Montréal, Thursday, May 24, 2012

It is wonderful to be here with you today at the outset of this important conference on leadership and learning.

As you may know, I have devoted much of my life to education, having been a student, teacher and university administrator prior to taking up my current role. As governor general, I have only deepened my dedication to learning, and it has been a great privilege to meet with educational leaders and teachers across Canada to see the remarkable work being done in our schools.

I believe that learning is among the most important things we do, both as individuals and as a society.

We never know where it will take us.

If I may presume to draw from my own experience, I would never have imagined speaking to you today as governor general of Canada, having grown up in a small resource town in northern Ontario. The journey began with learning, and I owe a debt of gratitude to every teacher and principal along the way, from whom I have learned so much.  

It is difficult to overstate the significance of education in our lives today. As many of us know from personal experience, it is the great social and economic equalizer. And there is an abundance of data to reinforce the link between education and human development.

At its core, human development is about expanding the choices available to people so that they may lead lives that they value. And education, while providing no guarantees, is nevertheless the primary means by which we can increase our choices and thrive as human beings.

Consider just this one fact: during the economic downturn in 2008–09, young people aged 20–24 who lacked a high school diploma were more than twice as likely to be unemployed as their peers who graduated.

Canadians understand the importance of education, for individual success and for the greater good. We must always remember that our greatest strength by far lies in our capacity to think clearly, critically and creatively. 

The ability to think and to learn is the most practical tool we can acquire. As Northrop Frye once said of literacy, nothing can compare with it in usefulness.

I quote:

“Wherever illiteracy is a problem, it’s as fundamental a problem as getting enough to eat or a place to sleep.”

The same can be said for a general lack of education. As elementary and secondary school leaders, you provide the fundamental learning that forms the basis of all good things that follow.

It is no exaggeration to say that the health of our democracy depends on the work you do. At the core of democratic societies is the idea that people know enough to govern themselves, and education is one of the keys to developing that wisdom.

The broad range of learning that you provide at the elementary and secondary school levels forms the basis for successful individuals, and for successful citizens.  

These thoughts on democracy may seem rather lofty when you are dealing with the immediate challenges of the school day! But I ask that you always remember the critical role you play in our country. 

I know you face many challenges and constraints in preparing young Canadians for the 21st century. We are living through a period of rapid and profound change on a global scale, and this is having a real impact on the work you do.

Indeed, education today must take into consideration the changes that are occurring in our world. The digital revolution is transforming our lives and society, and, as Ken Dryden writes in his book, Becoming Canada, learning today means expanding our horizons well beyond our country’s borders.

“To think about Canada,” he writes, “we need to think about the world. And the world’s future, it is clear, will depend on learning and on getting along.”

I am pleased to note your discussions over the next few days will focus on skills and strategies for our changing times. I encourage you to be bold in your thinking.  

As leaders, you have a unique responsibility to foster excellence and equality of opportunity in our schools. A careful balance must be struck. You provide leadership and support to teachers and students, while acting as an intermediary with those outside the school who have a stake in student success.

You are responsible for providing a safe and stable learning environment for students and teachers, and you must also nurture innovation and encourage intelligent risk-taking.   

During my years as a university principal, I always tried to remember that our education system is underpinned by a social contract.

This contract exists between educators, students, parents and the public, as well as our representatives in government. There is nothing abstract about this arrangement; rather, it is about real people working together in pursuit of the common goal of learning.

One important aspect of the social contract calls upon us to constantly renew our education system in order to remain relevant. This imperative to renew makes demands upon each of us—not just educators, but also members of the public and governments, who must embrace and drive change as required.

I think the theme of this conference—leadership under construction—strikes the right note in this regard. As educators, you know better than most that leadership is always a work-in-progress and that the learning never ends.

Dr. William Osler, one of Canada’s most renowned physicians and a founder of the modern medical school, once said:

“The hardest conviction to get into the mind of a beginner is that the education upon which he is engaged is not a college course, not a medical course, but a life course.”

In keeping with this notion of lifelong learning, I have been calling on teachers and leaders at all educational levels to deepen their efforts to look at education as a continuum. Let me challenge you to do likewise.

We must strive to build a truly integrated and coherent system where one stage of learning supports another. As the terms imply, the elementary and secondary school levels are fundamentally important to those that follow.

In this sense, you truly are leaders—not just of your own schools, but of Canada’s entire educational system.

In my installation speech as governor general, I encouraged Canadians to cherish our teachers, and I want to extend my appreciation to each of you who work so hard to lead our schools and learning institutions.

On behalf of all Canadians, thank you for all that you do.

I wish you an enlightening and productive conference.