Parce qu’il a vu des étudiants qui sentent qu’on les « regarde de haut » en raison de leur choix de métier, le ministre de l’Éducation veut changer l’image de la formation professionnelle. « On s’entend-tu qu’on a besoin d’électriciens et de plombiers ? », a demandé Bernard Drainville à un parterre de gens d’affaires, les exhortant toutefois à ne pas faire augmenter le décrochage.
Devant les membres de la Chambre de commerce du Montréal métropolitain (CCMM), le ministre de l’Éducation a louangé la formation professionnelle, pour laquelle Québec investira 81,3 millions de dollars d’ici 2027.
« Des fois, les élèves [inscrits en formation professionnelle] feel like they are being looked down on. There are even some who tell me: I had to argue with my parents to get them to accept that, ”says Bernard Drainville.
“Do we agree that we need electricians and plumbers?” “, he added. To employers desperate for workers, however, he sent a clear message: “Don’t take the students out of school”.
Vocational training graduates “earn a very good living,” continued Minister Drainville. “I’m a political science graduate, I’m able to compare…” Mr. Drainville said, sparking laughter in the room.
Among the seven priorities established by the Minister for the mandate he has just undertaken, is that of graduating 30,000 students in this sector. In times of shortage, “it’s a big, big order,” acknowledged the minister.
Bernard Drainville also defended himself from being a “jovialistic” minister and acknowledged that the Ministry of Education “does not work as it should work”.
“My job is to solve problems and make progress. The elephant, I’ll eat it one bite at a time, but I want fast progress. We need to change the atmosphere around education. You can’t constantly see what’s wrong and not talk about what’s right,” he said.
“Our schools need love”
From 7 a.m. Tuesday morning, the teachers’ unions had gathered to welcome the minister to downtown Montreal.
The theme of the event was essential on February 14. On René-Lévesque Boulevard in Montreal, it’s to the sound of Love Hurts of Nazareth or With or Without You of U2 that a hundred union members affiliated with the CSQ demonstrated in front of the Center Sheraton, where the Minister of Education was addressing the members of the CCMM.
“Today is Valentine’s Day and we have come to tell the Minister that our schools need love. He spoke to us about seven priorities lately, we are waiting for action, ”said Josée Scalabrini, president of the Federation of Education Unions.
In terms of vocational training, the minister has “great ambitions”, declared Mélanie Hubert, president of the Autonomous Federation of Education.
“What we’ve come to say is let’s be careful, let’s go carefully and intelligently. It is not a question of sitting students on school desks while waiting for everything to happen. We will have to convince people in trades in shortage to come and teach, ”recalled Ms.me Hubert.