Teachers unions want answers on public education policy proposals
As they announced before the summer holidays, the Federation of Teachers' Unions (FSE-CSQ) and the Quebec Provincial Association of Teachers (QPAT- QPAT) will be active in support of education with the goal of ensuring that public schools are at the heart of discussions for the duration of the election campaign and in the forefront of government concerns for the government elected on October 1.
If education was on the campaign menu at the start of the school year, the Pour l’école Publique (PEP) movement is committed to remembering that it must not stop there. Throughout September and the campaign, teachers will want to hear the commitments of all the parties to improve the situation, including-ensuring balanced class composition and adequate services for students; recognizing professional autonomy and offering a workload respectful of the teaching staff, and granting teachers a
As of this writing, the annual fundraising walk for Parkinson’s Estrie had taken in nearly $8,000 more than its $25,000 goal, with more donations still coming in. More than 200 people, including Sherbrooke Mayor Steve Lussier, turned out on Saturday afternoon to make the trip around Sherbrooke’s Lac des Nations in support of the local branch of Parkinson Quebec and its mission of providing free activities and resources to people living with the degenerative neurological disorder in the region.
Organizers made special mention of the contribution of $6,000 to the cause by painter Kevin Whitaker, who spent the summer working in North Hatley, calling it a wonderful and surprising gift.
The Défi Parkinson is Parkinson Estrie’s main fundraiser for the year and helps it support activities like its workshop series at Sercovie in Fleurimont as well as its partnership with the Sherbrooke boxing club.
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salary commensurate with the work they do.
Therefore, the PEP movement will be active in the field with signs supporting the public school system and has created a web platform to help the public to understand the various parties' commitments in terms of the three main issues, as well as an educational policy. The organizations will make sure to ask questions in writing and in the form of leaflets, inviting the parties to commit themselves to issues. A petition for public education is already circulating widely on social networks. It will be handed over to the government elected in October. The entire population is invited to sign it at://www.change.org/p/élections-provinciales-2018-exigeons-des-engagementspour-l-école-publique. "We are committed to improving the day-to-day lives of Quebec teachers who have a task that is too heavy and increasingly complex. They want to talk about what they need to improve their day-to-day work in preschool, elementary school, high school, vocational training and adult education. Faithful to our habits, we have chosen to be more than just spectators and to be active in encouraging debate on an issue as crucial as public education. In order to debate, it takes ideas and concrete commitments that will not rest on the backs of teachers who already carry the school on their shoulders," said Josée Scalabrini, President of the FSE, while emphasizing that the organization does not do partisan politics. For the FSE she said, it's about making education a real priority that goes beyond rhetoric.
"Beyond wishful thinking, we want to get the parties to compromise by clarifying their commitments and making their real intentions known, with regard to public school, the success of students and the teaching profession, which must be valued as a whole,” said QPAT President Sébastien Joly. “Above all, we are not telling people who to vote for, but we want to understand and analyze the issues and solutions put forward in the context of the election to meet the needs of Quebec schools. We want to see measures carried by a global vision that go beyond electioneering ads.”
For the unions, it is clear that political parties have to commit to reinvesting massively in education, so as to restore at least the level of funding that prevailed before the cuts in recent years. The Institute for Socio-economic Research and Information (IRIS) has estimated the amount to be $1.4 billion since 2003, including inflation.
Material on the Public School Movement (PEP) can be found on the FSE Facebook page.
The Federation of Teachers' Unions (FSE-CSQ) brings together 35 unions representing more than 65,000 teachers from school boards across Quebec. Its members include teachers from all sectors: preschool, primary, secondary, vocational training, and general adult education. It is affiliated with the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ) and negotiates in concert with the Quebec Provincial Association of Teachers (QPAT), which represents the 8,000 teachers of English school boards in Quebec. Together, they represent more than 73,000 teachers.