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Montague Family of Schools District Advisory Council

Date de publication: Octobre 14, 2022

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2021-2022 Montague Family of Schools DAC Membership

May 25th, 2022, Microsoft Teams Meeting

Guests: Bethany MacLeod, Deputy Minister – Department of Education and Lifelong Learning; John Cummings, Executive Director of Educational Services – Department of Education and Lifelong Learning

Discussions

The Montague DAC had met a total of five times leading up to their final meeting on May 25th, 2022, in which they brought forward recommendations to representatives from the Department of Education and Lifelong Learning. Throughout the year, the DAC discussed a number of topics, including traffic safety, school renovations, elected school boards, and the influx of students in the region. From further discussions, the council brought forward four recommendations concerning School Resources, the Student Well-Being Teams, French Immersion, and the Early Years Evaluation.

School Staff Resources

The DAC shared that there has been an increase in the student population, and they feel that COVID has been a contributing factor being that PEI is seen as a safe place. As a result, they feel that the same level of resources with this influx of students falls short of the student's needs.
Behavioural issues have been rising with island students, and it seems that more mental health issues require attention than ever. As this is becoming such an issue, smaller schools are feeling that they are experiencing problems that only tend to arise at the larger schools.
While the Student Well-Being Teams are doing an excellent job, they can't be present in every school, every day, at their current capacity. As a result, students are experiencing breakdowns, and often a counsellor is unavailable to address the situation. This boils into a stressed support network as administrators are teaching classes, and this pitfall is felt by students, teachers, administrators, and parents.
The DAC is recommending that the current ratio for counsellors to students that is stated in the Minister's Directive for the Educational Authority, Staffing and Funding Programs, be re-evaluated and specifically lowered so that there is a greater support network immediately available within the schools. This ratio listed allows school counsellors to be one instructional position for every 335 students.

Responses:

In the 2021-2022 school year, 12 new counsellors were added. With this, additional staffing commitments for the upcoming year include the addition of two Parental Support Workers, a Youth Transitions Manager, and a Social Emotional (Mental Health) Leader.
The DELL plans to continue to invest in and support its staff to ensure both staff and students' needs are being met.
The SWT continues to conduct school visits and evaluate the time spent in schools to ensure equal service is delivered.
English and French programs are working with the boards to put together plans to help address the gaps that have been created as a result of COVID.

Student Well-Being Teams

The DAC acknowledged the great work that the current Student Well-Being Team does and would like to see continued efforts being made to serve the needs of students at all grade levels across the families of schools.
The group voiced that students' and staff's mental health is suffering across all levels, and the sooner that they can be supported, the better. The council would like to see a continued focus on services and resource offerings in this area.
With the Student Well-Being Team being mainly stationed in MRHS, it is felt that some of the smaller schools do not receive as much attention. Many smaller schools have part-time guidance counsellors, administrators with teaching assignments, and often no behaviour resource teachers, which sometimes leads schools to be ill-equipped to deal with situations that arise.
The DAC feels that a large part of early intervention/proactive measures can be done at the elementary and junior high levels. Examples were classroom presentations, ongoing focus groups on different topics, and drop-in sessions.
The DAC recommends that the current Student Well-Being Team work to ensure all schools receive equal service.

Responses:

The SWT continues to evaluate their services and offerings and is working with the data collected from its most recent survey to understand how they can better serve the student populations of PEI. This survey will also help the group allocate resources more effectively across populations that require additional support.
The SWT has developed a schedule for delivering presentations to students to educate and serve as a preventative measure. This schedule will come into effect for the 2022-2023 school year.
School visits are underway in all schools, and principals have been provided estimates for the number of presentations the SWT is planning to provide.
The SWT aims to have their full staffing compliments introduced at the start of the school year to help students put a name to their face and build a connection/ relationship with them.

French Immersion

The DAC would like to continue to advocate for an opportunity for students to be able to do late french immersion in the Montague family of schools.
It is felt that students and parents should have an equal opportunity in their region for late french immersion as other families of schools.
An important population to connect with is parents with pre-school children. They should be educated in the decisions they are going to make for their child, as early immersion is not for every child, and there can be implications seen down the road. This speaks to the importance of educating parents on the options that best suit their children.
The council voiced that the curriculum is already in place in other areas of the island, so it is frustrating to see that this region does not have the same opportunities.
The DAC is recommending that the focus on this topic be put on parents facing the decision of putting their child in early immersion, and the group would like to see a steering committee be forward to look at how to move this forward.

Response:

The Junior Policy Analyst connected with the Director of French Programs within the DELL and shared the group's concerns and recommendations. It was echoed that conversations will continue between the DELL and the education authorities to explore options for late French immersion in the Montague FOS.

