Shortfall hurts First Nations students: report

The parliamentary budget officer says for years the federal government has inadequately addressed the higher costs of operating First Nations schools, leaving students on some reserves at a significant disadvantage compared with their peers in the provincial systems.

The budget watchdog says in a new report that the funding divide between education delivered on reserves and in the provincial systems was as wide as $595 million in 2012-13 and could grow to as much as $665 million this fiscal year.

For example, the report says that in 2012-13 on-reserve schools received per-student funding of $14,500 under the federal formula — but if calculated under the Ontario provincial rules they would have been allocated between $21,000 and $25,000.

The budget office says the funding gap is a result of the federal government failing to provide enough financial support for First Nations schools that often face greater costs due to factors such as remote locations, socio-economic challenges, higher rates of special education and the inclusion of culturally relevant lessons. Education funding in Canada is primarily a provincial responsibility except for on-reserve schooling, which is paid for by Ottawa.

The budget office says commitments made earlier this year by the Trudeau government have the potential to address the shortfalls, but only if Ottawa puts an end to its past practice of failing to spend large amounts of funds it had dedicated for First Nations schools.