Northwest Territories (NWT)

There are nine Indigenous languages recognized as official (Chipewyan, Cree, Gwich’in, Inuinnaqtun, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun, North Slavey, South Slavey, and Tłįchô) in what is currently the Northwest Territories (NWT). The Official Languages Act (1988) recognizes these languages along with English and French as official languages. The Act also established an Aboriginal Languages Revitalization Board, comprising at least one member of each of the Indigenous language communities. The Board can advise the Minister in carrying out a responsibility to support Indigenous language education and revitalization.

The Education Act (1996) states the language of instruction must be an official language and that more than one official language can be used. If a language of instruction is not English, the school must provide English language instruction as part of its programming. Equally, if English is the chosen language of instruction, one of the other official languages of the territory must be provided as part of the education program (McIvor et al., 2022).

The NWT has additional policies related to Indigenous language education and revitalization. The government established the Indigenous Languages and Education Secretariat to oversee the Aboriginal Languages Framework. The Framework is a blueprint for revitalizing and improving access to programs and services in all nine official Indigenous languages (McIvor et al., 2022). The Secretariat oversees the Indigenous Languages Action Plan, developed to support language revitalization and language access. It also assists with implementing the Indigenous Languages and Education Policy, intended to promote and support the cultures, languages and worldviews within NWT schools (McIvor et al., 2022).


References

McIvor, O., Chew, K., & Hemlock, K. (2022). Legislation, regulation and policies concerning the revitalization of Indigenous languages in Canada and Internationally. Assembly of First Nations.

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