YELLOWKNIFE (June 30, 2015) – Minister of Education, Culture and Employment Jackson Lafferty played host to two national meetings in Yellowknife this week; the annual meeting of the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) and a national CMEC Aboriginal Educators’ Symposium.

The CMEC Aboriginal Educators’ Symposium brought together new and experienced Aboriginal educators and Elders from across the country to discuss how best to attract and retain Aboriginal teachers.  Research indicates that hiring Aboriginal teachers enriches learning and produces positive results for students, especially Aboriginal students, who benefit from learning from educators who share their culture and traditions.  , who play a pivotal role in reducing the academic achievement gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students.

“Aboriginal educators are a positive influence on their students and will play a pivotal role in reducing the academic achievement gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students,” said Minister Lafferty. “To ensure more Aboriginal people become educators, we needed to listen closely to, and learn from, the true experts on this topic — Aboriginal teachers themselves.”

Symposium delegates presented their findings on teacher recruitment, training and retention to education ministers at the conclusion of their working sessions. A report on the symposium will be released in the coming months.

While Aboriginal educators met, ministers heard about the pan-Canadian education-related recommendations in the recent report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada, one of which calls on CMEC to maintain their commitment to Aboriginal education issues.  Ministers heard a presentation by the TRC Commissioner from the NWT, Dr. Marie Wilson and fellow Commissioner Chief Wilton Littlechild, who outlined the damaging impacts that residential schools continue to have on families and communities today.  Dr. Wilson stressed the necessity of ensuring that all educators and all students – Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal alike – learn about this dark chapter of Canadian history, understanding that this is not just an Aboriginal issue.  The Commissioners emphasized that increased awareness and mutual respect is essential to make meaningful progress on reconciliation. 

Minister Lafferty is currently co-leading CMEC’s Aboriginal Education Plan in partnership with the new Alberta Minister of Education, the Honourable David Eggen.  Moving forward, provincial and territorial education ministers will ensure that curricula in all provincial and territorial school systems include the history and legacy of residential schools.  They also agreed to work towards ensuring that all Canadian educators – no matter who they teach, what they teach or where they teach – will learn about the history of residential schools in Canada during their pre-service and/or in-service training.

Another notable outcome of CMEC discussions was the approval-in-principle of a renewed intergovernmental agreement for the CMEC, a process which was led by the Northwest Territories.  The renewed agreement includes the decision to enable the three northern territories – Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut – to serve as Chair of CMEC in the future. 

“This was not possible in the past and marks an important step in the evolution of the territories’ role in the Canadian federation,” added Minister Lafferty.

Media inquiries:

Jacqueline McKinnon
Manager, Public Affairs and Communications
Department of Education, Culture, and Employment
Northwest Territories
Cell: 867-446-6002
Tel.: 867-920-6222
E-mail: Jacqueline_McKinnon@gov.nt.ca