4. In Canada, the federal-provincial division of authority stipulates that education is a provincial matter. Officially there is no federal presence in the area of educational policy and the federal government behaves as if there were none. The OECO Report on Educational Policy in Canada described this as a "do-one-thing-as-if-it-were-something-else" attitude (1.) This report goes on to state that "In Canada today, as in all modern states, education is a right of each citizen, due to each citizen regardless of his place of residence" (2); but nowhere is this right specified.

A considerable number of federal policies do relate indirectly or implicitly to educational matters, and to the basic education of various groups of adults. The major portion of this indirect activity is the responsibility of the Canada Employment and Immigration Commission (CEIC) which provides funds for three types of basic education, all related to eventual employment and economic stability: academic upgrading for those whose educational level is not high enough for entry to occupational training programs; work adjustment or life skills for those who have trouble holding a job; and language training for immigrants who need English or French to find and retain employment.

The Adult Occupational Training Act, passed in 1967 and since modified, funds the provinces which then provide educational programs to assist adults to gain the skills necessary to obtain employment or to improve their present economic capability. It rapidly became evident that many adults required basic education and language skills before they could take advantage of this occupational training. Therefore, Basic Training for Skill Development (BTSD) programs were developed to provide the basic education and Language Training programs were developed for those requiring language skills. A number of innovative programs were begun which enjoyed varied degrees of success. These included: Newstart; BLADE (Basic Literacy for Adult Development); EOW (Employment for Women); BEST (Basic Employment Skills Training); BJRT (Basic Job Readiness Training); INTO (Introduction to Non-Traditional Occupations; among others. These were in addition to the basic academic upgrading at three levels: Level I for grades 1 - 6; Level II for grades 7 - 10; and Level III for grades 11 and 12; and to basic English/French Language Training. All these programs developed in response to needs rather than as an outcome of stated policy or legislation. In 1970, the Assistant Deputy Minister of the Department of Manpower, Dr. W. R. Dymond, stated that equity and stability as an objective of the department were secondary to the primary objective of facilitating economic growth. (3) In the years following 1970, the Department moved toward making equity and stability a major focus. By 1975, about 50% of all training funds were being used to assist adults at or below the poverty line, and 33% of all institutional training funds were going into BTSD programs, a proportion which was viewed as excessive in terms of the original intent of the AOT Act.(4)

In 1976, the Manpower Division of the CEIC conducted an extensive internal review of all training programs and decided that the economic return on BTSD funds did not justify the expense.(5) Therefore, such funds have been frozen and will eventually be reduced and possibly eliminated. At the same time Manpower training funds have been shifted away from institutional training programs and into industrial training programs/and away from the eastern regions of high unemployment and toward the western regions of high economic growth. In combination with recent changes in Manpower training allowances and unemployment insurance benefits, it would appear that we can no longer look to Manpower to provide funds for adult basic education programs, particularly not to women who require extensive upgrading to reach the level required for their occupational goal. Manpower training allowances will be provided only to those requiring level II in upgrading and to those requiring level III in special circumstances; and to immigrants who have entered Canada as independent or nominated immigrants (i.e. this excludes those who enter as dependent immigrants or dependent spouses).

(1). Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, Reviews of national policies for education: Canada. (Paris: OECD, 1976), p. 89

(2). Ibid., p. 90.

(3). The Standing Senate Committee on National Finance, Report on Canada Manpower, An examination of the Manpower Division of the Department of Manpower an Immigration, 1975. (Ottawa: Government of Canada, 1976); p. 5

(4). Ibid., p.

(5). Canada Employment and Immigration Commission, Manpower Training Branch, "The Canada Manpower Training Program: A policy review, 1977". (Ottawa: CEIC, Manpower Training Branch, 1977), p.