 Students
- Newfoundland and Labrador is
experiencing a decline in student enrolment of approximately three to four
percent annually.
- There were approximately 74,304
students in the K-12 system in Newfoundland and Labrador in
the 2006/2007 school year.
- That is the lowest number of students
since the 1971/1972 school year when enrolment peaked at
approximately 162,000 students.
- In 2006/07, 38,181 of the
students enrolled in the public school system were males; 36,123 were females.
- This province's pupil-teacher ratio of
one teacher to every 13.2 students is the best in the country.
- We can boast an average K-9 class size of
19.9 students.
- The per student expenditure in 2003/04
was $7,415. In 2007/08, it is expected to be $9,608, an increase of
29.5% since 2003/04.
- Approximately 11,708 (15.8%) of the
student population, received some form of special education (7,748
males; 3.960 females).
- In 2007, 5,863 students were eligible
to graduate; 5,168 did, for a graduation rate of 88.1 %.
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Teachers
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5,443 teachers were
allocated for the school year 2006/2007, with 1,743 substitute
teachers and 637 student assistants.
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Since 1971, student
enrolment has declined by 54.4%, while the number of teachers has
declined by 17.5%.
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305 teachers retired in
2006; the average age upon retirement was 54.5.
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Teaching units are
allocated to school boards by the Department of Education.
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There are more male
teachers with degree specializations in physics, mathematics,
geology, biology, geography and history; females are
over-represented in education (primary and elementary), French,
English and music.
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School boards have
complete flexibility regarding assignment of teachers to schools.
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Schools
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In September 2006, there were 285 public schools
in Newfoundland and Labrador (16 in Labrador District, 74 in Western
District, 69 in Nova Central District, 121 in Eastern District, and
five in the province-wide Francophone District). Of these, 64.6% were rural schools,
serving 41.7% of the total student population.
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Along with the public schools, there are seven private schools,
two First Nation schools, the Newfoundland School for the Deaf, and
the Newfoundland and Labrador Youth Centre. In
total, these schools had an enrolment of 1,286.
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School
Boards
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The Department of
Education oversees the education system in Newfoundland and Labrador
in partnership with school boards.
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School boards receive
100% of their funding from government. They are not permitted to
raise additional funding through taxes.
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School boards administer
the daily operation of the schools within their districts.
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There are four geographical school boards (Labrador,
Western, Central and Eastern), and one province-wide Francophone
board.
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Each district board
consists of 15 trustees who are elected in a general election.
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Vacancies which occur as
a result of resignation or death of a school trustee may be filled
through a by-election or a Cabinet appointment.
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Vacancies which occur
because there were insufficient nominations at the time of an
election must be filled by Cabinet appointment.
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Trustees on the
Francophone board are elected by the individual school councils.
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School
Councils
- school principal;
- teachers elected by school
teachers;
- parents elected by school
parents;
- community representatives
appointed by teachers and parents on council;
- a senior high school council
includes at least one student elected by students;
- members hold office for
three years and may be elected or appointed to a second
three-year term.
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- represent the educational
interests of the school;
- advise on the quality of
teaching and learning in the school;
- facilitate parent and
community involvement in teaching and learning in the
school;
- advise the board on matters
of concern to the school and the community.
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Recent
History
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After extensive public
consultation, the Williams Royal
Commission concluded in March of 1992 that the province's denominational education system
should be fundamentally and substantially reformed. Some of the
recommendations suggested significant changes to the powers
exercised by the denominations in the administration of schools.
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For nearly three years
government sought, unsuccessfully, to reach agreement with the
denominations to restructure the school system.
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In 1995 a referendum was
held and a majority of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians voted to
amend Term 17 of the Terms of Union between Newfoundland and Canada,
which is now included in the Canadian Charter of Rights and
Freedoms. The original Term
17, enacted in 1949, guaranteed a system
of education based on religious denomination.
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The churches challenged
government=s
action, so in 1997 government held another referendum. A larger
majority voted to support the government.
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In the fall of 1997, the
House of Commons and the Senate approved the amendment to Term 17.
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In December 1997, the
provincial government passed a new Schools
Act .
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In February 1998, the
first non-denominational school boards were elected.
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In 2005, the number of
school boards was reduced to five: four geographic boards (Labrador,
Western, Nova Central and Eastern); and one province-wide
Francophone board.
Key Trends
K-12 enrolments declined from
162,818 in 1971 to 70,084 in 2007-08. Enrolments are projected to
continue to decline on average of about 2.5% per year to approximately
60,000 students by 2014.
The number of schools declined
from 781 in 1971 to 285 in 2006. However, the ability for further reduction
in the number of schools is limited by geography and population
distribution. A significant number of small and geographically isolated
schools will have to be maintained.
While historical achievement
levels have generally been low, many indicators are showing improvement in
achievement and attainment.
Recent figures show 61.3%
of our graduates now go on to university, and 79.8% go on to some form
of post-secondary education;
If current trends continue,
the pool of K-12 graduates is expected to decline 44% between 1997 and
2010.
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