Surprise, amazement, worries; the assault on a professor at John-F.-Kennedy school, in the Saint-Michel district, in Montreal, on Thursday, caused a shock wave in the education community, while professors and directors schools are worried about the rise of violence in certain neighborhoods.
“I’m sure there are a lot of teachers who came back to school today with a funny state of mind. It’s traumatic to know that a colleague has been attacked in the workplace, ”said the president of the Alliance des Professeurs de Montréal (APM), Catherine Beauvais-St-Pierre.
Thursday morning, the visual arts teacher Maxime Canuel, who would be much appreciated by his students, was the victim of an armed attack. After the fact, a 16-year-old was charged with attempted murder. The teacher was taken to a hospital, but his life is not in danger.
For the Montreal Association of School Directors (AMDES), it should be remembered that students also witnessed the assault. “It sows concern. It is very important that our students feel safe. We must do everything to preserve this feeling of security, ”says its president, Kathleen Legault.
“There is a lack of educational resources and we often have a feeling of powerlessness. In some neighborhoods, this feeling is even more important, ”says Mme Beauvais-St-Pierre, who cites, for example, the lack of psychologists in schools. School principals note that the incidents of violence that have occurred in recent weeks are “isolated, but serious”. “Is what we see is the tip of the iceberg?” »Asks Kathleen Legault. “Everything that is violence is a bit trivialized. We choose to protect the image of the school to the detriment of the safety of teachers ”, adds Mme Beauvais-St-Pierre.
More trained workers
According to Éric Morissette, professor in the administration and foundations of education department at the University of Montreal, the solution lies above all in socialization.
“It means a lot more than a semi-formal chat in the doorway. Teachers must talk with young people about identifying and managing their emotions, the awareness of others, in short [de l’importance de] find alternative means to physical or verbal aggression. It must be taught as soon as the students arrive at school, ”says Mr. Morissette, who is a former school principal, in the Saint-Jérôme area.
In education, people are not necessarily trained in criminology or social work. They are not entitled to confront an individual with violence. It is very destabilizing and shocking. It takes more trained workers to help them.
Éric Morissette, professor in the administration and foundations of education department at the University of Montreal
He asserts that the concept of “policeman-educator” – a patroller who establishes strong links with schools and students in his neighborhood – would benefit from being more widely used. “We cannot tell every citizen that they will always be safe, but we can work on perception. And for that, it takes competent stakeholders in the school environment, ”he continues.
Possibly have an autism spectrum disorder
According to our information, the young man who assaulted the John-F.-Kennedy professor would have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which raises questions as to how he will be tried criminally. “No one is supposed to ignore the law, diagnosis or not, but the fact remains that an assessment will have to be made on the young person’s ability to understand his actions and their impacts,” explains the director of the Fédération québécoise de l. autism, Lili Plourde.
“There are often not enough services in the school and health network for people with autism. It is the same for the justice system: it is not adapted ”, insists Mr.me Plourde.
I have already seen young people with autism in prison who find themselves alone, without a worker ever going to see them. We must help them to understand, to disentangle themselves in this.
Lili Plourde, director of the Quebec Autism Federation
She recalls that people with autism should not be stigmatized, as they are “no more dangerous than the general population”. “When young people with autism make death threats, for example, we have to ask ourselves why they are making them and, above all, whether they understand what it represents. It’s a nuance to take into account all the time. “If it is determined that this youth is unfit to stand trial, then it should not be just put in a mental institution. He must be given all the tools to manage his emotions, ”concludes M.me Plourde.
Four counts of attempted murder, aggravated assault, possession of a weapon for the purpose of committing an offense and possession of a concealed weapon, were laid against the teenager on Friday. Me Mélanie Rose, criminal and penal prosecuting attorney, filed a notice with the judge specifying that she could seek an adult sentence if the accused is found guilty at the end of the process. The lawyer also opposed the release of the teenager, who will therefore remain detained at least until the rest of the proceedings, scheduled for next Monday.
Hoax leads to school closure
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, THE PRESS
Police cars near the Dunton Academy, in the borough of Anjou, Friday
A hoax also forced the closure of a high school in the Anjou borough in Montreal on Friday. Messages posted on social media suggested that an armed person would show up at Dunton Academy. Police officers from the Montreal Police Department have found the origin of the message. An investigation has been opened and it is not excluded that charges of public mischief will be laid against the person who made these threats.