Bridging the Aboriginal Education Gap in Saskatchewan (Report)
 |
|
| Title: | Bridging the Aboriginal Education Gap in Saskatchewan (Report) |
| Creator: | Howe, Eric |
| Subject: | Post-Secondary Education, Skills Training, Gabriel Dumont Institute, Howe, Eric |
| Description: | A report by economist Eric Howe shows just how much Saskatchewan’s economy is foregoing by not closing the Aboriginal education gap. The amount is staggering—the lost benefits are greater than all sales of potash in the history of Saskatchewan. In a province where our greatest natural resource is thought to be potash, this research sheds new light on what we thought we knew to be true. An even greater resource is Aboriginal people—and this is a resource that we have not developed. By closing the Aboriginal education gap, Howe notes, we could be looking at a first‐ever made‐in‐Saskatchewan economic boom with greater impact and permanence than the natural resource or technological booms of the past.
"Closing Saskatchewan’s Aboriginal education gap would have the direct effect of yielding $90 billion in benefits,” said Howe. “To put this into context, the potash industry is universally understood to be critical to the economy of our province. However, the total production of potash in Saskatchewan back to the start of the industry is…four‐fifths of $90 billion.” “This report is an eye opener,” said Glenn Lafleur, Vice Chair of the Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI). “Most people understand the importance of education to earnings in general sort of way. What this report does is to show just how much, in dollar figures, that benefit is worth.” In the three‐part report, Howe notes that without an education Aboriginal people earn dramatically less than non‐Aboriginal people, but education causes earnings to catch up. Thus, Aboriginal earnings increase more with education than for non‐Aboriginals. Not only are there benefits to the individual, but also significant benefits to society. Howe combines the benefits of bridging the Aboriginal education gap to come up with the $90 billion figure. Howe also examines the socioeconomic benefit of Saskatchewan’s only Métis professional degree program, the Saskatchewan Urban Native Teacher Education Program (SUNTEP). He concludes that although the size of the Aboriginal education gap is large and will take decades to bridge, it would have been larger without the contributions that SUNTEP has made with its 975 Aboriginal graduates. |
| Publisher: | Gabriel Dumont Institute |
| Date: | November 8, 2011 |
| Type: | Text Document |
| Format: | |
| Identifier: | Bridging_AbEduGap_GDI_final.pdf |
| Language: | English |
| Date of Copyright: | November 15, 2011 |
| Coverage: | Saskatchewan |
| GDI Media Location: | Canada |
| GDI Media Filename: | Bridging EduGap DIGITAL_March30.pdf |
Related Categories
Published Documents