(Quebec) While the shortage of qualified teachers hits the school network hard, the spokesperson for Québec solidaire (QS) in education, Ruba Ghazal, presents a three-step plan to “solve” the problem. Its first target: financing subsidized private schools.
According to Mme Ghazal, the Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, goes “against what science says” when he denies that the Quebec school network has three levels, namely public school, public school with special educational projects and subsidized private school.
For the supportive MP, accepting that the network remains like this condemns ordinary classes to having too high a concentration of students with learning disabilities, which harms both their academic success and the quality of teachers’ work, who struggle to meet their needs.
“Not recognizing three-tier schools is like not recognizing climate change. That does not make any sense [et] It’s absurd,” said M.me Ghazal, Monday, during a press briefing in Quebec.
In her plan, the member for the Mercier constituency proposes to ensure that special educational projects are free in all schools, such as arts, science or sports programs, and to put an end to selection processes so that all students can register, regardless of their academic results.
Québec solidaire also proposes to end the funding granted to private schools and to repatriate those who wish to do so within the public network. According to Mme Ghazal, almost 50% of them would accept this transition, while the other half would become entirely private. This measure, she believes, would be done at no cost to the government.
While Quebec is currently negotiating the renewal of collective agreements for state employees, including teachers, Ruba Ghazal is proposing to carry out a “major salary catch-up” so that Quebec teachers reach the average remuneration of their Canadian counterparts. She also calls for better salaries for support staff.
According to her, “the [Coalition avenir Québec] has done nothing for five years to seriously tackle the problem of the shortage of teachers, which has today become a “national tragedy”. To make the profession more attractive, Mme Ghazal suggests paying for educational internships and planning class numbers over several years.