YNTEP Review
The Yukon Native Teacher Education Program (YNTEP) is a four-year, Bachelor of Education degree delivered at Yukon College and granted by the University of Regina. Since its establishment in 1989, the program has graduated 121 students (as of 2010), 107 of whom are of First Nations heritage. Non-First Nations students were admitted to the program for the first time in 2004 on the condition that half of the available spaces were reserved for First Nations students.
For further information on YNTEP’s development, see http://www.yukoncollege.yk.ca/programs/info/yntep
Why is the YNTEP Program being reviewed?
Most colleges and universities conduct program reviews on a regular basis, usually every five to seven years. A program review is conducted to ensure that the courses and practica experiences are up to date, that skills and knowledge associated with particular degrees and programs are periodically revised to include new scholarship. As a matter of course, program reviews take into consideration: the experiences and views of current and former students; the experience and credentials of instructors; and the views and perspectives on the program held by employers, government, the general public, and partners involved in the program’s delivery. Program reviews are normally conducted at arm’s length by academics from outside institutions who have special experience and expertise in the area.
The YNTEP program has never been subject to an external review since its establishment more than twenty years ago. In fact, it has been six years since a small internal review of YNTEP was conducted.
Because the YNTEP program was originally created to address a grave shortage of First Nations teachers in Yukon schools, the First Nations peoples are regarded as important partners with Yukon College in the delivery of this teacher education program. Accordingly, when the President’s Advisory Council on First Nations Initiatives (PACFNI) at Yukon College passed a motion in autumn 2010 requesting a formal, external review of the program, the College began to search for an external review team. PACFNI is an important body that represents all 14 Yukon First Nations peoples and provides strategic advice and direction to the College.
Who is leading this review?
After a search of more than six months to find suitable candidates to conduct this review, Dean Deb Bartlette announced in July 2011 that Yukon College had appointed Dr. Thomas Fleming, Professor Emeritus at the University of Victoria, and Dr. Colin Chasteneuf, recently-retired Dean of Education at the University of Northern British Columbia.
DR. THOMAS FLEMING was born in Dublin, Ireland, and attended parochial and public schools in Ireland, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia. He began his career as an industrial and business manager in the manufacturing and transportation industries overseas and in Canada before returning to university. He has studied at the University of Victoria, the London School of Economics, Stanford University, and the University of Oregon and holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in intellectual and diplomatic history and a Ph.D. in the history of education. He has taught at the University of Toronto, the University of British Columbia and served as Assistant to the President at the University of Victoria and at the University of British Columbia, as well as Executive Officer for the Council of Western Canadian University Presidents (and Vice-Presidents Academic) before becoming a faculty member at the University of Victoria.
From 1984 to 1986, he served as a program auditor for CIDA’s Canada-China Bilateral Management Education Program. In 1985, he authored the 1985 school reform initiative in British Columbia, Let’s Talk About Schools, and, in 1987, he was appointed editor-in-chief and a research director for the British Columbia Royal Commission on Education. He was responsible for writing A Legacy for Learners, the commission’s main report, along with editing nine volumes of the royal commission’s papers. In 2000, he received the University of Victoria Faculty of Education Inaugural Excellence in Teaching Award.
In 2001, he was appointed Visiting Professor, Graduate Department of Educational Leadership at the Universidad de Tres Febrero, Buenos Aires, Argentina. From 2000 to 2006, Dr. Fleming was the Canadian Director of the CIDA-sponsored Southern Cone Technology Transfer Program, a program that has trained 350 Argentine teachers, principals, and government officials in Canadian instructional technologies, assessment techniques and management information systems. In 2004, he was nominated for the Distinguished Research Professor Award in the University of Victoria’s Faculty of Education. In 2006, was the recipient of the Craigdarroch Research Award for Societal Service and was also made an honorary member of the Association of Canadian Studies in Argentina for his contributions to Argentine education.
Professor Fleming is well known for his co-authored volume on U.S. school management, A History of Educational Administration in Thought and Practice, and for his edited volume, School Leadership: Essays on the British Columbia Experience 1872-1995. He is also known for other volumes, including his co-edited volume Reformas Educativas en Argentina Y Canada: Trama Social, Gestion Y Agentes De Cambio. He has contributed more than 150 scholarly articles and reports to the educational literature. Dr. Fleming has also consulted with federal, provincial, district and international educational agencies in Canada and with various national, provincial and municipal governments in Latin America on governance and administration, teacher education, school reform, and system restructuring.