Early Years Evaluation

The DAC provided background on the Early Years Assessment and the functionality of the assessment. The council feels that there were many positives to the Early Years Assessment, and now that the department now uses what is called the Child Profile, the DAC shared a number of gaps which include;
- Not all children go to daycare centres before coming to school,
- Oftentimes the student's profiles are given to schools at the very end of the school year,
- The information in the Child Profile is anecdotal and does not assess the child's skills or indicate the appropriateness and readiness skills.
The DAC recommends that the department review the current content on the government website if the Early Years Assessment is no longer being used. With this, the council would like to see the Child Profile Program expanded to include individual assessment which measures and reports achievement in areas such as fine and gross motor skills, language skills, and cognitive and social skills to provide parents and school staff enough reliable information to provide adequate programming and resources for the youngest students in our school system.

Response:

The Junior Policy Analyst connected with the Director of Early Childhood Development to share the group’s concerns and recommendations regarding the Early Years Evaluation/ Child Profile. Further discussion is planned to take place within the ECD division and English Education, Programs and Services to ensure that programs are meeting the needs of stakeholders. With this, exploring what can be done further to ensure that the public is clear and understands current and future government programs remains an essential step in the process.

April 27th, 2022, Microsoft Teams Meeting

Discussions

The Montague DAC worked together to create a collaborative document that focuses on recommendations that the DAC would like to bring forward to the Minister of Education and Lifelong Learning. The DAC plans to build out each recommendation and create a presentation script to help outline who will be delivering what content. The Montague DAC intends to discuss the following topics in their year-end meeting.

School Staff Resources

The DAC feels very passionate about staff being able to meet student's unique needs, and to do that, they need to be set up for success. This looks like additional counselling time in schools, providing administrators more time to focus on their tasks and allowing teachers to spend more time with each student by lowering this ratio. The council would like to highlight these areas as the department plans for future school years.

Student Well-Being Team and Mental Health

The group would like to echo the great work the Student Well-Being Teams do. The council would like to see continued efforts being made by the team to serve the needs of students at all grade levels across the family of schools.
Mental health is suffering across all grade levels, and the earlier students and staff can be supported, the better. Coming out of the pandemic, the council would like to see a continued focus on services and resource offerings in this area.

French Immersion

The DAC would like to continue to advocate for french immersion in the region and emphasize that it comes down to offering equal opportunities for students across PEI. This has been a prevalent topic for the DAC in past years, and the council feels that it is important that parents have the option for their children.

Early Years Assessment

The council would like to discuss the value that the early year's assessment had in the schools and how evaluations such as this provided school staff and parents with valuable information to help meet their student's and children's needs. The group has learned about the Child Profile that is now being used, but the council still feels that there are gaps.

March 23rd, 2022, Microsoft Teams Meeting

Discussions

School Staff Resources

The DAC continued to speak about staffing and resources within the schools and wants to ensure that staff are being supported and set up for success.
Administrators are struggling to manage teaching duties alongside a large workload that comes with being the Principal and Vice-Principal of a school.
When smaller schools only have access to a 50% counsellor, it is challenging for them to meet the needs of students, as there is no time for students to build relationships which is so important. There is no such thing as a planned emergency or a planned breakdown, and teaching staff and administrators are the ones who have to attend to these situations. Ultimately, when teachers and administrators have to deal with these issues continuously, it harms the class as a whole.
A lower student-to-teacher ratio is a focus for the DAC. Many students have unique and individualized needs, making it difficult for a teacher. Split classes can be effective when there are enough teachers to help balance the workload. There are ratios that kindergarten classes follow; is it possible to take this type of approach into grade school?
The group plans to advocate for additional resources in schools and feels there is value in reassessing various staffing allotments to set schools of any size and a system as a whole up for success.

Student Well-Being Team

The group touched on the positive work of the Student Well-Being Team.
The impact is powerful in the schools where the Student Well-Being Team is stationed, but it is felt that the smaller schools could benefit from more attention. The DAC feels that a large part of early intervention can be done in Junior High Schools, meaning a more balanced effort could lead to fewer students struggling at the High School level.
The DAC was given the opportunity to complete a survey conducted by the Student Well-Being Team to help plan and develop a future Strategic Plan. The team greatly appreciates this feedback, and DAC members are welcome to contact the DAC coordinator with further comments.

Late French Immersion

The group will continue to advocate for french immersion in the region and would like the Department and Public Schools Branch to know that this is still something the DAC feels strongly about.
The BIL Director of French Education, Programs, and Services shared with the DAC coordinator that this is an ongoing conversation between the Department of Education and the Public Schools Branch. Continuing to advocate to MLAs and through Home and School will remain an important avenue. Parents would like to support this opportunity for the students of today and the future.

