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As New Brunswick literacy rates continue to fall, there is an urgent need for this province to invest in early childhood education, Margaret Norrie McCain said Monday.
“The big question is what to do? The science of human development is shining a light on where we must focus on the future, and it is on early childhood education – the foundation years for early human development and learning,” said McCain, a well-known champion of public education and a former lieutenant-governor. She was keynote speaker during a fundraising luncheon by The Learning Partnership to honour Ken MacLeod and Bernard Richard as Champions of Public Education.
In her speech, McCain said a recent report by Programs for International Student Assessment ranked Canada as average on math, reading and science, but Atlantic Canada’s scores were on the bottom.
“To compete in the global village and world marketplace, average is just not good enough and we have to do better,” McCain said, adding that young New Brunswickers need a good foundation of basic skills before they can learn more specialized skills that will give them the means to make a strong contribution to the economy and society in general.
McCain quoted Craig Alexander, the chief economist for the TD Bank, who has said Canadian governments should give a higher priority to early childhood learning once their fiscal books are in order, because it provides a bigger bang for the taxpayers’ education buck.
“We do not recommend the ‘schoolification’ of little ones. We recommend play-based learning delivered to a children’s centre linked to a school,” McCain said as she recommended a high-quality early childhood education that is universal, accessible, affordable, available and optional.
She said New Brunswick is moving forward on this initiative and with federal help it will progress more rapidly.
She urged Premier Brian Gallant, who was in attendance at yesterday’s luncheon, to be bold and innovative in addressing this province’s economic problems and that early childhood education should be an important part of the strategy.
In his speech, Gallant said his government has a 10-year plan that will include strategic spending on education, and urged all stakeholders to work together in an effort to raise literacy rates.
McCain’s speech came as The Learning Partnership honoured Ken MacLeod and Bernard Richard as this year’s Champions of Education. MacLeod is known for his work as president and CEO of the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra, and the man behind the Sistema NB music program. Richard is a former New Brunswick ombudsman and child and youth advocate.
Monday’s luncheon in the ballroom of the Delta Beauséjour hotel was attended by nearly 500 people including Moncton Mayor George LeBlanc, political leaders and business leaders from across New Brunswick. It was also noted that it was the first time that all three of New Brunswick’s female lieutenant-governors (Margaret McCain, Marilyn Trenholme and Jocelyn Roy-Vienneau) were together in one spot.
The luncheon was co-chaired by David Hawkins and Monique Imbeault of Moncton, MCed by former Moncton MP Dennis Cochrane and featured performances by the Moncton Youth Orchestra and Sistema NB Quartet (of teaching artists).
All proceeds from the Champions of Public Education Tribute Luncheon go toward expanding The Learning Partnership’s student programs in New Brunswick, including Take Our Kids to Work, Turning Points and Entrepreneur Adventure.
As the luncheon ended, McCain and other speakers rushed to another room in the hotel to attend a meeting of the Family Literacy Conference, where the message of early family education was also being urged.
Frank Hayes, president of the Literacy Coalition of New Brunswick, said this province requires a “paradigm shift” to generate a culture of learning, with a focus on early childhood learning.
“Literacy is much more than learning how to read, write and compute, or to use technology in the ‘knowledge age’ of the 21st century, ”Hayes said.“ Literacy is also about the synergy of collaborative problem solving, experimental learning, critical and divergent thinking and the uniqueness of innovation”
Hayes noted how Singapore has trans formed itself over 50 years from a Third World nation described by David Attenborough as “a series of tin shed” into a Top 10 First World Nation in productivity, leading the world in science and math and in recent years, literacy. Hayes said a major part of Singapore’s success came with a commitment by family, community and government to build a culture of learning and education.
“In order to ignite, instill and sustain a culture of learning (and thereby advance our productivity), this province needs to enroll the support of the family, engage the community and get children pre pared to enter kindergarten” Hayes said “Beginning in the early years, an emphasis must be placed on collaborative, creative, critical and innovate thinking to wards developing a culture of lifelong learning.”
