You, Minister of Education, have made alarming observations and identified seven “priorities” for your mandate. This is a good start, but we can only deplore the insufficiency of your sources: no mention of the reports of the Higher Council of Education, nor of university research, nor of the demands of people in the field: unions, professional associations, parent groups, citizen groups, community groups in the field of education. So many sources that could have justified the choice of your priorities.
Also, some of the solutions you’re proposing, Mr. Drainville, were formulated a long time ago and even implemented here and there. What have we learned from these experiences? Analyzing our failures is as important as analyzing our successes.
Improve student skills in written French
You say you are surprised by the poor skills of too many students at the end of secondary school, when they have been attending school for eleven years and the majority of them have French as their first language. However, the perverse effects of ministerial reviews have long been demonstrated.
Several solutions exist to improve students’ skills in written French. Every day in all subjects or almost, have them write even just one sentence and have them correct it by the students in teams of two or three, using a correction grid taught in the French class. Make spoken and written French the responsibility of all school staff, not just French teachers. Provide ongoing training for primary and secondary French teachers, training that has been virtually absent for 20 years.
Control the implementation of electronic tools in the classroom so that they are at the service of targeted disciplinary learning and do not induce negative effects on cognitive faculties (attention, memorization, concentration) and on socialization. Ensure that the ministerial document Progression of learning is known in order to avoid the repetition of the same notions (we teach the agreement of the adjective of the 2e primary to 5e secondary, and this, without the least efficiency).
All this is very well documented, among others in a collective work bringing together the best specialists of the Francophonie: Better teach grammar (ERPI, 2016).
Reduce teacher training time
To counter the shortage, you propose to return to the certificate of the 1980s… Which academics could inspire you with this false solution? How could we in ten courses adequately train people who have a bachelor’s degree or even a master’s degree in a school subject to become primary school teachers or specialized teachers, for example in French, in mathematics, in music, in English second language?
Mission impossible, because you need at least knowledge of disciplinary didactics (we do not teach French as a first language and music in the same way), pedagogical knowledge (in class management, in learning assessment, etc.), knowledge of the Quebec school system and the major philosophical and psychological currents that have influenced teaching and learning in schools. And, finally, two internships in different contexts.
Admittedly, the qualifying master’s degree in teaching is demanding, as is the teaching profession. This program can be lightened somewhat, which is what some faculties of education are working on.
But, above all, shouldn’t we first work to retain those who are already in the business?
Promoting vocational training
We invite you to read the chapter written by thirteen vocational training (VT) specialists in the book Another school is possible and necessary from the Stand Up for School! (Del Busso, 2022). They take stock of the past decades and outline solutions to problems that go far beyond the question of the number of graduates.
A powerful system!
In addition, we wonder about the meaning you give to the adjective efficient about the education system. We want a system that is fair and of quality for all, that instructs, educates and teaches each student to really think. This relies daily on the intelligence, competence and commitment of school administrators, teachers, other school staff, parents and students.
You have chosen not to open a collective dialogue on education. At Parlons éducation, we think it is necessary; Moreover, the extent of the interest aroused by Parlons éducation shows that the population considers this discussion necessary. Since education is at the heart of any social project, it is essential that the citizens of Quebec come in complete freedom and conviviality to discuss the problems, but also to propose their solutions during one of the 19 citizen forums in the spring of 2023. You are cordially invited.
*Also signed this text:
Jean Bernatchez, political scientist and professor-researcher at the University of Quebec in Rimouski (UQAR)
Priscilla Boyer, French didactician, former director of special education programs and professor at the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières (UQTR)
Christiane Blaser, French didactician and professor responsible for the practical training of the qualifying mastery at the University of Sherbrooke
David Lefrançois, professor of education sciences, University of Quebec in Outaouais (UQO), head of the local committee of let’s talk about education
Claude Lessard, professor emeritus at the Université de Montréal, former dean of the Faculty of Education and former president of the Conseil supérieur de l’éducation
Denis Simard, philosopher of education and full professor at Université Laval
Isabelle Nizet, specialist in learning assessment and full professor associated with the department of pedagogy at the University of Sherbrooke