Elected School Board

The group discussed how the DACs would be affected if the proposed legislation regarding an elected school board for the Public School Branch is passed.
On March 2nd, 2022, an information session was held and open to all DAC members across PEI to answer and discuss the proposed legislation.
The DAC would like to ensure that the work done over the past number of years is brought forward to the newly elected board.

Early Years Assessment

The DAC briefly discussed the changes regarding the Early Years Assessment.
It is felt that there are gaps in the transition to the Child Profile system, and a major one that the group has identified has been with children that do not attend publicly funded Pre-Kindergarten programs. It is understood there is funding to help with this transition, and the DAC is hopeful that more can be done to inform parents and support the transition for children.

January 5th, 2022, Microsoft Teams Meeting

Guests: Elizabeth Kennedy (Student Well-Being Team Program Lead), Tara Roche (Provincial Health Supervisor), Lynne Anne Broussard (Student Well-Being Team Social Worker and Team Lead)

Discussions

Student Well-Being Team Presentation

Elizabeth, Tara and Lynne Anne presented a slide deck that shared information about the Student Well-Being Team and facilitated a discussion to answer and discuss further topics relating to their work.
Elizabeth shared that the focus of the SWT is to provide equitable access to supports for students and that the SWT is located in the schools for that reason.
The Department of Education & Lifelong Learning, Department of Justice & Public Safety and Health PEI conduct a joint effort in delivering the SWT services and serve as experts in their respective areas. With this, the SWT is made up of various personnel, including Nurses, Outreach Workers, Social Workers and many others that can offer different perspectives from their field of work.
Elizabeth shared how the transitional grades are more common for referrals (Grades 6 and 9).
The group discussed the referral process and how it can be done online, by phone or in person. Online referrals are the most popular and can be done by students, parents, teachers or industry professionals. The Montague FOS is currently seeing 120-140 referrals a month.
Lynne Anne shared that there is a waitlist for the SWT services in the Montague FOS, and like other families of schools, the referrals go through a triage process. She also included that there is a very positive reaction to the services at the High School and that students have been able to develop relationships with the SWT. This also allows the SWT to provide informal counselling.
Montague High is in the process of rolling out a walk-in clinic, where there will be a half-day set aside for students to meet with the SWT. Westisle has seen great success in this model thus far.
With many of the schools across PEI increasing their student population, additional resources are needed to meet the needs of the students. The SWT has considered this when reviewing their strategic plans and plans to advocate for more supports.
A group member shared that a SWT member attends the monthly Student Services meetings for the schools, and this is a great opportunity for the teachers and principals to connect and get up to date with various SWT situations and cases.
Elizabeth shared that a large part of the SWT's work is delivering presentations to help educate students, which serve as preventative measures. An example that was shared was that if a school is seeing vaping issues at a grade 8 level, they could ensure that students are made aware of the risks in earlier grades, and this will help not only educate the students but deter them from harmful substances and activities. The SWT is working to standardize a list of presentations so that teachers can choose topics they would like to have their students learn about, which also allows the SWT to allocate resources more efficiently.

Follow-Ups and Updates

Traffic Safety

The great work from the previous year was echoed again, and overall the schools in Montague FOS have seen an improvement in speeding in school zones.
At Montague High, students have been avoiding speed bumps, and driving behaviour should be monitored on school property. Montague High is wondering what can be done to have a Police Officer at the school full-time similar to the schools located in Charlottetown?

Influx of Students

With the increase in students, the group would like to see additional resources allocated to balance this. The following are areas where the group sees this imbalance:

Teaching Capacity – Class sizes are becoming larger, making it challenging to deliver equitable teaching when there are additional students with unique needs.
Classroom Space – School infrastructure is quickly getting outgrown as the student population increases. This also has social distancing implications as well.
School Buses – Many school buses in the FOS are already very crowded, and with additional students, more are needed. With this, social distancing becomes very difficult on overcrowded school buses.
Vice Principal & Principals – Administrators often do not have enough time to carry out their duties as many teach for a large portion of their day in the classroom. This is a constant struggle for smaller schools.

Overall the DAC feels that planning plays a large part in the allocation of resources and that the school assessments that happen in the middle of the school year are not up to date enough to reflect what numbers the school is going to experience in September. Is there an opportunity for a reassessment of school needs closer to the end of the year so that schools can prepare?

Late French Immersion

The DAC would like to keep this topic on the table as it has been something the group has advocated for the last few years.
Is it possible for each member to discuss the topic at their next Home and School meeting? From here, a survey could be developed that would collect the data and show that offering late French immersion is viable in the region and that the interest is there?
The group feels they should have the same opportunities in the island's eastern end as on the western end. Kensington has a similar student population, and the DAC would like to know what steps they can take in order to move this priority along in Montague?

