The Post-War Period 243

cation had been considering a program to consolidate small rural schools, thus eliminating the poor performance in schools where one teacher was forced to teach between twelve and fifty pupils ranging from Grades 1 to 10. Under these conditions it was difficult to provide Island students with varied and good quality teaching.

In 1958 the provincial government took the first step towards the consolidation of schools. The Legislature adopted a bill which paved the way for the creation of regional schools at the secondary level, that is Grades 9 to 12. This legislation encouraged small adjoining school districts to collaborate in the establishment of secondary schools. As a result of this law, numerous regional high schools were created all over the Island. The consolidation of elementary schools began in 1965°'.

We have already examined the economic changes brought about by the Prince Edward Island Development Plan of 1969. The Plan also made provisions for a major reorganization of the educational system designed to improve the quality of teaching, to double the percentage of pupils who completed Grade 12, and generally to provide Islanders with a flexible structure that could be adapted to handle both short- term problems and long-term needs’’. A substantial contribution from the federal government enabled this restructuring to take place. The 217 school boards were regrouped into five administrative units in 1972”. As a result, the remaining small rural schools closed their doors and pupils at the elementary, intermediate and secondary levels enrolled in consolidated schools. This massive reorganization enabled more variety to be introduced into the curriculum and the quality of teaching to be improved.

It was at the end of the 1960s that important changes were made at the post-secondary level. The Catholic college, St. Dunstan’s, and Prince of Wales College were amalgamated in 1969 to form the Univer- sity of Prince Edward Island which, as a provincial university, was financed mainly by government. Holland College for vocational and industrial arts was founded the same year**. In collaboration with the ’ federal Department of Employment and Immigration, these two in- stitutions organized a very diversified program for retraining and con- tinuing education.