New Brunswick Action Plan Complementary Project Regarding Official Languages in Education La Trousse du passeur culturel 2007-2008 to 2009-2010

Preamble

BACKGROUND

On May 17, 2006, the Fédération culturelle canadienne-française (FCCF) organized a meeting of the members of the Table des organismes nationaux des arts et de la culture (TONAC), the acting executive committee of the new Fédération canadienne des directions d’écoles francophones (FCDEF), and the executive director of the Association canadienne d’éducation de langue française (ACELF). Moved by a common desire to maximize the contribution of arts and cultural activities to student identity building in minority Francophone communities, and acknowledging the key role played by school principals in that regard, the three organizations agreed to form a partnership with a common objective: to equip Francophone school principals in minority communities for their role as cultural outreach workers by giving them easy access to artistic and cultural resources in each province and territory. The Trousse du passeur culturel à l’intention des directions d’écoles project was conceived at that first meeting and took shape at subsequent meetings of the project task force, of which the New Brunswick Department of Education join.

PROJECT ORIGINS

In June 2005, the Fédération nationale des conseils scolaires francophones (FNCSF), in cooperation with the member national organizations of the "Table nationale en education" held a Summit of education stakeholders active in the implementation of section 23 in minority Francophone communities. During the Summit, the action plan for the school identity building and cultural action initiative, one of seven priority initiatives, was adopted. One central idea emerged from this mobilization exercise, on which all agreed: French-language schools in minority communities must be different from the English-language schools serving the majority in that their role and operations must include offering young people a cultural project that can attract and rally them and contribute to their identity building.

Co-chaired by the FCCF and the ACELF, the Table de l’axe de l’Action culturelle et identitaire (TAACI) is charged with coordinating the implementation of the Axe action culturelle et identitaire agreed on at the Summit. It held its first official meeting in Ottawa on March 28, 2007, at which time the "Trousse du passeur culturel" project was adopted as the first project sponsored by the working group.

It is also at that first meeting, New Brunswick, one of the seven provinces represented on the TAACI, expressed interest in becoming the promoter of the project. Subsequent discussions confirmed the province’s willingness to establish a partnership with the Department of Canadian Heritage under a funding program for pan-Canadian initiatives regarding official languages in education. The Government of New Brunswick will therefore sign the agreement with the Government of Canada on behalf of the participating provincial and territorial governments.

PARTNERS

Initiated by the Table de l’axe de l’Action culturelle et identitaire (TAACI), which is linked with the FNCSF tripartite committee, the project is a joint initiative of three organizations and the education departments of the provinces and territories that are members of the TAACI :

• Fédération canadienne des directions d’écoles francophones (FCDEF)
• Association canadienne d’éducation de langue française (ACELF)
• Fédération culturelle canadienne-française (FCCF)
• Alberta Education
• British Columbia Department of Education
• Prince Edward Island Department of Education
• Education, Citizenship and Youth Manitoba
• New Brunswick Department of Education (representing the provinces and territories of Canada in this application)
• Nova Scotia Department of Education
• Nunavut Department of Education
• Ontario Department of Education
• Saskatchewan Department of Education
• Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Education
• Northwest Territories Department of Education, Culture and Employment
• Yukon Department of Education

Terms and conditions of the agreement between the partners:

• Half of the project funding will be contributed by the provinces and territories interested in the project.
• The yearly contribution of each province or territory involved will be established on a pro rata basis according to that province or territory's Francophone school enrolments.
• The New Brunswick Department of Education is responsible for developing and managing the agreement between the provinces and territories interested.
• The New Brunswick Department of Education is responsible for developing and managing the service contracts with the three NGOs chosen to develop the kit and present it to the partners concerned.
• New Brunswick, as the representative of the provinces and territories involved in the project, will sign contracts with the FCCF, the ACELF, and the FCDEF for development and presentation services.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The purpose of the project is to design, produce, and distribute a "Trousse du passeur culturel" containing information, tools, and resources that will help Francophone school principals and vice-principals enrich the cultural environment of Francophone schools in Canada's minority Francophone communities.

The kit would be available in print form for use in training workshops offered for school principals and vice-principals across the country. It would also be available on an interactive Web site (passeursculturels.ca) so that the information could be updated continuously and an interactive learning community of Francophone school principals could be formed.

