Fort Simpson mother Jerri Brenton will soon send her two eldest children back to the community's Liidlii Kue Elementary School. However, their experience at the school has been difficult enough that she won't enrol her two youngest children, and has opted to home school them instead.
"I plan to home school [my two youngest children], not only because of the school, but because of the whole education system," she said. "I feel like it's such a waste of time.
"The schools are failing these kids."
Brenton said she has encountered multiple problems during her two eldest children's time at Liidlii Kue Elementary School (LKES).
Earlier this year, the school was at the centre of a major controversy after the parents of an autistic child claimed their child was struck by a teacher. Following an internal investigation, the teacher involved in the incident was reassigned to another class, but ultimately returned to work at the school.
With that incident still fresh in her memory, Brenton is apprehensive about sending her two older children back to LKES for the new school year.
"It's a little bit scary," she said. "You just kind of hope for the best every day, and I don't think any parent should feel that way."
Unfortunately, her concerns do not end with that particular incident.
Her eldest boy, she explained, has been reprimanded for his high energy levels SA国际影视传媒� although she considers his behaviour normal for a child his age.
"When they're younger, we can't have this expectation of keeping them inside of school all day," she said. "I know with [pre-kindergarten] and things like that, it's not like they're sitting at a desk all day, but our son is five, and he is very strong and super active SA国际影视传媒� you know, he's a little boy. At this time in [a boy's] life, I believe their testosterone is at its peak. That's why they're so rambunctious.
"We've had conversations with a teacher that he's struggling, having behavioural issues at school, and it's like, is he the problem, or is what is expected of him every day the problem?"
Brenton's daughter, 11, has also had issues at the school.
"Even our daughter as well, she's a very, very active kid," she said. "She's told us that they do a lot of judo at the school, which is great. I know some kids love it. She's tried it, and she does really well at it, but I think she's lost interest in it, especially because, in gym class, that's what they spend a lot of time doing, and judo's kind of a slower martial art.
"She said every day in gym class, that's what they do, and she doesn't enjoy it. I asked if they have the other side of the gym, as I remember in gym class, sometimes it's split up with one side doing a specific activity and the other side doing kind of like a free play. She said that they don't do that."
Calls to the Deh Cho education superintendent's office were not returned prior to publication deadline.
With so many concerns about her eldest children's schooling, Brenton is not confident about the coming year.
"I guess I'm feeling really protective going into the school year," she said. "Ultimately, I hope for the best for them, and that they get to enjoy their days and make the most of it, but I'm going into the school year probably more protective than any other year."
The mother of four hopes to alleviate some of her worry by homeschooling her two youngest children, who are still toddlers. However, she admits that homeschooling her children was never part of her plan, and that doing so will come with plenty of challenges.
First and foremost, she's worried that her home-schooled children will miss out on the social element that students in the public school system benefit from.
"I'm fortunate enough that I work from home, so that kind of puts me in a place to be able to do this," she said. "But the way that I think of it is, we're pretty social family, but in this specific case of homeschooling, when I think about about it, it's pretty lonely.
"I'm going figure that out with my kids, how to make the best of their time."
UPDATE: After this story was posted online and on social media, the Fort Simpson Metis Community commented on X (formerly Twitter): "Unfortunately our education department is very broken. This is not the only parent going to home school their children. There were promises made by the superintendent for work to help, but that appears to have been a broken promise. NWT education system seriously needs help."
