2002/03 Annual Service Plan Report Ministry of Education

Ministry Role and Services

Introduction

Improving student achievement is the overarching goal in the ministry and in all parts of the education system. To support this goal, the ministry is committed to local autonomy for school boards, strong accountability measures, more choices for students and parents, predictable multi-year funding envelopes, and more meaningful involvement for parents.

The business of the ministry is to set educational standards based on the outcomes students need to achieve, allocate funds for the education system, monitor student performance and report the results to the public. It is also the ministry's role to work with schools and communities to improve student and school performance, and oversee the governance of the system as a whole. British Columbia's K-12 system serves approximately 587,000 public school student FTE's, approximately 60,100 independent school student FTE's and over 3,300 home-schooled children.

Vision, Mission and Values

Vision

The ministry's vision is a high quality education system that puts student achievement at the centre of all decision-making. British Columbia's system already performs at high levels, which means that future improvements require continued commitment, creativity and innovation on the part of educators, administrators and the ministry in order for the province to remain at the forefront of educational performance.

Mission

The system's mission is set out in the School Act with further details of the mandate in the Statement of Education Policy Order:

The purpose of the British Columbia school system is to enable all learners to develop their individual potential and to acquire the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to contribute to a healthy, democratic and pluralistic society and a prosperous and sustainable economy.

Continued progress towards the province's social and economic goals depends upon well-educated citizens. School boards and independent schools have a primary responsibility for students' intellectual development and a shared responsibility with families and the community for students' human, social and career development.

Values

The ministry is committed to some specific key beliefs and values for all staff.

Consistency with Government's Strategic Plan

Education is a top priority of the government as outlined in the New Era document, in the Premier's service agreement letter to the Minister, and in the government's strategic plan. The education system is also an essential element in support of three other government priorities: safer streets and schools in every community; better services for children, families and First Nations; and responsible, accountable management of British Columbians' public resources and tax dollars.

Operating Context

Examination of the external and internal environments helps to identify those factors that are likely to affect the conduct and success of education in British Columbia. The social and economic environment influences the system's operation and effectiveness. Factors such as the number and location of students, provincial funding levels, workplace requirements, special needs of children and the level of support that the public is willing to provide to K-12 education all affect the operation and performance of the education system.

Summary of Observations:

• Provincewide, student enrolment will continue to decline over the next five years due to a declining birth rate and an aging population. Rural regions are already experiencing declining enrolments.
• The Aboriginal population in BC is young and growing at a faster rate than the non-Aboriginal population.
• The number of children identified in special needs categories that qualify for supplemental funding in BC is growing, particularly children requiring intensive and expensive interventions.
• There is evidence of the beginnings of a teacher supply problem in some subject areas like languages, maths and some sciences. This is more prevalent in rural areas.
• Working parents are requesting that schools provide or link to additional services such as preschool and full-day kindergarten. Also, studies indicating the importance of early development in a child's school success are becoming widely known. Such factors are creating pressure to provide preschool programs.
• Immigration, primarily from Asian countries, has created a need for English as a Second Language (ESL) services in several districts.
• Students from BC perform well compared to other Canadian and international jurisdictions.
• Admission of BC students to colleges and technical schools has increased significantly the last decade.
• An aging workforce is fueling an ever-growing need for qualified young people to meet employers' demands, particularly in trades.
• The high-tech sector continues to expand, as does the long-term requirement for employees with specific technical and computer skills. Across many occupations, technological advances necessitate higher levels of employee knowledge and skills, even in entry-level positions.
• The service industry continues to be the main employer in BC. Many students are entering this sector directly from Grade 12.

Update on New Era Commitments and Key Projects

The Liberal government made 15 New Era commitments related to K-12 education in its election platform and the premier assigned six key projects in June 2001.

New Era Commitments Achieved

1. Restore education as an essential service under the Labour Code.

2. Maintain and increase education funding levels by increasing revenues through economic growth.

3. Establish specific goals and outcomes to measure the success of educators in public schooling.

4. Devote more of each education dollar to improving the quality of education, less to bureaucracy.

5. Support more flexibility and choice in public schooling.

6. Give local school boards more autonomy and control over the delivery of education services, subject to provincial curriculum and testing standards.

