Daryl Dolynny

I’d like to call Committee of the Whole to order. What is the wish of committee? Mr. Menicoche.

Having support during such a changeover requires the ability to have the proper access for help. Allegedly, schools were supposed to have a school support person assigned at each school, and ECE did promise to make sure teachers had access to what is referred to as PowerSource. It was a technical Internet website where teachers could get such help or support. However, many teachers were unaware of such access and were somewhat upset that they could have definitely used such a service.

Could the Minister explain why this PowerSource support offering was not better communicated with all educators...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As discussed in my Member’s statement earlier today, the new PowerSchool student information system was recently launched across NWT school systems. After talking to a number of teachers and board officials, there was a common theme of questions that I wish to share today with the Minister of Education. Arguably, the most common issue discussed was the frustration of the importing of data into the new system. Transfer of data in most cases failed, resulting in administration having to commit excess human resources to make this work. This added undue stress to all staff...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. By now if your son or daughter hasn’t talked about the new PowerSchool student information system, with report cards already done or coming next week, you’ll soon be seeing what this new technology is all about.

This new school technology has been used all over North America and is now making its debut in NWT school systems. In essence, this multi-faceted data management tool will allow school boards and schools to manage student data and create reports to monitor and plan for student success.

PowerSchool will do the following: attendance, emergency medical data...

Thank you, Madam Chair. The Standing Committee on Social Programs conducted its public review of Bill 7, An Act to Amend the Judicature Act, on August 23 and October 29, 2012. The committee thanks the Minister and his staff for presenting the bill.

The bill provides for the enforcement of orders stemming from the national Agreement on Internal Trade in the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories. The government has been committed to this change since 2009. The bill also allows the Commissioner, on the recommendation of the Justice Minister, to regulate fees and expenses related to court...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I appreciate committee and colleagues for allowing me to bring this motion to the House. This debate occurred much before we are speaking to it today, so I appreciate bringing it here today.

This was by far the most contentious and most debated amendment to the proposed Legal Aid Act, and for good reason, as the premise of having the executive director being a non-lawyer has shaken the foundation of stagnant thinking. Many may ask, why should one care to challenge this concept? What is the point? The answer is simple: We are here to listen to the people and to create the...

Thank you, Madam Chair. The Standing Committee on Social Programs conducted its public review of Bill 5, Legal Aid Act, on August 23 and October 29, 2012. The committee thanks the Minister and his staff for presenting the bill.

The bill repeals and replaces the Legal Services Act. In the proposed act, the Legal Services Board continues to operate under the new title, the Legal Aid Commission.

The committee received substantial and thoughtful public input, both written and in person. This, combined with committee’s work, resulted in 12 proposed amendments to strengthen the bill. The Minister...

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Does committee agree?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Finally, the report card part of PowerSchool is being implemented at the same time that teachers are working on report cards. This is not an ideal situation. ECE is not communicating with parents, and school districts are left taking the initiative to inform and work with parents during a very stressful transition into this new system.

Could the Minister commit to immediately work with his department to initiate a proper communication announcement and inform parents more about PowerSchool and what to expect with this new system?

The training for educators did occur according to the required access to the different levels of the system, while a reasonable amount of support was provided from ECE but it happened too late in the school year, thus not allowing users the time to learn and prepare for the report card turnaround. Many teachers were found holding the bag and scrambling to use the system while trying to maintain their teaching agenda.

Could the Minister explain why this system training did not occur at the beginning of the school year and why it occurred only seven to 10 days out before report cards?