How are we working together?
Provincial consultation with the First Nations Education Steering Committee (FNESC) and engagement with Métis Nation BC is required to address the broader scope of this action and increase participation in Foundation Skill Assessments to support improved literacy and numeracy outcomes.
Are there challenges?
It’s challenging for both the Ministry of Education and Child Care and Indigenous partners to find the capacity to fully implement this action.
Student outcomes published in the annual Aboriginal: How Are We Doing? Report demonstrates that there continues to be persistent disparities in the results between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, highlighting the need of the public school system to better support Indigenous learners.
Highlights
The ministry releases the Aboriginal: How Are We Doing? Report annually. For the third year, superintendents received letters with district-level reports that also highlight the Foundation Skills Assessment as a key indicator for literacy and numeracy. The ministry acknowledges the importance of mechanisms such as the Foundation Skills Assessment to maintain accountability in school districts for improving outcomes for Indigenous students. School districts are required to report Foundation Skills Assessment results through the Framework for Enhancing Student Learning. The ministry will continue to collaborate and support school districts to improve outcomes for Indigenous learners within their strategic planning and collaborate with Indigenous Education Councils.
The ministry has launched a comprehensive, provincial initiative to improve literacy levels of all B.C. K-12 students. Focus areas include supporting school districts to use evidence-based literacy screening and intervention supports that meet the needs of Indigenous learners. As part of this broader ministry focus on supporting early literacy, the ministry is also developing teaching supports for kindergarten to grade 4 foundational reading, writing, oral language and mathematics skills as part of the BC Learning Pathways.