7. Maintain current funding arrangements for independent schools.

8. Give school boards multi-year funding envelopes to improve long-term education planning/budgeting.

9. Eliminate PST on basic school supplies purchased by Parent Advisory Councils, which volunteer their time and effort to raise money for public schools.

10. Guarantee that parents of students attending schools are entitled to volunteer their services, provided it does not result in the displacement of existing staff services.

11. Improve school accreditations.

Key Projects Achieved (June 25, 2001 letter from the Premier)

1. Clearly define the role of the provincial Ministry of Education, including the current governance model and role of interest groups and make recommendations.

2. Examine opportunities for providing increased flexibility and choice in public schooling.

3. Develop an understandable, transparent, comprehensive population-based funding formula for school districts and independent schools.

4. Develop accountability contracts with school districts, including reporting of outcomes.

New Era Commitments in Progress

Commitment: Ensure that music, arts and physical education curricula are fully funded.

Status: In Progress

Plan to Address: The ministry has undertaken a comprehensive review of graduation requirements where one of the accepted and approved recommendations was to incorporate music, arts and physical education into required areas of study in the graduation portfolio. Key competencies must be met before graduation requirements are met.

Other opportunities are to link more closely to the recent "Action Schools! BC" announcement by government regarding enhanced physical education in elementary schools and to seek opportunities to partner school boards with arts organizations to improve student access to music and the arts.

Commitment: Work with educators and employers to expand job training and skills development opportunities.

Status: In Progress

Plan to Address:

a. Ministry and district staff are partnering with industry to develop employability skills for Grade 11 and 12 students. The ministry supports the Business Council of BC's "Third Option-First Choice" initiative.

b. The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Advanced Education are working together to encourage more K–12 students to consider trades training as a pathway to a viable and enjoyable career. School boards, through deregulation, are able to create locally developed courses that enable communities and industry to come together to develop "skills requirements" that suit the needs of that community.

c. Changes to the graduation program and graduation requirements enable school boards to work with local business, industry and post-secondary institutions to develop industry training through locally-developed elective courses. In addition, students will be required to include work experience or community volunteer experience as part of the graduation portfolio assessment.

Commitment: Provide teachers with more technology training.

Status: In Progress

Plan to address: Enhanced teacher training is a key component of our ability to expand distance education and other technology-based initiatives, which will enhance learning opportunities and contribute to the overall goal of improved student achievement.

Throughout BC, teachers are integrating Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into their teaching practice and in turn providing students with effective and engaging learning opportunities. The ICT Standards Project aims to support the effective and appropriate integration of ICT into teaching and learning by establishing common provincial standards with respect to students' skills and application of ICT, providing a resource to teachers to aid in assessing and reporting student performance using ICT, and providing "snapshots" of students' work that demonstrate a range of performance using ICT.

The ministry is partnering with five school districts that will enable the ministry to work with teachers, school districts, other education partners and the private sector in order to fulfill this commitment.

Commitment: Put more computers in schools and increase resources to improve computer literacy for students.

Status: In progress

Plan to Address: In the 2001/02 school year 11,127 computers were transferred to BC schools through the Computers for Schools Program. The ministry and CIO are partnering to explore options to provide surplus government computer equipment to schools by working with Ministry of Management Services in an effort to change the policy regarding the disposition of government computers.

Key Projects in Progress

Project: Improve student performance over four years.

Status: In Progress — Ongoing

Continuing Action: Improving student achievement is the number one priority in the ministry and in all parts of the education system. Activities resulting from the ministry's Core Services Review, approved in November 2001, are focused on the goal of improving student achievement: setting standards; monitoring performance; reporting publicly on performance; funding and governance. A new accountability framework for the education system includes measures that highlight the progress made towards improving student achievement for every school district, including outlining goals and performance targets, describing the strategies used to improve student performance and publicly reporting results.

Project: With the Chief Information Officer, make recommendations for enhancing technological infrastructure in schools.

Status: In Progress

Continuing Action: Of the approximately 2,000 PLNet sites (K-12 and college) all but approximately 300 sites are below digital speed. The ministry has committed to upgrade the remaining sites to provide faster connectivity. The ministry continues to explore other options to enhance technological infrastructure.