The government has released an education plan for the anglophone sector.
Strong Basics, Bright Futures is intended to reflect New Brunswick's unique realities and respond to the needs of a population that has changed since the last plan was released in 2016.
"This plan sets a collaborative long-term vision for education in New Brunswick to build curiosity, confidence and opportunity for every child," said Premier Susan Holt. "We're focused on making sure kids have strong basics like literacy and numeracy to set them up for bright futures outside of the classroom. We've included key measures and achievement targets so that we can track progress."
The plan presents a 12-year vision for the anglophone sector. It features a three-year "action cycle," with specific metrics and yearly targets to achieve during that period, as well as long-term, 12-year targets.
The plan identifies three priority areas:
- Creating strong foundational skills in literacy and numeracy.
- Promoting well-being and belonging.
- Strengthening collaboration between partners in education.
It also identifies three conditions for success:
- A stable and strong workforce.
- Continuous improvement and innovation.
- Accountability and transparency.
"This plan reflects the voices, experiences and aspirations of children, families, educators and communities across New Brunswick," said Education and Early Childhood Development Minister Claire Johnson. "We consulted extensively with our partners in education, listening and responding carefully to the needs they identified. There is a shared desire for greater focus across the system and better outcomes for both children and educators. This plan reflects a commitment to alignment - ensuring everyone is working toward common goals with clarity and cohesion. More importantly, the short-term action plans propose ways to measure progress to address what isn't working, targeting areas where support is most needed in a timely manner."
The plan contains 25 indicators that will be tracked to measure progress. One is the number of schools reaching success rates of 70 per cent or higher on provincial assessments. Others, which have identified targets for the next three years, as well as a target for 2038, include:
- Percentage of families receiving screening and initial assessments from early intervention services agencies within 60 working days.
- Percentage of students who feel like they belong at school (from survey questions for grades 4 and 5 and grades 6-12).
- Percentage of students who had the opportunity to learn the history of Indigenous people in Canada through courses or cultural activities (from Grade12 exit survey).
- Percentage of French immersion students successful (intermediate level or above) on the French second-language oral proficiency assessment.
- Percentage of trained early childhood educators (one-year early childhood education certificate, two-year diploma, or bachelor of education in early childhood education).
The plan builds on other investments in the education system, including $2.2 billion this year for Education and Early Childhood Development.
This funding includes:
- $19.3 million to hire 210 educational assistants, who will support the 267 currently working in schools.
- $3.7 million to hire 40 more resource teachers across anglophone and francophone sectors and 20 more school counsellors in the anglophone sector.
- $26 million for a lunch program to provide subsidized meals at every school in the province.
- Providing all students with access to healthy breakfast foods, with support from the federal government's National School Food Program.
- $1.4 million to support the retention and recruitment of teachers, bus drivers, custodians and educational assistants through onboarding, mentorship and workplace improvements.
- $242.7 million in education infrastructure from the 2026-27 capital budget to ensure safe and reliable schools.
- $8.5 million to support inclusion in the early childhood sector.
The release of this plan, along with one for the francophone sector, aligns with the government's commitment to establish a collective vision for education with input from with teachers and other education professionals, experts and parents.
"This plan represents a positive step forward for public education in New Brunswick, grounded in a shared commitment to students and stronger schools," said Heidi Ryder, president of the New Brunswick Teachers' Association. "The true measure will be implementation - delivered with transparency, accountability and the resources needed to make a difference in classrooms, ensuring that what was committed to is what is experienced across schools and communities. We appreciate government's openness to engaging teachers in the process and see this as an opportunity to strengthen public education for every student in the province."
Related links
