One morning in September, a fight broke out between two high school students who were waiting for the bus to go to school. The tone rose. One of the students pulled her friend by the hair. The other fell. The battle was short-lived, but created a stir in the group of friends. Swear words were exchanged on social media. Since then, at school, the girls sometimes throw menacing glances at each other.
The management of the establishment, located in the Rosemont district of Montreal, met the two students. The conflict appears to be under control. But the teenager who got pushed around and her mother are not reassured.
” The girl [qui a commis l’agression] looks at me askance sometimes, in a mean way. She sent me a message of insults on Instagram, ”says Sarah (fictitious name to preserve the anonymity of the student, who is a minor).
This story illustrates a gray area of school bullying: schools have had a legal obligation since 2012 to put in place a protocol to prevent violence and bullying. But what to do when violence and bullying occur outside the school walls? Outside of school hours? On social networks, in a bus shelter…
The mother of the intimidated student deplores the vagueness surrounding the management of the aggression against her daughter. “The school management told us to file a complaint with the police, but the police replied that it was more up to the school, because no crime had been committed,” she says.
“My daughter was still assaulted. Will it start again? adds the mother of the family.
Protect students
The school intervened to put an end to the conflict, nuance Éric Benoit, director of the establishment attended by the two students involved in this incident. Tensions had been simmering for some time between the two teenagers, who were part of the same group of friends from the Père-Marquette school.
It is one of the largest secondary schools in the Center de services scolaire de Montréal (CSSDM), with 1,355 students. The institution, which offers concentrations in drama, media arts and an international program, has a good reputation in the public network.
The school management has taken its responsibilities to protect the two students, argues Éric Benoit. The two young people were met. The tension has dropped. No other incidents have been reported between the two students, said the 52-year-old director, who has 14 years of experience in running a school.
“In a case like this, the parents are informed that they have the fundamental right to file a complaint with the police. That doesn’t mean we wash our hands of it. Even though the incident occurred at a bus stop, it involves two students from our school. We are aware that it will have an impact on the climate at school if we do not intervene, ”he explains.
“Bullying doesn’t happen with a switch on or off, like a light. Modifying a behavior is not that simple. We insist with the students and their parents: we want to know what is going on because we want to act,” adds Éric Benoit.
École Père-Marquette, like the other CSSDM secondary establishments, has an agreement with the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) for the presence of community officers. They carry out prevention or intervene in the event of an emergency. The protocol first aims to resolve bullying or violence with the help of school workers and the parents of students.
“The goal is to avoid taking young people aged 13, 14 or 15 to court,” explains the director. The school cannot do everything, but the school does everything it can. »
“Angry in the Heart”
According to what The duty learned, École Père-Marquette used its anti-bullying and violence protocol to protect another student last year and earlier this school year. This 13-year-old girl, who describes herself as non-binary, has been bullied in person and on Instagram.
The school administration, school workers and community police took action last year against five students who were bullying this teenager. “Bullying students have been suspended several times,” confirms Éric Benoit.
Parents disapproved of their children’s actions of bullying. Parents and students have apologized to the victim. Three of the students who had bullied have changed schools (but they have not been expelled, specifies the director). The bullying stopped last year, but started again at the start of this school year, laments Blaise Guillotte, father of the bullied teenager.
The school and community police again intervened to stop the harassment. The father recognizes that the school system takes its responsibilities, but begins to be scalded. “The speakers are good. They are doing what they can with the means at hand, but my daughter is wondering when it will stop. I can’t send it with anguish in my heart every morning, ”says Blaise Guillotte.
“I believe in public school, but if it doesn’t work out, maybe I’ll send my daughter to private school next year,” he adds.
Duty to act
Jean Bernatchez, professor of school administration at the University of Quebec at Rimouski (UQAR), believes that the law is well designed to regulate intimidation and violence. But 10 years after its establishment, he observes “a certain relaxation” in the vigilance of the schools (without referring to the Père-Marquette school in particular).
School principals already have their hands full with day-to-day management, notes the specialist: the shortage in all categories of staff, the proliferation of students with special needs and the ever-increasing demands of parents represent quite a challenge. During the pandemic crisis, a quarter of school principals worked 52 hours a week, including evenings and weekends, underlines Jean Bernatchez.
However, directors have a legal obligation to intervene when a conflict breaks out between two students, even outside the school walls or on social networks. “The students meet at school the next day. Bullying can impact young people’s success or well-being in the classroom,” he says.
“These phenomena should not only concern schools. Families, communities and government also have responsibilities. »