The 2017-18 school year is just around the corner, which means hundreds of thousands of students of all ages will back in class across the province.
In Northern BC, Education Minister Rob Fleming says indigenous learning is going to be a key component of the new curriculum.
“Critical amongst those topics are truth and reconciliation, to continue work on teaching Aboriginal languages in the school system, to expand those efforts, teach the history of First Nations people in British Columbia, and their contributions to our province.”
He adds it’s important to influence local residents to even become teachers in their own communities, especially in rural areas.
“We’ve had discussions with Aboriginal education organizations about how we continue to work on recruiting more First Nations people to be teachers, to teach First Nations kids, and act as role models in remote communities.”
Earlier this week, Fleming announced a $2 million recruitment fund by the province in an attempt to bring teachers to the Northern region, and into specialty programs.
He adds interest-free tuition for older students is also on the table with the NDP, but nothing’s in stone as of yet.
.@bcndp cuts tuition for basic adult education, ESL programs | https://t.co/iNA1ibM1dX #bcpoli #bced pic.twitter.com/4X7lo1JK0s
— My Prince George Now (@mypgnow) August 8, 2017