Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (AHN) – Manitoba Education Minister Nancy Allan announced Thursday the province will push for a new law that would increase the truancy age to 18. That means young residents would be required to acquire an education or training until they reach 18.

Allan said the change was necessary because of global educational and work benchmarks going higher and that a high school diploma is often not sufficient to acquire a good job or carve a successful career.

Allan said in a statement, “Success in the modern economy will be dependent on students having every opportunity to pursue post-secondary education, training and apprenticeships. Those opportunities are lost when a young person does not have a high-school diploma or equivalent. Raising the compulsory education age to 18 will help ensure kids stay in school and are well prepared for life beyond the classroom.”

The current law in Manitoba requires students to remain in school until they reach 16. While the present truancy age has yielded an improvement in high school graduation rate to 80.9 percent in 2009 from 72.4 percent in 2001, Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger said the planned change should not be seen as dictating to the youth what they should do, but as helping them become successful in life.

Ontario and New Brunswick were the first Canadian provinces to adjust upward their truancy age to 18 in 2006. Alberta will discuss a similar measure this weekend. Nova Scotia is mulling a similar policy.

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