Talk of reducing the number of school divisions in Manitoba doesn't come as a surprise to Krista Curry, the superintendent for Border Land School Division. Curry said there have been rumblings of such a move swirling around the province for some time.

Last week, Education minister Kelvin Goertzen said government will examine a regional model as part of its structural review of the education system beginning in January 2019.

"We hear different things on different days as different groups of people have different tidbits of information," added Curry. "There's more questions than answers."

She wondered if this exploration will focus on just rural divisions or urban divisions, or both, and if it will look similar to the health authority review that the province embarked on early in the term.

Curry added the Division plans to be an active participant in the 5-6 month consultation period, noting senior administration and board trustees have already begun preparations.

She said they will also draw from the experience of current trustees who were involved in the last school division amalgamation in 2002 that saw the former Boundary, Sprague and Rhineland school divisions merge to become Border Land.

"(They) can speak to the work that that entails and the costs that go along with that," explained Curry. "As a larger region what does that look like in terms of local voice and local choice - does that disappear? What are the pros, what are the cons?"

"We're hopeful that the review will provide a real opportunity for thoughtful discussion and dialogue," she added.

Meantime, Minister Goertzen said his department will also continue an examination of the curriculum, noting students in Manitoba are not doing well compared to other provinces when it comes to literacy, math and science skills.

"We know when we see the...results that Manitoba isn't first among the provinces but there is way more to that than what is on the surface," said Curry. "We always know that there are ways we can improve."

Curry points to the literacy work Border Land is undergoing with expert Faye Brownlie, and the Numeracy Action Research Project in conjunction with the Manitoba Rural Learning Consortium.

That being said, Curry noted it never hurts to review curriculum.

"I don't know that that is the sole determining factor in how students perform...but if there's man-power that can do that work and see how it compares to what other provinces are teaching their students then I think it's worth doing."

She did note that the English/Language Arts curriculum in Manitoba was just updated and said Assistant Superintendent Jonathan Toews has been leading the charge in implementing the new material.

Additionally, Minister Goertzen said government will also look at how teachers are trained to make sure students can achieve the best possible outcomes.