Kindergarten Assessment/ Early Years Evaluation

The group discussed the value of the Early Years Evaluation and was looking to learn more about the new programming that addresses the gaps of the EYE Program.
The past two years have been challenging, and many children are not in a place socially/ developmentally where students were in previous years due to challenges.
With the Early Years Evaluation not being used anymore, the group learned that there is a Child Profile program. The basic framework of this program will be that in May/June, the Early Childhood Centres that offer Pre-Kindergarten will forward the documents of each child to the respective schools that the child will be attending. A pilot phase took place in the spring of 2021, and this is now being rolled out for all programs involved in the Universal Pre-Kindergarten Program on PEI.
The group echoed that many children do not attend publicly funded Pre-Kindergarten Programs, meaning this would not be available for those children. It is understood that funding supports are available for these parents as of September 2021.

Discussion

Group Guidelines and Expectations

The Junior Policy Analyst will prepare and send the meeting agenda before each meeting.
The group will contribute to the agenda by adding action items, progress on past work, and any new priorities they would like to discuss.
The group would like to continue using Doodle Polls to decide when the best suited times are for the group to meet.
It is understood that the meetings can take place virtually or in person, and if the meeting is to occur in person, proper vaccination protocols must be conducted.
The group discussed having a meeting chair to ensure the agenda items are discussed and everyone has a chance to share. The Junior Policy Analyst will assume this role for the meetings.
The group is welcome to meet on their own outside of regular meeting times without the Junior Policy Analyst and bring this information forward with the larger group in the next meeting.

District Advisory Council Overview

Tyler Gallant, the Junior Policy Analyst for the Department of Education and Lifelong Learning, gave a presentation that offered information regarding the DACs and their role in the PEI education system.

The mandate of the DACs is to help shape an education system that is focused on and meets the need of learners.
The role of the DACs is to advise the Minister of Education on priorities for the district, to engage school communities in discussions, and foster collaboration among school councils, home and school associations, and the community.
Responsibilities of the membership include reporting concerns to your local home and school to the DAC, providing leadership in identifying priorities to focus on, working collaboratively with members and reporting back to your local Home and School the discussions and outcomes of the DAC meetings.

Topics of Discussion

Traffic Safety

The changes implemented by the previous year's DAC have significantly impacted speeding and traffic through school zones. There seems to be more policing in the area and speed radars posted for the school zone in Vernon River, which is very promising.
School parking lots in some regions are still confusing where the students, teachers, and buses all use one large lot. An assessment of what can be done to improve efficiency in this area would be effective.
- Response: The Public School Branch completes these assessments. Additionally, when it comes to more than painting lines and directing traffic, it can turn into a capital project which would need to be put forward for a future budget. Staff from the PSB should be contacted to discuss concerns.

Influx of Students

Schools in the region are noticing an uptick in student enrolment, and much of this seems to be at the last minute and start of the school year. When an assessment is done for the next school year in June, there tends to be significant change over the summer, and then the school is stuck trying to fit the student body into a dated plan.
As a result of the increase in students, there is a need for split grades. With this, teaching space and class sizes have also been impacted by this influx.
Vernon River school currently has three school buses, and it is felt this is inadequate to accommodate all the students.

Late French Immersion

The group expressed great interest in keeping the topic of late French immersion on the table for this year's discussions. This has been a work in progress over the past number of years.
Many parents are unsure where to register their children due to the uncertainty in program offerings. If a student goes into Charlottetown for French, will they return to the Montague FOS for High School?
What are the next steps in this process?

Kindergarten Assessment

This assessment is very important for students' school and home life.
The group would like to know the timeline for the new assessment and how the rollout will work?

PowerSchool Software

PowerSchool will replace the SAS system that parents and teachers previously used.
What access will parents have, and will it be everything that SAS was? What is the rollout schedule for this transition?
Response: The transition is currently underway, and features will be added as the rollout moves through the different school levels. There will be additional features within PowerSchool that parents and teachers will have that SAS did not when all the phases are complete. PowerSchool also has a mobile application.

Student Well-Being Teams

The SWT has had a positive impact thus far, but students are still struggling.
The group would like to learn more about the referral process.
The groups see value in inviting the SWT to the discussion to inform what role parents play in the success of the SWT. This would serve as a good information session for those who are returning to the group or anyone who is new.

Elected School Board

Discussion about the Elected School Board consultations. Currently in review, and the group will revisit this topic at a later date when more information is available.

Previous School Years

Renseignements généraux

Ministère de l’Éducation et de la Petite enfance

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Télécopieur : 902-438-4062

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