'Science wasn't taught': Sask. children's advocate finds independent schools are failing students

The Saskatchewan Advocate for Children and Youth is making a series of recommendations to the provincial government to improve oversight at independent schools.

In her report, Lisa Broda laid out 36 recommendations to the province and the Ministry of Education to improve independent schools, ranging from safeguarding effective oversight and accountability, enabling students to raise concerns, ensuring alignment of regulatory policies and monitoring learning.

Broda announced the investigation into the province's independent school system last year, after former students of Legacy Christian Academy, previously known as Saskatoon Christian Centre Academy, came forward alleging staff routinely paddled students and engaged in "controlling and abusive" behaviour — including a "gay exorcism."

More than a dozen former students have filed a class action lawsuit at Court of King's Bench seeking $25 million dollars in damages related to claims of years of sexual and physical abuse by former teachers and staff of the school. Four people affiliated with the school have been criminally charged in relation to the allegations.

"It's great to see the same concerns that us former students brought to former education minister Dustin Duncan last year -- this whole report points out all those same points," former Legacy student Caitlin Erickson said.

With Broda's report vindicating students' allegations, the criminal charges, and a previous ombudsman report detailing the ministries inability to process complaints, Erickson is wondering what else it will take to pull funding from independent schools. 

"It's just really baffling at this point," she said. "Funding needs to be immediately frozen."

"I don't know what more this current government would need or what number of abuse victims would be substantial enough for them to do something because everyone is saying the same thing."

Of the six categories of independent schools, registered independent schools are unfunded.

In her report, Broda points to some gaps in the education students were receiving at these schools in comparison to students in the separate or public systems.

Broda noted in years when Grade 12 students in these schools wrote provincially mandated exams, their average marks were 6.4 per cent to 1.2 per cent lower than the Saskatchewan population.

In the years where marks were determined entirely by the teacher, the average marks of students in unfunded independent schools were 3.4 per cent to 11.3 per cent higher than the total Saskatchewan student population.

"We heard there is not a way to assess what children are learning objectively or systematically or determine the quality of education provided in these grade levels," Broda said in her report.

Broda said there was no standard to ensure every independent school was teaching mandated provincial curriculum.

"We found at least in one school that science wasn't taught, and that was an oversight," Broda said.

In an email to CTV News, the Ministry of Education is thankful for Broda's work.

"The Government of Saskatchewan believes registered independent schools are a valuable part of our education sector as they provide parental choice with respect to their child’s education," the statement said.

"Due to the length of the report and the number of recommendations made in it, a detailed analysis is required before we can provide further comment."

Broda says the ministry received an advanced copy of the report.

NDP Education Critic Matt Love said the province should accept the recommendations rather than the overall report.

"It's not hard to say, 'Yes, we will ensure human rights are respected in our schools,'" Love said. "That should have been the first response."

In 2022-2023, there were more than 5,700 students enrolled in 63 registered independent schools across Saskatchewan.

"There's an act to compel all children to go to school," Broda said. "Therefore, we need to make sure that we have good oversight on what's being taught within the schools."