The system of education Québécois is single in the world and differs from those of the other Canadian provinces . In 2002 - 2003, there were in Quebec 1.116.233 pupils attending the levels pre-school, primary and secondary, 157.473 students of collegial level and 185.560 of university level.
In Quebec, education concerns the Minister of education, the Leisure and the Sport of Quebec. The administration is locally assured by a network school commissions, regroupings regional which manage a certain number of elementary schools and secondaries in the public network of education. A private network coexists. In these schools, which are sometimes partially financed by the Ministry, the administrative responsibility falls on an local authority (board of directors or other, according to type of corporation) which must answer of its management near the Management of the private education of the MELS and must apply the entirety of the program decided by the Ministry — although optional subjects can be added there — what led several to denounce this monopoly in fact of the unknown State elsewhere in Canada.
In the public network, the MELS allocates with each school commission a budget to deal with the expenditure, the such wages of the teachers (established according to common scales for the whole of the province), but also the material, the construction and the maintenance of the buildings, etc the school commissions also profit from a capacity limited of local taxation on the land goods present on its territory.
Presentation of the network
The school attendance is obligatory as of the 6 years age up to 16 years, age normally reached by the pupils at the time of their fourth or fifth year of the secondary.
On low the level it there with education pre-school, primary and secondary, that one divides between the networks public, private and governmental. The public network is managed by 72 school commissions, of which 60 are of French linguistic statute, 9 of English linguistic statute and 3 of particular status. They deal of the public pre-schools, the public elementary schools, the public secondary schools, the centers of education of the public adults and the public professional training centres.
The networks of pre-school, primary education and private and governmental secondary are outside the school commissions.
- There are 162 deprived pre-schools, 165 private elementary schools, 184 private secondary schools, 4 centers of education of the private adults and 32 professional training centres private.
- There are 17 governmental pre-schools, 17 governmental elementary schools, 18 governmental secondary schools, 1 center of education of the governmental adult and 8 governmental professional training centres.
On a second level it there with collegial teaching. There are 48 cégeps -- colleges of mainstream education and professional -- (like 29 affiliated establishments and 27 collegial centers of technology transfer), 25 subsidized private colleges (like 7 affiliated establishments and 1 collegial center of technology transfer), 53 colleges under license (like 16 affiliated establishments) and 11 colleges governmental.
At the level higher it there than the university education. There are 7 universities, 4 of French linguistic statute (as 14 affiliated establishments) and 3 of English linguistic statute.
The language of teaching remains a litigious question. Under the terms of the Charter of the French language, adopted in 1977, the students must attend the French school. However, the pupils who answer the one of the following criteria can attend the school English:
- the children who made part of their elementary studies or English secondaries in Quebec or elsewhere in Canada;
- the children who have a father or a mother who made part of her elementary English studies in Quebec or elsewhere in Canada;
- children of Canadian citizens who have a brother or a sister who made or is making her elementary studies or English secondaries in Quebec or elsewhere in Canada.
In the past, there were schools Catholique S and Protesting be. The right to attend the Catholic school was guaranteed by the Acte of Quebec of 1774, thus protecting totality from the catholic population of French language which lived in a country where the English population was mainly Protestant. The signature of the Acte of British North America of 1867 confirms the right to an education based on the religion. The Law of 1867 confers on the provinces competence as regards education.
During more than one century, the noncatholic immigrants coming from the outside of Canada who were established in Quebec could not, in theory at least, to attend the French school. In the facts, the religion was taken little into account in the public schools since the years 1970, religious education being able to be replaced by moral teaching with the choice of the parents. A modification made to the Law on the state education of 1998 replaced the denominational school commissions by school commissions based on the language and not on the religion.
Pre-school education
Pre-school education includes/understands the pre-nursery school and the Maternelle , which is often attached to the schools of primary education level. The children at the nursery school are typically 5 years old. The nursery school is not however obligatory in the current system, although the majority of the children attends it.
Primary education
Primary school education in Quebec, as in the whole of the Canadian provinces, is composed of three academic cycles, comprising each one 2 years of studies. The pupils have typically during this period from 6 to 12 years.
-
First cycle : first year and second year of the first cycle.
- Second cycle : first year and second year of the second cycle.
- Third cycle : first year and second year of the third cycle.
Usually, the pupils belong to the same class or stable group of pupils during the school year, and have a professor appointed for all the primary products: native tongue (according to the case, normally French or English for the anglophone schools), mathematics, social sciences, sciences of nature, visual arts. Teachers specialists deal with other matters the such language second (English for the French-speaking people, French for the english-speaking), the music and physical education.
Since September 2000, the new program frames the training and the teaching exempted in the elementary schools of the province.
Secondary education
The secondary studies last five years:
- 1st secondary
- 2nd secondary
- 3rd secondary
- 4th secondary
- 5th secondary
1st and 2nd secondary belong to the first cycle of the secondary whereas 3rd, 4th and 5th secondary belong to the second cycle of the secondary.
