Bedford school scandal: action plan doubles down on secularism, French

Bedford Elementary School is shown in Montreal, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Christinne MuschiéThe Canadian Press)

A new action plan to “restore a healthy learning environment” in Quebec schools doubles down on the importance of secularism and the French language and increasing surveillance of teachers.

Following reports of a “toxic climate” of fear and intimidation at Bedford elementary school in Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood, Quebec’s Education Department appointed two advisors to come up with recommendations.

In their 12-page report to course-correct made public Friday, Jean-Pierre Aubin and Malika Habel include changes to implement in school centres and at the National Assembly.

They recommend requiring principals to evaluate teachers every two years and creating training plans to favour accountability.

The Bedford school scandal, in which a “dominant clan” of teachers intimidated students and other teachers led the government to suspend the licences of 11 teachers and audit another 17 schools.

The government’s October report into Bedford said children were subjected to physical and psychological violence and teachers refused to teach or paid little attention to subjects such as oral communication, science, religion and sex education. It also said teachers refused to allow children with special needs to get help from specialized professionals as learning difficulties and autism didn’t exist for some teachers.

• Read more: ‘Climate of fear and intimidation’ at Montreal elementary school, government probe finds

The latest action plan says, “questions of culture, religion, prioritization of the French language, the workload of the school principal, the ‘administrative distance’ of centralized services from the school and the complexity of the collective agreement are all factors that bear witness to the cross-cutting nature of the issues.”

‘Values of the Quebec education system’

It recommends setting up better frameworks for management, oversight of curriculum, more support for teachers, comprehensive harassment and violence policies and closer ties between human relations and management.

Advisors also suggest better integration of new staff with “a reminder to all of the importance of respecting secularism and mastering the French language in the Quebec education system” and understand acceptable disciplinary measures.

Meetings with parents are recommended for a better understanding of children’s education and “transmitting the values of the Quebec education system,” namely secularism and the importance of French.

The report also suggest the government “clarify the concepts of culture and religion, which are intertwined and fuel tensions” and “protect schools from any manifestation of religion” during and after class, both inside and outside the classroom.

Advisors asked the government to evaluate the possibility of legislating the obligation to speak French on school grounds to favour success for allophone children and to reconsider creating a professional order for teachers.

• Read more: Secularism in schools: Quebec education minister ‘worried’ about new report

The Centre de services scolaire de Montréal (CSSDM) said it welcomes the recommendations in the report which are in line with efforts it already made over the last few months to prioritize students’ well-being.

“What happened at Bedford School must never happen again,” said CSSDM Executive Director Isabelle Gélinas in a news release.

“The action plan will enable us to go even further … Our objective is clear: to use all the levers and exercise the powers prescribed by law so that we can intervene unambiguously, as soon as necessary.”

Education Minister Bernard Drainville also said he is pleased with the recommendations

“Schools exist for our children. It must offer them a safe and healthy environment,” he said. “I have already committed to legislating to strengthen secularism in our schools. Their observations will guide our work and, I would remind you, nothing is excluded.”

Union says report goes too far

Richard Bergevin, President Federation des Syndicats de L’Enseignement (FSE), said teachers are already overloaded and need more help and resources, not more surveillance.

He said the advisors went outside the scope of their mandate as they were asked to look into Bedford school specifically, but recommended measures for all school centres.

Bergevin acknowledged Bedford school had “real problems,” but blanket measures affecting all schools in Quebec aren’t the way to fix them.

He said he was surprised by the CSSDM’s reaction, saying it didn’t act quickly enough when concerns were raised by a Bedford principal.

“Instead of taking administrative measures that will eat away at the time and energy of teachers who want to offer quality education, make sure that when there are problems you act quickly,” he said.

With files from CTV News Montreal’s Caroline van Vlaardingen