12 3 Manitoba School Question 4 5 The Laurier and Greenway Compromise 6 ------------------------------- 7 8 9 TERMS OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA AND THE 10 GOVERNMENT OF MANITOBA FOR THE SETTLEMENT OF THE SCHOOL QUESTION, 11 NOVEMBER 16, 1896. 12 13 1. Legislation shall be introduced and passed at the next 14 regular session of the Legislature of Manitoba embodying the 15 provisions hereinafter set forth in amendment to the "Public 16 Schools Act," for the purpose of settling the educational questions 17 that have been in dispute in that province. 18 2. Religious teaching to be conducted as hereinafter 19 provided: -- 20 (1) If authorized by a resolution passed by a majority of the 21 school trustees, or, 22 (2) If a petition be presented to the board of school 23 trustees asking for religious teaching and signed by the parents or 24 guardians of at least ten children attending the school in the case 25 of a rural district, or by the parents or guardians of at least 26 twenty-five children attending the school in a city, town or 27 village. 28 (3) Such religious teaching to take place between the hours 29 of 3.30 and 4 o'clock in the afternoon, and to be conducted by any 30 Christian clergyman whose charge includes any portion of the school 31 district, or by a person duly authorized by such clergyman, or by 32 a teacher when so authorized. 33 (4) Where so specified in such resolution of the trustees, or 34 where so required by the petition of the parents or guardians, 35 religious teaching during the prescribed period may take place only 36 on certain specified days of the week instead of on every teaching 37 day. 38 (5) In any school in towns and cities where the average 39 attendance of Roman Catholic children is forty or upwards, and in 40 villages and rural districts where the average attendance of such 41 children is twenty-five or upwards, the trustees shall, if required 42 by the petition of the parents or guardians of such number of Roman 43 Catholic children respectively, employ at least one duly 44 certificated Roman Catholic teacher in such school. 45 In any school in towns and cities where the average attendance 46 of non-Roman Catholic children is forty or upwards, and in villages 47 and rural districts where the average attendance of such children 48 is twenty-five or upwards, the trustees shall, if required by the 49 petition of the parents or guardians of such children, employ at 50 least one duly certificated non-Roman Catholic teacher. 51 (6) Where religious teaching is required to be carried on in 52 any school in pursuance of the foregoing provisions, and there are 53 Roman Catholic children and non-Roman Catholic children attending 54 such school, and the school-room accommodations does not permit of 55 the pupils being placed in separate rooms for the purpose of 56 religious teaching, provisions shall be made by regulations of the 57 Department of Education (which regulations the Board of school 58 trustees shall observe) whereby the time allotted for religious 59 teaching shall be divided in such a way that religious teaching of 60 the Roman Catholic children shall be carried on during the 61 prescribed period on one-half of the teaching days in each month, 62 and the religious teaching of the non-Roman Catholic children may 63 be carried on during the prescribed period on one-half of the 64 teaching days in each month. 65 (7) The Department of Education shall have the power to make 66 regulations not inconsistent with the principles of this Act for 67 the carrying into effect the provisions of this Act. 68 (8) No separation of the pupils by religious denominations 69 shall take place during the secular school work. 70 (9) Where the school room accommodation at the disposal of 71 the trustees permits, instead of alloting different days of the 72 week to the different denominations for the purpose of religious 73 teaching, the pupils may be separated when the hour for religious 74 teaching arrives, and placed in separate rooms. 75 (10) Where ten of the pupils in any school speak the French 76 language (or any language other than English) as their native 77 language, the teaching of such pupils shall be conducted in French 78 (or such other language), and English upon the bilingual system. 79 (11) No pupils to be permitted to be present at any religious 80 teaching unless the parents or guardians of such pupils desire it. 81 In case the parents or guardians do not desire the attendance of 82 the pupils at such religious teaching, then the pupils shall be 83 dismissed before the exercises, or shall remain in another room. 84 85 86 SOURCE: 87 Canada, (1897), no. 35, 1-2.