They had mostly dropped out of school, caught up in the whirlwind of delinquency and crime, until a judge sentenced them to serve time in a rehabilitation center. Since then, they have resumed their studies, within the walls of the centre. With pride, they talk about their successes, their plans for the future and their determination to redefine who they are, beyond their criminal record.
“If I didn’t have school, I don’t know what I would have done,” says John-Karl, a 19-year-old who chose his own assumed first name since his identity is protected by the tribunal. “On spring break and during the Christmas holidays, I don’t like it, I have to stay upstairs [à l’unité de vie]. Here, it’s concrete: you take an exam, you get results, you come out with a diploma. I feel like I’m making good use of my time. »
In the back of the small class with beige walls, John-Karl is doing complex algebra calculations in his exercise book: he is finishing his mathematics enriched with 5e secondary. “I always said that I was going to finish my secondary 5, but I had dropped out of school because my life was too intense,” he explains.
The young man, who hopes to study business management at university level, says he was “lucky” to have been tried as a minor, just months before reaching his majority, because the sentence would have been much longer for adults. “It was a wake up call, he confides. I know I won’t get a second chance. »
Beyond the label
With John-Karl, there are 5 of them in Caroline’s class, at Le Tremplin school, an establishment that welcomes young people aged 11 to 21 within the Chambly youth center itself. Caroline’s class is made up of young offenders between the ages of 16 and 21 who are serving time in custody. They work by module, each at their own pace, which in French, which in mathematics or in English, on the model of adult education. Andrée-France, the educator, is there to help them channel their emotions. She embodies the philosophy of the Chambly youth center and its school according to which schooling is an important lever for the rehabilitation of young people.
Here they don’t label us, they treat us normally. They give us the chance to show who we really are.
Unlike the educators in the living units, who work on the rehabilitation of young people, the teaching staff does not know the nature of the offenses they have committed. “My job is to make young people available for learning,” explains Valérie Côté, the school’s director. The psychologist and the psychoeducator know everything. They tell me what I need to know to teach him, to accompany him in class. The rest I don’t want to know. »
Young people see and name the difference. “I prefer to be here than in the unit because the atmosphere is really better,” says Maximilien (assumed name), 16, who is finishing his 4e secondary.
From the back of the class, John-Karl can’t help but add to his friend’s words. “Here they don’t label us, they treat us normally. They give us the chance to show who we really are,” he says.
“At the top, we start with three takes against us, he adds. They don’t even know us yet, they already have an idea of who we are from our file. It’s hard to readjust when you get a criminal label. »
For Bobby (not his real name), 17, school is a breath of fresh air and a great source of pride. “When I arrived here, I was angry, I was always pissed off. School is a change of scenery. Just up in the units would just be too much. When you work, it allows you to think about something other than just what we did. »
Bobby would like to go to CEGEP to work “in mental illness”. Adélär, 19, who also chose his first name by insisting on the importance of the umlaut, dreams of sailing around the world. “I did a lot of things in the name of freedom,” he confides, while trying to unravel the mystery of a twelve-sided Rubik’s cube. It would be a way to fulfill my need for freedom in a positive way. »
Incentives
Everyone recognizes the efforts of their teacher and their educator, who do not count the hours and the encouragement. They feel listened to, supported, valued. “We feel important with them,” says Bobby, who goes around his seedlings, a project he developed with Andrée-France and which helps him calm down.
“It’s good to hear someone who encourages you, who tells you: you are capable,” adds John-Karl.
“We’re all smart guys, it’s just that we weren’t given the chance to exploit it,” adds Maximilien, who is running into a mathematical problem. John-Karl explains to her how to calculate the hypotenuse, under the watchful eye of the teacher, who stands ready to intervene if necessary.
Upstairs, Geneviève Bigras, the head of the unit where some of the boys in the class live, understands that they feel better when they are at school. She explains it in particular by the pride of young people who experience academic success after a long absence from school and which can make them “forget” the reasons for which they are in a rehabilitation centre, either that they have committed a serious offence.
“Our mandate at the rehabilitation center is to empower young people and protect the public,” recalls Ms.me Bigras. In the units, all the activities are an excuse to work on the challenges that led them to delinquency, she explains. “When we do clinical activities on the management of emotions, anger or anxiety, we get them to come back to situations to which they don’t necessarily want to come back. It is sure that it is more confronting for them. »
She adds that young people’s perception evolves depending on where they are at in their process and specifies that all stakeholders work in their best interests. “When we choose to come and work here, it’s because we believe in their potential. »
Still, for some, it seems easier to look their best when they’re in control of their image. “In the class, they don’t see me the same,” concludes John-Karl. But maybe it’s me who’s not the same when I’m here. Maybe it’s just easier to be better here…”
Read Monday: Focus on positive reinforcement and a trauma-sensitive approach. The change of course of the school Le Tremplin, at the youth center of Chambly.