The former premier, in an eloquent and emotional speech at a luncheon to honour James K. Irving for his dedication to education, told New Brunswick the province must recognize it can be an educational leader across Canada - and the globe.

“We’re living in a knowledge economy, that is fact,” he said. “Success or failure will be determined by bandwidth and by brain-width, and that is fact. New Brunswick, whatever disadvantages we might have had, we have all of the essential tools to surpass any other country, and any other province in winning this knowledge battle.”

McKenna said in a “perfect world” the provincial government would place greater emphasis on early childhood development, reward exceptional teachers and invest more in public education…

In a perfect world, said McKenna, “health would not be Canada’s number-one priority - it would be education, not because health isn’t our most pressing national issue; it clearly is.

“The evidence is clear that education will give us the tools to create the prosperity to purchase the kind of quality health care that we so richly deserve.” …

Under the province’s five-year education plan, called “When Kids Come First,” teachers will be financially rewarded for introducing new and better ways to help children learn…

McKenna said that in his perfect world, the government would reinvest significantly in early childhood education. Citing experts in the field, including researchers Fraser Mustard and Margaret McCain, he said that important human development happens at an early age.

Mustard, head of a Toronto-based health-care think tank, will headline an international conference in Saint John next month that is expected to serve as the basis of the province’s highly anticipated health plan.

“Surely, if we even ignore the social reasons for early intervention, we must recognize the economic costs associated with future remediation and the loss to our economy of such magnificent human potential,” said McKenna.

“In a perfect world, we would set the bar high,” he said. “We would create a high expectation level for our young people, the only thing higher would be our praise for their accomplishments because there are no words that you could ever utter in whatever language you chose than to say something like, ‘You can do it, I believe in you, congratulations on a job well done.’” …

McKenna also took aim at parents, saying they should be entirely involved with their child’s education; teaching their children to “learn math without a calculator and introduce them to the magic of reading as opposed to the opiate of television.”

“In a perfect world, parents would be reading to their children every single night, provoking their curiosity, raising their expectations, developing their self-esteem, creating an endless curiosity that would be with them for the rest of their life,” he said. “Their children would learn as much at the kitchen table as they would at the classroom desk.” …

Source: Canada East, Canada
http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/front/article/79342