As an organization representing all parents in the province, the Federation has focussed its attention on the sections of the report that address concerns affecting all students. We are leaving comment on specific recommendations respecting specific disabilities, such as cognitive delay, challenging needs, visual impairments, hearing impairments, learning disabilities, behaviour disorders, exceptionally able learners, additional challenging needs and sick children, to those organizations which represent those children and their parents; only they have the expertise and knowledge to best represent the needs of children with those specific problems.

Our concern is with the recommendations which affect all students, such as those concerned with special education policy and practice, poverty, reading, and support personnel. It is clear from Dr. Canning's report that the implementation of policies and practices for special needs children greatly affects the learning environment of the rest of the students in the education system.

Special Education Policy and Practice

Dr. Canning points out that between 1989 and 1992, as a result of a new provincial education policy introduced in 1987, the large majority of students with special needs began receiving their education primarily in the regular classroom. According to Dr. Canning, the new policy was based upon a "Cascade of Services" model, but evidence indicates that no such cascade of services was developed. As Dr. Canning points out, the regular classroom is now a very different place from that of even a few years ago. She also points out that "there is no doubt that teachers and schools neither have been adequately prepared nor have they been adequately supported in this endeavour" (Canning, p. 11).

The Federation does not have sufficient time, energy or resources to investigate the advisability of integration of special needs services. We are prepared to accept the recommendations of those more qualified to address these questions. However we feel it is crucial, both to special needs students and to the rest of the students in the classroom, that whatever approach is chosen is adequately supported. This means:

• making available whatever additional personnel are necessary,
• keeping class sizes at a level that makes it possible for the classroom teacher to handle all children's needs and
• providing classroom teachers with professional development to train them to cope with the new demands on their skills.

We cannot isolate these problems from education as a whole in our province. For all children to receive a quality education, child poverty must be addressed. Research shows it is important to establish and implement nutrition, parenting, literacy and preschool programs before children reach school. Once children reach school, teaching strategies and other interventions are necessary to ensure that poor children have the same opportunity to succeed in school as others from more advantaged backgrounds. The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador must develop an overall plan to address these problems in a comprehensive manner. Further task forces or studies are not necessary. Recommendations from the 1992 Royal Commission, from Dr. Canning's report Special Matters, from the report of the Select Committee on Children's Interests LISTENing & ACTing, along with currently available expertise from the Department of Health, Social Services and Education, are quite sufficient to quickly and efficiently map a course of action.

The Federation is a founding member, along with the Newfoundland and Labrador School Boards Association (NLSBA) and the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers Association (NLTA) of REACH (Responsibility for Educating and Assisting Children in Hunger). This group is focussing on the educational implications of children living in poverty in this province. REACH has been talking with many organizations and individuals. It is clear to us that in addition to interventions once children reach school, preschool (in fact preconception) programs are essential to the future educational success of children at risk.

These issues affect all children. If special education teachers are dealing with remedial reading rather than true special needs children, the special needs children suffer. If classroom teachers are preoccupied with remedial reading or behaviour problems stemming from hunger, the rest of the class inevitably suffers. Only by supporting the classroom teacher with additional personnel, training and professional development, and maintaining reasonable class sizes, can special needs and the needs of other children be properly addressed.

Conclusion

The Federation strongly feels that Dr. Canning's report highlights a major problem in education in Newfoundland and Labrador. We must address the problems of poverty, reading and special needs before we can improve learning for all students. The common thread running through the many recommendations in Special Matters is that sufficient resources,especially human resources and training, to deal with the problems, must be made available. Classroom teachers must be backed up by enough special needs teachers, remedial teachers, Board support personnel and Department support personnel and these people in turn must be adequately trained.

Finally, class sizes must be small enough to deal with today's realities. Teachers face increased demands in a variety of areas: integration of special needs students, emotional and behavioural problems stemming from the current economic situation in our province, and expectations that teachers impart information on such social issues which in past have been the family's domain.

For the sake of all students, and for the sake of excellence in education, we urge the Department of Education to implement recommendations in Dr. Canning's report. We urge the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to support the Department of Education in the context of an overall plan involving the Departments of Education, Health and Social Services, to address the needs of children in this province, particularily children at risk, from preconception on.

Money spent now is an investment in the future. It is an investment with return -- research has shown that each $1 expenditure in prevention now will lead to $7 in savings in the future. Now is not the time to make further cuts to our education system!