The federal government has no shortage of solutions. It has been spitting them out at a steady rate recently. Which makes its failure to find a solution to the problem of the aboriginal education gap all the more perplexing.
What would it take to apply the kind of thinking the federal government has committed to turning the National Research Council into a research and development hub, say, or to exploring the way history is taught in Canada — a plan later abandoned — to aboriginal education?
Whatever effort it took would be well worth it, to individuals, of course, but also to the country. Improving education quality and levels for aboriginal Canadians is an economic action plan in need of a sponsor.
The failed education system for First Nations is a serious economic drag on the country and will be for years to come without an innovative solution. That is not the only reason the quality of education and graduation rates must be improved for aboriginal Canadians — a far more compelling reason is that aboriginal Canadians will have a more difficult time living up to their potentials — but it is one that is measurable.
Among the data released in the new, non-mandatory (and less reliable) National Household Survey this week are numbers that show the rapid growth of Canada’s aboriginal population. Even with less than completely reliable data, the trend is clear. Aboriginal Canadians are the fastest-growing demographic and the youngest population in Canada. Children under 14 make up 28 per cent of the aboriginal population, compared with 16.5 per cent among Canada’s non-aboriginal population.
That rapid population growth underscores the importance of improving education outcomes. But for years, the federal government response to calls for a better education system on reserves (which fall under federal jurisdiction) has been to build a school here or there and shrug about the lack of money to do it more quickly.
Canada has all the information it needs to understand the seriousness of the education deficit within First Nations communities. It is not just that students in Attawapiskat lived with shocking school conditions for years — which they did — or that dropout rates among aboriginal Canadians are the highest in the country — which they are. But Canada has accepted that it can’t do any better.
Many have outlined why Canada must close the aboriginal education gap. Among them is economist Don Drummond, who devoted a section of his report on the Ontario economy to spelling out the urgency of improving First Nations education.
What we don’t know exactly is how to build an education system that serves Canadians on remote reserves and inspires aboriginal students to excel and continue their education and training. That is the hard part.
And it will take more than money. The federal Heritage Committee recently launched a study into how Canadian history is preserved in federal, provincial and municipal programs. The study originally expanded to the way history is taught in Canadian schools, but that idea was scratched after critics complained it was veering into provincial territory. True, but First Nations education is federal territory; why not expend more effort there?
The federal government could create an innovation hub to look for the best ways to improve the quality of education among a diverse and remote population. Its transformation of the National Research Council away from pure research into helping companies with research and development has been criticized as short-sighted.
The same concept, however, could help develop ideas for improving remote schools. Education officials from Canadian provinces and around the world could contribute ideas and success stories. Technology and good ideas would bring education to remote students and bring students to centres of excellence.
If Canada can dedicate tax dollars to helping companies develop products and systems, it can also dedicate money and brainpower to bringing aboriginal students a better chance to succeed.
