Aboriginal Education Enhancement Agreements

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Aboriginal Education Enhancement Agreements
SAEE National Conference Sharing Our Success

• Valerie Adrian, ChairBoard of Education SD74,
  Gold Trail, BC

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1999 Memorandum of Understanding

• We the undersigned, acknowledge that Aboriginal
  learners are not experiencing school success in
  British Columbia. We state our intention to work
  together within the mandates of our respective
  organizations to improve school success for
  Aboriginal learners in British Columbia.

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The Undersigned

• Chiefs Action Committee
• Ministry of Education
• Indian Northern Affairs
• BC School Trustees Association
• BC Principals Vice-Principals Association
• First Nations Schools Association
• BC College of Teachers
• BC Teachers Federation

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A Guide For Success

• Aboriginal Education stakeholders and Ministry of
  Education staff (2002/2003).
• Created - Aboriginal Education Enhancement
  Agreements A Guide For Success.
• 37 of 60 School Boards now have an EA.
• See www.bced.gov.bc.ca/abed/agreements.

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Enhancement Agreement

• Working agreement and collaborative partnership
  between school district, all local Aboriginal
  communities, and Ministry of Education.
• Designed to enhance the educational achievement
  of Aboriginal students.
• Highlight the importance of academic performance
  and stress integral nature of Aboriginal
  traditional culture and languages.

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EAs Require

• Strong programs on the culture of local
  Aboriginal peoples
• Continuously improved quality of education
  achieved by all Aboriginal students
• Strong cooperative and collaborative
  relationships between Aboriginal communities and
  Boards
• Greater autonomy for Aboriginal communities and
  Boards to find solutions that work for Aboriginal
  students, schools and communities and
• High level of respect and trust.

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EA Elements (1 of 3)

• 1. Aboriginal communities must be represented by
  a unified body whose authority to speak for
  Aboriginal communities is accepted by Aboriginal
  communities.
• 2. Shared decision making by Aboriginal
  communities and the Board must be an established
  practice.
• 3. Both Aboriginal communities and the Board must
  support participation in the EA.
• 4. Joint consultation and collaboration between
  Aboriginal communities and the Board to enable
  vision and goal setting in all areas of education
  for all Aboriginal learners.

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EA Elements (2 of 3)

• 5. Aboriginal communities and Board track key
  performance indicators at the student level.
• 6. Aboriginal communities and Board commit to
  regular reporting of results (evaluation and
  reporting process on outcomes of EAs).
• 7. Aboriginal Education program includes focus on
  continuous improvement in academic performance of
  all Aboriginal students.

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EA Elements (3 of 3)

• 8. Meet the cultural needs of Aboriginal students
  in all aspects of learning (resources, strategies
  and assessment).
• 9. Focus on increasing knowledge of, and respect
  for, Aboriginal culture, language and history,
  enabling a greater understanding for everyone
  about Aboriginal people.

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SD73 (Kamloops/Thompson)

• One of the first to sign an Aboriginal Education
  Achievement Agreement (2000/2001).
• Started building relationship with Kamloops area
  First Nations five years prior.
• Celebrated the relationship and the signing of
  their second 5 year EA in 2005.
• See 10th Annual Report www.sd73.bc.ca.

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What Matters Most (Process)

• Starting in 1999 with no EAs, now almost 2/3 of
  BC Boards have EAs.
• Takes time to build trust, relationships and
  networks (100 year history).
• Once foundation is in placeLocal Example Gold
  Trail Teachers Association and Canadian Union of
  Public Employees were willing to sign the EA as
  well!

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What Matters Most (Student Success)

• Aboriginal Education Enhancement Agreement
  Facilitator
• We are fortunate to have hired into this
  position a local Ktunaxa Band member, Joe Pierre,
  who has come back to our district with his family
  after being away at university and perusing other
  career paths. He has also recently been elected
  to the local band council and his mother is the
  chief of the band. He has been instrumental for
  our district in making the link between the local
  First Nations communities and our schools. He
  travels the district as requested by the
  Aboriginal Education Support Workers in each
  school, supporting curriculum, teaching about our
  Ktunaxa culture, (he is an official story teller)
  and most importantly serving as an incredible
  role model for our students and all staff. I
  believe that his position is unique in the
  province. Brenda Maudie, District Principal,
  Special Education and Aboriginal Education,
  Board05 (Southeast Kootenay)

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Student Success Contd

• Aboriginal Curriculum Integration Project(SD79
  initiative, plus grant to SD05)
• Geometry of Ktunxa fish trap math lessons for
  Grades 7-9 (Pi and Pythagorean Theorem)
• See www.sd79.bc.ca/programs/abed/ACIP.

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Student Success SD74 (Gold Trail)

• Nations Statimc, Secwepemc and Nlha7kapmx
• 19 Bands as well as Metis and Off-Reserve
  Aboriginal students
• See www.sd74.bc.ca/pdf
• ab_ed_agreement.pdf
• Enhancement20Agreement.pdf

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SD74 (Gold Trail) (1 of 4)

• A Trades Transition program (Welding, Painting,
  Carpentry (framing), Culinary Arts, Cosmetology,
  Information Technology, Business Administration,
  Drywall Building Maintenance) (PPT).
• Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID).
• First Nations Book Bin Project (collecting and
  providing books that have First Nations Content).

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SD74 (Gold Trail) (2 of 4)

• Continued support of the three languages and
  cultures in our District (Statimc, Nlha7kapmc
  and Secwepemc) by working with our schools and
  First Nations Education Council to provide
  programs that are culturally relevant (Language
  Teacher, Aboriginal Support Workers).
• Any school with Aboriginal students will have at
  least one Aboriginal parent on their School
  Planning Council .
• The EA will be reviewed and utilized in
  developing, School Growth Plans, Community
  Literacy Plans and Achievement Contracts.

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SD74 (Gold Trail) (3 of 4)

• The First Nations and our Off-Reserve partner
  have provided after school tutoring and/or
  homework clubs.
• Donations have been made by corporations for
  laptops and used computers in some of our
  communities.
• Parent Advisory Council Meetings are held in
  communities, not just the school.
• Communities have hosted dinners for the school
  staff.

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SD74 (Gold Trail) (4 of 4)

• Teachers, Counsellors, senior staff from our high
  schools make themselves available to meet in
  communitiesOne community has invited the
  Education Counsellor, Aboriginal Student Support
  Worker, Principal and Vice-Principal into the
  community to ensure the students in grade 10-12
  and their parents understand what is needed to
  graduate for post-secondary and whether or not
  the student will be graduating with a Dogwood
  Certificate or a Leaving Certificate.

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Support

• In BC, the Enhancement Agreements are supported
  through targeted dollars (1014 per student).
• In some cases, such as SD74, the goals are also
  supported with regular funding as well. E.g.,
  none of the targeted dollars are used for the
  Trades programs, and if we have enough students
  enrolled in a language program, it would be
  treated like any other language program with an
  Integrated Resource Package.
• As well, our First Nations have also utilized
  their dollars for tutoring, homework clubs,
  dinners, buying new computers specifically for
  students, etc.

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Support Contd

• For SD74, what matters most is that our district
  is working as a team
• We wouldnt have achieved any success if we had
  started our programs without the cooperation of
  the whole district including GTTA, GTAA, CUPE,
  Senior staff, Trustees, FN Communities and
  Off-Reserve partner groups.
• Thank You.