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The Citizen, 2001-11-14, Page 1IVEY'r 4 .1.44 ESTABLISHED 187 aiiesicumist r. A time to remember A member of the Ontario Provincial Police lays a wreath at the Brussels' Cenotaph to honour those who died serving Canada during the annual Remembrance Day service held on Sunday. Legion and Auxiliary members, Cadets, Scouting and Guiding groups participated in the service. (David Blaney photo) Gr. 3s improve in EQAO testing NORTH HURON PUBLISHING COMPANY INC Inside this week New CAP student at Brussels library Presentation warns of 'stupid line' Blyth Midgets, Pg. 10 Novices begin seasons /. Area people mark Pg. milestones Pg. 2 Blyth parade hid planning underway Pg. 2 Pg. 6 e Citizen Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Volume 17 No. 45 Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2001 75 Cents (70c + 5c GST) OPP remind to watch for deer Huron OPP are warning all motorists who are driving in Huron County to watch for deer. During the first nine days of this month 33 deer collisions have occurred. The crashes have been concentrated in the Central Region of the county between Goderich in the west to Brussels in the east. Some have taken place on Hwy. 21 from Grand Bend to Amberley, but over half have been 'in the Holmesville, Auburn, West Wawanosh and Brussels areas. The collisions have been occurring in the early morning between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. and at night between 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. when deer are moving about and feeding. Presently deer are also involved in mating and will travel more and further in the next month. Motorists are asked to stay alert especially in the early morning at dusk and at night. When driving using high beams as much as possible to increase visible distance and watch for red reflection of eyes, said Sr. Const. Don Shropshall. "If you spot a deer on the roadside slow down because they mostly travel in groups. Always slow down to pass a deer in case they turn abruptly into the path of your vehicle. Never attempt extreme maneuvers to avoid a collision. It is safer to hit the deer than risk collision with another vehicle or obstacle." Pay attention to deer crossing area- warning signs which show areas of heavy population of deer. Use deer whistles that mount on the front of the vehicle and emit a high frequency wave sound that scares animals away from oncoming vehicles. This will not help for those deer that bound out of the bush, however. On commonly travelled routes, familiarize yourself with likely crossing areas during daytime. Then, be especially alert at these locations during peak deer activity periods. Areas to watch for are locations where bush comes close to the roadway on both sides, swampy areas, low land locations like rivers, streams and creeks and cornfields that offer protection for deer at this time of year. By David Blaney Citizen staff The Grade 3 and Grade 6 provincial EQAO (Education Quality Accountability Office) test results have been published and although the board has produced better results this year Avon Maitland schools still fall below the provincial average of those meeting or exceeding provincial standards. Steve Howe, information manager for the Avon Maitland board said, "In 2000 the board set a goal to increase student learning with a focus on literacy and numeracy. The key this year was cutting the gap between the Avon Maitland board and the provincial average." To some extent this has been achieved. The gap in Grade 3 reading has narrowed by four percentage points, in writing by two points and in math by five points. However, in all these areas they are still under the provincial average. At the Grade 6 level the results were not as encouraging. The gap between the board and the provincial average remained constant in reading and writing and grew by oneā€¢ percentage point in math. The Grade 3 provincial average of those that met or exceeded provincial standards for: reading was 50 per cent as opposed to Avon Maitland's 44, writing 52 per cent as opposed to 46, and in math 61 as opposed to 58 per cent. The similar situation in Grade 6 was: reading 54 to 47 per cent, writing 52 to 47 per cent, and in math 54 to 49 per cent. Several local schools produced Grade 3 marks that were above the board average and in some cases above the provincial average. Fifty-seven per cent of the Grade 3 students at Blyth Public have have met or exceeded provincial standards for writing, placing them ahead of the board and the province. Blyth Grade 3 also excelled in math with 78 percent exceeding the standard. The Grade 3 students at East Wawanosh had 84 per cent exceeding the standard in math.. The same grade at Brussels Public had 65 per cent do the same. Both schools exceeded both the provincial and the board average in this area. The marks for Grey Central are still being determined in some areas because of a need to resolve 'data issues' according to board documents. Schools will be examining the results prior to sending pupils' individual results home. The tests are intended to provide a baseline by which all participants in the educational system can gauge their success or failure. They measure students in the areas of math, reading and writing. This is the fifth year of testing at the Grade 3 level and the third at Grade 6. Howe said the tests are designed so that, "Students must apply what they have learned and not just memorize facts." Students of Huron-Perth Catholic District School Board also wrote the tests that were administered last May and achieved some excellent results. The Catholic board's Grade 3 students were above the provincial average in all three categories. Fifty- six per cent were above the average in reading and writing and 64 per cent met this goal in math: The board's Grade 6 studenV also exceeded the provincial average in all categories. Company achieves national status Community Nursing Services, a local nursing agency, has received three-year accreditation status from the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation (CCHSA). "This is one more step in our ongoing commitment to provide high quality nursing care in our communities," said Linda Knight, executive director. "Raising the bar on accountability in health care is on the minds of all Ontarians and agencies providing service." CCHSA is the Canadian organization that assesses health care agencies and facilities, such as hospitals, granting accredited status. It is an extensive process involving: interviews with community partners, clients and staff; review of policies and procedures; identifying quality initiatives; looking at quality of work life for staff; and actually accompanying nurses on home visits. To date it is purely voluntary -for a community agency to participate in this process. Community Nursing Services has been sen/ing Southwestern Ontario since 1984. Started in Belgrave by Linda Knight, the company expanded to cover the Perth area. A sister agency, CarePartners provides service to Grey, Bruce, Wellington, Dufferin, Peel, Waterloo, Elgin and Oxford. Community Nursing Services focuses on providing 24 hour per day, seven days per week, in-home nursing viits and shifts through contracts awarded from the Community Care Access Centres in each area. Employing over 70 RNs and RPNs in Huron and Perth, and 500 in total for both agencies, Community Nursing Services has become an employer of choice in the community nursing field. Your local office of Community Nursing Services is located at 14 Queen St., Belgrave, 519-357-3010. Vandals burn outhouse Vandals once again targeted the washrooms at the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority Park in Brussels, burning it to the ground, and the group that donated time and money to construct it after it had been victimized similarity a few years before is obviously upset. "We are not impressed," said Brussels Optimist George Langlois. "But I don't think anyone in Brussels is. I've talked to a lot of people and they're angry." The building was burned shortly after midnight on Nov. 7. A resident out walking his dog discovered it and called the local fire department. Firefighters arrived within minutes but the 10' x 6' building was totally Continued on page 8