Although originally designed for school principals and vice-principals, the kit could eventually be improved to include a section intended for teachers, containing classroom learning activities. Also, it would be made available to school principals in Quebec to familiarize them with the wealth of cultural resources in the Canadian Francophonie. They could then adapt the content for use in Quebec's majority Francophone communities.

LONG-TERM IMPACTS

• Students develop a sense of cultural identity and a feeling of belonging to the Francophone community.
• Schools maintain an especially dynamic Francophone cultural environment within their confines.
• Schools attach importance to arts education and also strive to incorporate the arts into instruction at all levels.
• Schools support a range of extracurricular activities involving culture and the arts.
• Parents participate in the schools' educational project in their identity building responsibility.
• School principals, teachers, and other school staff members play an active role as passeurs culturels by showing students their attachment to Francophone culture and encouraging them to take an interest in it.

CONTENT OF THE TROUSSE DU PASSEUR CULTUEL

Although the content of the kit has yet to be developed in phase one of the project, the partners have agreed on the following parameters as a starting point:

• It must reflect cultural diversity, highlighting the contributions made to the Canadian Francophonie by Francophones from various ethnic backgrounds and familiarizing students with the rich cultural heritage of old-stock French Canadians;
• It must include one section for the elementary level and one for the high school level, placing special emphasis on Grades 7 and 8, the crucial transition stage between elementary and high school;
• It would consist of three complementary sections:

1. A first section on the concept of identity building, including:

• a summary of the identity-building model developed by the ACELF;
• arguments for the contribution made by arts education and cultural activities to student identity building in either minority or intercultural environments.

2. A second section on the concept and role of the passeur culturel, including:

• a presentation of the theoretical concept of the passeur culturel;
• examples of passeurs culturels among the school principals' peers, as role models;
• practical suggestions as to how school principals can play the role of passeur culturel with teachers, parents, students, and community members;
• a checklist of 20 or 25 things to do to be a good passeur culturel.

3. A third section on the artistic and cultural resources that school principals in each province and territory can use in their role as passeurs culturels. This section would include:

• a portrait of the arts and culture sector in the Canadian Francophonie (its ecosystem, organization, and operation, the number of artists, theatre companies, publishers, etc.);
• concrete examples of educational projects incorporating the artistic and cultural resources in the community;
• a list of reference sites on the various public and private programs that support arts education (funding and resources);
• an inventory of active artistic and cultural resources in each province and territory.

FUNDING

The Government of Canada and the Government of New Brunswick, on behalf of the participating provincial and territorial governments, each agree to contribute 50% of the total amount budgeted for the implementation of this project. The time frame for development of the Trousse du passeur culturel and presentation of the kit to Canada's Francophone school principals and cultural organizations covers three fiscal years, from 2007-2008 to 2009-2010. However, the contribution of the Department of Canadian Heritage, in the amount of $201,543, will be spread over the first two years of the agreement, whereas the contribution of the provinces and territories, in the amount of $201,543, will be spread over the last two years of the agreement. The total funding for the project over the three years amounts to $403,086.

New Brunswick Action Plan - Complementary Project Regarding Official Languages in Education - La Trousse du Passeur culturel - 2007-2008 to 2009-2010

Action	Expected outcomes	Performance indicators	Planned investment
			Years	Province	Federal
Develop the Trousse du passeur culturel for Canada's Francophone school principals. Present the kit to Canada's Francophone school principals and cultural organizations.	Development of the Trousse du passeur culturel for Francophone school principals. Design and posting of a Web site containing an inventory of active artistic and cultural resources in each province and territory, as well as a list of reference sites on the various public and private programs that support arts education. Presentation of the Trousse du passeur culturel to Canada's Francophone school principals and cultural organizations.	The kit is produced and printed. The Web site is on line and contains a list of reference sites on the various public and private programs that support arts education, as well as an inventory of active artistic and cultural resources in each province and territory. The number of organizations and Francophone school principals in the provinces and territories having received a training or information session on the use of the Trousse du passeur culturel, and the beneficial effects on the schools.	2007-2008	$ 50,945	$ 0
			2008-2008	$150,598	$128,288
			2009-2010	$0	$ 73,255
		Grand total:	2007-2008 to 2009-2010	$201,543	$201,543