Is there anything more important than wondering what makes nations rich? For a society to be truly prosperous, it must promote the development of everyone, share wealth, not leave those least spoiled by life by the side of the road, protect nature, pamper culture and the arts. This society must also be able to debate democratically.
This wealth, as we can see, is social as well as economic, cultural as well as scientific. Its foundation is based on a democratic and quality education system.
We have made remarkable progress in a few generations. Our enviable results in the OECD’s Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) demonstrate this.
Already, during the 1990s, we foresaw that the society of the future would be a knowledge society. At the time, if we made a mistake, it was that of underestimating the magnitude and the speed of the changes that had taken place. Technological innovations and digital communications, the immediacy of exchanges, artificial intelligence, genetic manipulations have taken an essential place in our lives.
To this must be added the challenges posed by environmental degradation and climate change. For good measure, even a few years ago, I would have been unable to imagine that democracy could be endangered in our great American neighbour, that we would be going through a pandemic whose full consequences we do not yet know and that we would witness a terrible war on European soil.
We are living in a changing era and the wealth of nations will be defined by the choices they make in education. For Quebec, a nation that does not have sovereignty, the choices in this matter will be even more critical.
The most fundamental choice, the ideal that we must aim for, is to allow each child to develop to their full potential. In short, we must fight injustice at birth and promote the awakening of talents. For the wealth of a nation cannot be greater than the sum of its talents.
The fight against injustice at birth will be the clearest indication of our will. To succeed, we have a formidable asset, but also a terrible handicap. Our main asset is to have started 25 years ago to set up a family policy and early childhood centres.
We are proud of our early childhood network, but we have a terrible weakness: subsidized private schools and special-purpose public schools, which select students, in effect exercise segregation according to income and social status. We know that this segregation is to the detriment of children who attend public schools open to all.
The social consequences of this selection are undeniable. Can we find a way out that would allow us to change course?
The École ensemble movement suggests allowing private schools to form a common state-funded network with public schools, keeping their current structure, but committing to accepting students from their neighborhood free of charge. All children in this common network would have access to specific programs. Non-conventioned private schools could select their students, but would no longer receive any public funds. To facilitate the transition, it would be spread over six years, after which a private school could only accept children from its neighborhood.
The injustice of our education system has gone on for too long and we must have the courage to put an end to it now.
We have to fight injustice, but we also have to ensure the quality of what we teach. In this respect, we must put an end to the false debate between the transmission of rich and quality content and the acquisition of essential skills for learning, as if one could go without the other.
Montaigne said: better a well made head than a very full head. This does not mean, however, that the head must be very empty. We must therefore denounce a utilitarian and reductive conception of education which would lead to the exclusion of arts and culture.
More than ever, it is essential to learn as early as possible in life to assess the value of sources, the difference between feelings, beliefs, arguments and facts. The school that wants to train citizens must promote discussion in respect, freedom and the spirit of tolerance.
It is through well-trained teachers, deeply committed to their mission, who are dedicated to the success of children and young people that we will be able to succeed.
Obviously, teachers must have acquired the pedagogical skills to teach, but they must also master the content they transmit and be passionate about the subjects they teach.
Isn’t it time to promote qualifying master’s degrees in secondary education? Often, meeting a teacher who loves the subject he teaches decides a student’s career choice. Passion is often contagious.
Well-trained, supported by teams of professionals, teachers must be able to benefit from genuine continuing education and we must recognize that their role is crucial for our future.
I would also like us to reflect on the importance of learning through contact with great works, during visits to historical or cultural sites, industrial visits, meetings with artists or researchers. To stimulate the imagination of a young person, it often takes a particular context which attracts his attention and motivates him, sometimes for life. Are we taking enough advantage of all the learning spaces that are available to us?
A collective effort
For the school to be at the heart of our school system, for each student to have a chance to develop all their talents, we must create a bond between all the stakeholders and all the actors. Parents first, but also cultural institutions and elected municipal officials.
We already live in a society where it is essential to continue to learn constantly if we want to stay in touch with what surrounds us, if we want to continue our journey democratically.
To be a learning and democratic society, there is a cardinal skill: knowing how to read. To know how to read, to have free access to books, to scientific and cultural productions, is to give oneself the power to learn throughout one’s life, to play one’s role as a citizen, to defend democracy and freedom. It is also the basis of the wealth of nations.