we have heard their suggestions for smooth and effective implementation, we will be better placed to decide the future of the Junior Kindergarten program.

Mr. Speaker, everyone benefits from investments in our children and families.  My priority is to work with the Standing Committee on Social Development to continue to advance the actions in the Early Childhood Development Framework, jointly developed with the Department of Health and Social Services, to ensure we have the right programs and supports in place to care for all our children.

We are listening carefully to the concerns of parents, Elders, educators, day care operators, Aboriginal Head Start coordinators, Divisional Education Councils, District Education Authorities and other stakeholders.  We will move forward in a way that is respectful to all and will give our children, no matter where they live, the best programming we can offer right from the start.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.