Tremendous progress is being made to ensure that kindergarten will be moved into Island schools this fall, said Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development, Doug Currie.
“Bringing kindergarten into Island schools is an investment of more than $6.8 million into our One Island Community - One Island Future. It is also the largest educational initiative in the modern history of our province,” said Minister Currie. “I am pleased to advise parents and the public that we are on target.”
Many major tasks have been completed, some of the most recent progress includes:
Teacher Placements:
Most schools across the province have completed their kindergarten teacher placements.
The goal of the department and the three Island school boards in this process has been to ensure that the needs of the children are the number one priority when making decisions about where to place teachers. As much as possible, the preferences of the teachers were taken into consideration; however, in some cases, the needs of the children and of the school outweighed the geographical preferences of the teacher.
Supporting Kindergarten Educators:
Financial support is being made available for those kindergarten teachers who are working toward their Bachelor of Education at UPEI. Treasury Board has approved a payroll deduction program to assist kindergarten teachers in paying UPEI tuition fees. This program will be managed by school boards who will make payments directly to UPEI on behalf of participants and make corresponding deductions to the new teachers’ salary.
To further support the kindergarten teachers in their transition into the school system, three opportunities are being planned to help kindergarten teachers better understand the public school system. All kindergarten teachers will be invited to a province-wide information session with PEI Teachers’ Federation, school boards and the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development later this month. An orientation for new members will be hosted by the department in conjunction with PEI Teachers Federation on August 31 and the Beginning Teacher Induction Program will be offered later in September.
The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development will also be providing funding to school boards to ensure kindergarten classrooms are equipped with the supplies required to deliver the kindergarten program. Individual schools will be working with their new kindergarten teachers to ensure these supplies are ready for September.
Welcome to Kindergarten™ :
Another important element in the transition process is scheduling the Welcome to Kindergarten sessions. Welcome to Kindergarten™ is a great introduction to school and provides parents with helpful resources and great ideas for ways they can support their child’s learning at home. During May and June, families will be invited to their school to participate in the Welcome to Kindergarten™ workshop, meet their kindergarten teacher and school principal, and possibly see a kindergarten classroom.
“The transfer of kindergarten and the renewal of the early childhood sector are both part of a major commitment that the provincial government made to Island children and their families,” said Minister Currie. “We are carefully examining how we can best support Island children, families and communities to strengthen our early childhood sector and, in turn, our One Island Community - One Island Future.”