Page 31 - Building Bridges to Success for First Nation, Métis and Inuit Students – Developing Policies for Voluntary, Confidential Aboriginal Student Self-Identification: Successful Practices for Ontario School Boards

Why the Policy?
1. To obtain resources from the Ministry of Education in order to develop and implement programs that respond
to the particular needs of Aboriginal students.
2. To direct resources to Aboriginal educational projects that:
• Provide high-quality learning opportunities that directly address the needs of Aboriginal students experiencing gaps in their education.
• Improve EQAO test scores for Aboriginal students.
• Improve the retention rate of Aboriginal students in schools.
• Increase graduation rates for Aboriginal students and help ensure entrance into postsecondary studies and the world of work.
3. To promote effective working relation- ships with the Aboriginal community and the boards of education through parent involvement.
Some Guiding Principles in Policy Development
• Collaborative
• Inclusive
• Results oriented
• Learner-centered
• Respect the privacy and dignity of our students and their families
Policy Implications
It is our hope that the self-identification process would provide data that would lead to increased funding for Aboriginal education. This money would be used to bring specific programs to schools to increase the success of Aboriginal students.
All data would be securely stored to respect privacy and used only as a means to enhance Aboriginal education programs. Data will be treated in the same manner as Ontario Student Records and protected and governed by the Freedom of Information Act. Individual data will
not be communicated. The information gathered will be used in the aggregate only.
Northern Ontario Education Leaders www.noelonline.ca
and
Northern Aboriginal Education Circle http://naec.7generations.org
• Tools You Can Use
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