In 2010, Professor Fleming published a two-volume history, The Principal’s Office and Beyond: Public School Leadership in British Columbia, 1849-2005. In 2011, he published a documentary history of British Columbia schools since the mid-nineteenth century (Schooling in British Columbia: Voices from the Past, 1849-2005), and a monograph on the root causes of the current turbulence in British Columbia education (Worlds Apart: British Columbia Schools, Politics, and Labour Relations, Before and After 1972).
DR. COLIN CHASTEAUNEUF will be joining Dr. Fleming in this work. Dr. Chasteauneuf is former Dean of Education at the University of Northern British Columbia and has extensive expertise in developing and delivering aboriginal teacher education programs, particularly in northern contexts.
How will this review take place?
Dr. Fleming will be consulting broadly with students, educators, First Nations representatives and other Yukoners interested in YNTEP during his working visits to Whitehorse and other Yukon communities. His first visit took place in September 26-30, 2011 when he joined in a preliminary discussion about the program review with PACFNI. He returned to Whitehorse from December 5-11 where he met with YNTEP students, former students, government officials, representatives from the Yukon Teachers’ Association, as well as staff from Yukon schools and members of the public. During this visit he was interviewed by ATPN and CBC North.
Dr. Fleming will come back to the Yukon from January 12-19 and if necessary will make an additional visit. Opportunities to meet with Dr. Fleming will be available during the January visit and will be publicized on this website, as well as through the local media.
Ms. Davida Wood, Coordinator, First Nations Initiatives at Yukon College, is in charge of Dr. Fleming’s schedule. If you wish to meet with Dr. Fleming, please contact Ms. Wood at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to make an appointment.
Progress to Date
In addition to the information collected during interviews from his first two visits, Dr. Fleming has begun to review and analyze a variety of reports and foundational documents related to YNTEP and Yukon education dating back to the 1970s. As the review moves forward, Drs. Fleming and Chasteauneuf will also review relevant program materials from Yukon College and, for comparative purposes, other academic institutions. Important data will also be gathered through interviews, survey questionnaires (see below), public and other meetings. All interviews and other data will be treated confidentially throughout the course of the review.
Dr. Chasteauneuf will begin his work in January and focus on the curricular component of the YNTEP Bachelor of Education program. In particular he will examine the content, relevancy, and sequencing of course work, as well as the “fit” of all programmatic elements in YNTEP and how they compare to First Nations teacher education programs in other provincial and territorial jurisdictions.
What questions are we asking?
Several broad questions will guide the review and consultation process. First, we would like to know what works in YNTEP and what are its strengths. Second, we would like to learn where changes or improvements could and should be made. And, third, we would like to look forward by inquiring: “If we started now to build a teacher education program to meet the needs of the Yukon in the twenty-first century, what should it look like?”
Much has changed in the Yukon and in the world since YNTEP began more than 20 years ago. We would like to learn what skills and knowledge teachers generally require today, as well as what particular skills and knowledge teachers require to be effective in all Yukon schools and communities, large and small.
How are we collecting data?
In addition to public consultations, we are inviting First Nations peoples, the public, school professionals, as well as former and current YNTEP students to complete a confidential electronic survey. PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL SURVEY RESPONSES COMPLETED ON THE WEBSITE ARE COLLECTED ANONYMOUSLY AND TREATED CONFIDENTIALLY. PLEASE ALSO KEEP IN MIND THAT ONLY ONE RESPONSE WILL BE PERMITTED FROM ANY ONE E-MAIL ADDRESS.
When will the review be completed?
Drs. Fleming and Chasteauneuf expect to complete their review and present their findings and recommendations in written form to Yukon College and PACFNI in early May 2012, and with their permission, these will be posted on this website.
Contact information:
If you have any questions about the review, or wish to be included in the consultation, please contact Ms. Davida Wood at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
You may also send an e-mail with your views and observations on YNTEP directly to Dr. Thomas Fleming, Professor Emeritus, University of Victoria at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Please include YNTEP Review in the subject heading of your e-mail.
