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PROGRESS REPORT ON THE NATIONAL EDUCATION AGENDAJuly 1995Report on Education in CanadaAs one way of striving for greater accountability, CMEC will publish a regular report on education in Canada. The first is scheduled to appear in late 1995.This report, which was endorsed by the Premiers at their annual meeting in August 1994, is intended to provide Canadians with reliable information describing the challenges facing our education systems and outlining how provinces and territories are working to meet these challenges, both collectively and individually.
Removing Barriers to Postsecondary EducationAnother important national initiative announced in the Victoria Declaration was a plan to remove barriers to postsecondary education.The ministers' first target is barriers to student mobility, specifically the transferability of college and university credits between Canadian institutions of higher learning. By the end of 1996, ministers intend to have achieved pan-Canadian recognition of university undergraduate credits and, in Quebec, CÉGEP credits. Pan-Canadian recognition of credits earned during the first two years of undergraduate study should be achieved by September 1995. In keeping with the commitment to partnerships contained in the Victoria Declaration, ministers will work closely with their major postsecondary partners to achieve these goals. A working group has been established to review and make recommendations on the complex matters related to transferability of credits between colleges and between colleges and universities.
Information Exchange: Education Research and DevelopmentThere was broad consensus at the First National Consultation that CMEC should play a major role in coordinating the dissemination of information on education research and development.The Council set out first to determine what sources of information exist. Discussions have been held with partners, and it appears that no single, reliable, comprehensive source of information on education research exists in Canada. It is agreed, however, that such a database could serve to avoid duplication of effort, disseminate research findings, promote collaboration, and maximize the return on the investment in research. It could also facilitate the international marketing of educational resources. Council staff are now exploring how best way to establish a national database or utilize those already in existence.
Joint Initiatives in Curriculum DevelopmentMinisters announced in the Victoria Declaration their intention to examine curriculum comparability and the possibility of joint initiatives in curriculum development. The assistant deputy ministers responsible for curriculum and the curriculum directors met last November and began work on the development of a protocol for collaboration.The protocol, adopted by ministers in February, establishes a clear process for joint initiatives that are broad in nature -- covering not just curriculum development but also assessment, program evaluation, learning resources, and technology, for both face-to-face and distance delivery. The Maritime Provinces Education Foundation and the New Brunswick Department of Education have taken the lead in this project, and curriculum directors have already identified a number of potential areas for collaborative action. Work has begun on two: science and computer/information technology.
School Achievement Indicators Program (SAIP)The results of the SAIP mathematics assessment were released in December 1993, and the results of the language assessments, administered last April, were released in December 1994.The reading and writing (language) assessments were the second component of the program. One of the outcomes of the release of the language results was the collaboration, by francophone divisions in Manitoba, Ontario, and New Brunswick, on strategies to respond to the differences between the achievement results for students assessed in French and the results for other students. Development of the third component, science, is under way, with the science assessment scheduled to be administered in April 1996. The science assessment will complete the first phase of SAIP. Work has already begun, however, on the second phase, with the planning of the second mathematics assessment, scheduled to be administered in 1997.
Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP)This joint CMEC/Statistics Canada program was also announced in the Victoria Declaration. The six indicator areas chosen for priority development over the next year are: accessibility, student flows, achievement, citizenship, school/work transitions, and satisfaction.The goal of PCEIP is to develop and report on a wide range of objective measures that will provide policy makers and the public with information about the performance of education systems in Canada. The choice of indicators makes a strong statement about how we view education in Canada, going beyond achievement to include social skills and behaviour: equitable access to school systems; timely and efficient completion of school programs; satisfactory levels of achievement; development of effective citizens; successful transition to work; and overall satisfaction with the education systems. In the long term, these indicators will enable CMEC and its partners to assess education and learning in Canada from pre-school to lifelong learning. They will also enable us to better communicate information on our education systems to the public, thus fostering better accountability. In this area too, CMEC is committed to partnerships. Two successful general meetings with over 40 stakeholders were held in 1994.
Distance Education and Open LearningAlberta Education is working with the CMEC Secretariat to establish a process for sharing information on distance education and open learning among interested partners and stakeholders. As part of this project, CMEC is developing a guide to establishing successful partnerships, giving examples of best practices. Staff are also working on a report that will document federal legislation and international conventions affecting distance education and open learning. The report will describe current regulatory issues as well as the business environment of distance education and open learning.These activities also come out of the Joint Declaration.
Information Sharing and NetworkingFostering communication and information sharing was one of the broad areas of activity identified for CMEC by participants in the First National Consultation. Perhaps the most significant of the activities CMEC has launched in response is the electronic bulletin board set up in cooperation with Industry Canada. The bulletin board can be used for sharing information on research initiatives, best practices, and emerging issues, and CMEC has already put several documents on it.If you would like to use the bulletin board but have not received information about it, please contact the CMEC Secretariat.
Ongoing ConsultationIn organizing the First National Consultation, CMEC made a commitment to consult with its partners on an ongoing basis. In September 1994, ministers decided to hold a national consultation every two years, but with fewer participants and more focus. Plans are now under way for the Second National Consultation on Education, to be held in Alberta in May 1996.In addition, ministers decided that in-depth consultations on specific issues will be held as the need arises. The consultations that have already been held on the School Achievement Indicators Program and the Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program will serve as models for consultations in other areas. Finally, CMEC will continue to meet informally with small groups of organizations to receive their input and to update them on CMEC activities. Meetings of this nature held over the past few months have proved to be very successful.
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