Those correspond, in the remainder of Canada, at the years active of the seventh at the eleventh year. At the end of the secondary, the pupils having finished their secondary studies receive a Diplôme of secondary studies (OF). The pupils have typically from 12 to 17 years.
The pupils wishing to go more quickly on the job market can, as of the sixteen years age, not to finish their secondary studies and to make professional studies. Those, one duration of approximately two years, lead to obtaining the Diplôme of professional studies (EPD), allowing a specific training a trade.
Since September 2005, the new program is established gradually with the secondary.
Moreover, the secondary schools with particular vocation, in particular with a program of music or international education, are increasingly popular. The same applies to the private schools which, in certain areas of Quebec, have the dimension near the public.
For obtaining the Diploma of secondary studies the pupils must obtain 54 units of fourth and fifth secondary including at least 20 units of the fifth secondary or professional training. The obligatory units are the following ones:
- 6 French units native tongue of the fifth secondary
- 4 English units language second of the fourth secondary
- 6 units Physical sciences of the fourth secondary
- 6 Mathematical units of the fourth secondary
- 4 units History of the fourth secondary
In addition the pupils who wish to continue with the cégep will have to make a success of the following courses:
- Mathematical of fifth secondary or a course is equivalent of fourth secondary (068-426) or (068-436)
For the adults (16 years and more) who wish to turn over to the studies and which do not wish to move, it there at the Company of remote formation of the school commissions of Quebec which offers the remote Formation since 1995. However, in fact the school commissions of Quebec take the inscriptions and deal with all that relates to the trainings. There is of them at least one in each area of Quebec.
Education postsecondaire
Cégep
The students who continue studies postsecondaires go initially to the CÉGEP (acronym meaning “college of mainstream education and professional”), which consists of two or three years of studies, which emerges, in both cases, in obtaining the Diplôme of collegial studies (DEC). Like the elementary schools and secondaries, private colleges exist in margin of the public system. The school exemption from payment is always preserved with collegial, the pupils not having to defray school fees with itself. The pupil thus has two alternatives at the time of his entry to the collegial one:-
education préuniversitaire , one 2 years normal duration, which prepares the student at his entry at the university using course of general training. Several programs are offered, inter alia:
-
human *Sciences
- *Sciences of nature
- *Arts and letters
- *Double-DEC
- *Sciences of nature
-
technical education , one 3 years normal duration, which makes it possible to the students to acquire more specific knowledge and practices concerning a trade. Technical education makes it possible to the students to enter on the job market or to continue their studies at the university.
Moreover, in the two types of course, certain courses are obligatory for obtaining the Diploma of collegial studies (DEC). Thus, the courses of literature, philosophy, English, and physical education are essential in order to receive its diploma.
University
The students who wish to continue academic works must thus have supplemented, at least, 13 years of studies préuniversitaires: six years of primary studies, five years of secondary studies and two years of collegial studies, therefore one moreover than in the other Canadian provinces. For this reason, the majority of the programs of university studies of first cycle (baccalaureat) last three years. The notable exceptions are the studies in medicine (much longer), in genius and education (four years instead of three).
The students of the outside of Quebec must make one year additional before beginning their academic works. The course of academic works generally resembles what is the standard in North America elsewhere. In addition to the private universities, the government of Quebec has the network of public universities of the Université of Quebec, with establishments in several cities in the province.
Academic works, which are subsidized by the government of Quebec, are recognized at their cost relatively relatively low compared to the other establishments of North America. But if one compares with certain countries of Europe, the such France or the Scandinavian Pays, these same studies is much more expensive. With its four universities, Montreal is the town of importance which has the most percentage of students in North America.
Comparison of the systems of French and Québécois education
Particular case: Under the terms of agreement-tallies on the recognition of the diplomas signed in 1996 by the Conférence of the presidents of universities (CPU), the Conférence of the principals and of formations of engineers (CDEFI) and the Conférence of the vice-chancellors and of principal of the universities of Quebec (CREPUQ), the French baccalaureat (12 years of schooling) is recognized like the equivalent of the diploma of Québécois collegial studies (13 years of schooling) as regards access to the university education in Quebec.
Système français
Année of études
Système québécois
Primaire préparatoire
CP
1
Primaire
1er
Élémentaire
CE1
2
2e
CE2
3
3e
Moyen
CM1
4
4e
CM2
5
5e
Collège
Secondaire
6e
6
6e
5e
7
École secondaire
Secondaire
I
4e
8
II
3e
DNB
9
III
CAP/BEP Lycée
Seconde
10
IV
DEP
Première
11
V
DES
BT/
Bac. Pro
Terminale
12
Cégep
2 ans
DEC pré-universitaire
Cégep
3 ans
DEC technique
DUT (université)
/
BTS (lycées)
Universitaire
License
13
14
Universitaire
1er cycle
(course of 3 or 4 years)
Baccalauréat
15
Maitrise 1
16
Maitrise 2
DEA/DESS
17
2e cycle
Maitrise
DESS
Doctorat
18
19
3e cycle
Doctorat
20
21
Études higher:
Cheminement
Cheminement or technologique
Significance of the initials
* BESD: Bacc. secondary education
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