| British Columbia
is Canada's westernmost province and is also one
of North America's most mountainous regions. It
shares its borders with those of Alberta, the
Yukon Territory and several American states, including
Alaska. Because of its strategic location, British
Columbia is a gateway to the Pacific and Asia.
A lot of the times, simply referred to as part
of Canada’s “West,” this province
has a distinct geographic and cultural identity.
Today, the province boasts of a heterogeneous
mix of people. Most of the people who live in
British Columbia are British by origin, but the
population is a diverse collection of people originating
from many different nationalities. The culture
of this region is diverse and the early Aboriginal
peoples were responsible for developing this rich
and colorful culture. The Pacific Coast itself
has a varying nature, from mild to cold climate,
seashore to mountains and because of this as well
the tribes that settled in this area developed
completely different cultures and languages (Stortz
& Wilson, 1993).
Aside from the British, a large number of British
Columbians are descendants of the thousands of
Chinese who participated in the construction of
the Canadian Pacific Railway in the late 19th
century. This can be judged from the fact that
today Vancouver has North America’s second-largest
Chinese community. Not just this, but more than
60,000 of the British Columbian population originates
from India and over 16,000 from Japan. The early
Aboriginal population though witnessed a decline
upon the arrival of the first European settlers,
has regained its strength. It is growing in numbers
and the Aborigines are making their presence felt.
The diverse culture does not stop here. The province
continues to appeal to Canadians and foreigners
alike: 40 000 persons settle in the province each
year, and its population has now surpassed 3.8
million which is 12 percent of Canada’s
total. Such a diverse mix of people and cultures
obviously requires special facilities in line
with their varying backgrounds. Hence, the education
ministry of British Columbia has strived hard
to make its education program suitable for each
of the categories of people living here (Stortz
& Wilson, 1993).
Education
British Columbia's Ministry of Education is responsible
for the area of primary and secondary education,
while the Ministry of Advanced Education, Training
and Technology holds responsibility for post-secondary
education.
The provincial public school system is a free,
universal, non-sectarian system which covers all
grades from kindergarten to grade 12. Attendance
is mandatory for children from kindergarten to
16 years of age. The system is currently made
up of 59 school districts and one Francophone
Education Authority. Each district has an elected
board of trustees that governs under the School
Act (Stortz & Wilson, 1993).
The province has six publicly funded universities,
out of which three are located in Vancouver owing
to the high concentration of diverse cultures
in this area. British Columbia also owns a detailed
college and institute system which imparts academic,
technical, vocational and career education. These
programs are administered through 11 community
colleges, five university-colleges (which offer
selected courses of study leading to bachelor
degrees), five institutes and the Open Learning
Agency. A very popular university is the University
of Northern British Columbia which has an enrollment
of 3500 students, all of whom enjoy unique degree
programs, a great learning experience and the
opportunity to study in British Columbia's natural
northern environment (Stortz & Wilson, 1993).
Diversity:
All of British Columbia’s public universities,
university colleges, colleges, and institutes
have openly welcomed international students from
all around the world for decades and continue
to do so. The Ministry of Education is well aware
of the multiculturalism prevalent in the province
as well as the influx of immigrants. Hence, the
five university colleges, eleven colleges and
six provincial institutes offer bachelor degrees,
university transfer, career, technical, and vocational
training. International student support services
have been designed by each BC public institution
to facilitate the transition of overseas students
to the Canadian education environment. International
Student Advisors who are available at most institutions,
can assist students with getting settled in their
new community, advise them on their program choices,
and help them plan their educational future (Stortz
& Wilson, 1993).
British Columbia’s public post-secondary
universities attract students coming from all
areas of the world and a survey showed that students
from over 116 countries attend BC institutions.
In the past decade especially, the province has
witnessed a consistent and significant increase
in the numbers of international students coming
to the province in all disciplines. A vast number
of students belong to the Asia Pacific region,
with a growing number from the United States,
Mexico, South America, and Europe. This kind of
diversity helps to bring an international dimension
to the campuses and a sense that the world is
in the classrooms (Stortz & Wilson, 1993;
Wilson, 1980).
As an example of the steps that the Ministry
of Education of British Columbia takes to ensure
that students from all cultures are recipients
of equal opportunities, the government in June
2004 signed an agreement to help improve aboriginal
student achievement. This was a joint agreement
between the provincial government, local aboriginal
leaders and the Nechako Lakes school district.
The agreement basically sets goals to improve
relationships between the school district, schools,
local communities and parents. It also sets academic
goals to improve aboriginal student literacy and
numeracy, and to ensure that more and more aboriginal
students graduate (British Columbia Ministry of
Education, 2001).
According to Education Minister Tom Christensen,
“While aboriginal students continue to do
better in school, they still face many challenges.
Our government is continuing its commitment to
expand our approach and devote special attention
and resources to addressing those challenges”
(British Columbia Ministry of Education, 2001).
This is the 12th such aboriginal enhancement
agreement. These agreements apparently do succeed
in their mission and enhance the educational achievements
of aboriginal students by creating affiliation
between aboriginal communities and school districts.
As a result of such positive steps, graduation
rates for aboriginal students have increased from
37 to 46 per cent over the past four years (British
Columbia Ministry of Education, 2001).
Hence, as can be seen from the above example,
the British Columbian administration has taken
steps to mould its education system in accordance
with the multiculturalism and diversity prevalent
in the region.
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