The Honourable Joan Burke, Minister of Education, is leading a Canadian delegation to the 22^nd Standing Conference of European Ministers of Education, scheduled for May 3-4 in Istanbul, Turkey. The Canadian delegation will be joined by delegations from the United States and Israel as well as the 46 member states of the Council of Europe.

"As chair of the Council of Minister of Education, Canada, I am pleased to attend this conference and bring a distinctly Canadian perspective to the discussions and debate," said Minister Burke. "This year�s conference theme is Building a more humane and inclusive Europe: role of education policies. Canada can be proud of its inclusive practices. Each province and territory has policies in place that enhance access to education and achievement for all. We are truly a multi-cultural nation, while at the same time we have legislation firmly in place nation-wide that guards against discrimination in education."

The minister noted that Canada has several connections with European ministries of Education. These include the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) representing 30 countries which share a commitment to democratic government and the market economy. Canada belongs to the UNESCO Europe region and meets with many of these countries in the OECD setting. Together with 50 other nations, Canada also participates in PISA (Program for International Student Assessment), which is an international assessment for 15-year-olds.

"Canada has much to share and can benefit as well from the meetings that will take place among ministers. As our students must be prepared to succeed in a global marketplace, it is important that we keep up dialogue on common issues that affect us all," said Minister Burke.

The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) was formed in 1967 by the provincial and territorial ministers responsible for education to provide a forum to discuss issues of mutual interest, to work co-operatively on educational initiatives and to represent areas of interest for the provinces and territories with the federal government, foreign governments and national educational organizations.

Funding to attend the conference is provided through the federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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Media contact:
Jacquelyn Howard
Director of Communications
Department of Education
709-729-0048, 689-2624
jacquelynhoward@gov.nl.ca

2007 05 02                                                     9:25 a.m.