Robert Bouchard

Thank you. Mr. Dolynny.

Again, I am not against junior kindergarten. I am just wondering that this money and the fact that we have these hardworking teachers and people in our public education system that are trying to do the work but they keep getting downloaded that more and more things have to be done with less money, but they’re strung out already.

When are we actually going to increase the budgets and figure out the formulas to these DEAs?

Mr. Hawkins, can I just get clarification what page you are referring to?

Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions will be for the Minister responsible for Education, Culture and Employment. I’d like to continue on with students, but I guess I’m a little annoyed with his statements today in the House about the junior kindergarten being funded by the pupil-teacher ratio. I guess my first question is where this 16 to 1 pupil-teacher ratio came from, because that’s not what I’m hearing in the community. The community wants more teachers, more assistants. Where does this number come from?

Thank you. Next on my list I have Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Abernethy. Mr. Hawkins.

Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Minister Abernethy.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Dolynny did a great speech.

I believe, as well, that we need to increase our population with our students, the students who are out at post-secondary education.

In 1993 I returned back to the Northwest Territories after finishing my degree and I had a guaranteed job to come back to in the Northwest Territories. I have stayed here since then, but colleagues I went to school with had an opportunity to stay in the South and some of them have never come back.

We need to find jobs for our students who are coming back from post-secondary education. We need to find and set...

Thank you, Ms. Mathison. Mr. Bromley.