Québec’s education system is one of the best in the world and those who make it work can be commended for their professionalism and commitment. If the system now needs improvement, it is because the world as experienced by today’s youth is far different from the one their parents and grandparents knew. As is the case with numerous other education systems around the world, our system has had to adjust to the realities of the new century that is taking shape. Things have changed, society has evolved and new expectations have emerged. All partners in Québec’s education system agree on the importance of ensuring that our schools are more responsive to the needs of young people and better able to help them succeed.

This reform is the result of lengthy reflection and public consultations spanning several years, is based on the latest research in the field of education as well as on the many pilot projects conducted in Québec schools in recent years, and takes into account the numerous proposals made during the Estates General on Education that wrapped up in 1996. All this to say that the reform is not just some trendy project, let alone something that was thrown together hastily and haphazardly. Although not entirely new, the principles of the reform, are, according to those who developed the Québec Education Program and to countless observers, the best way of preparing our children for the challenges ahead.

Instructional material based on the former programs of study is valid for the next two years. Teachers are free to use any parts of the material that are appropriate by adapting it to fit the student-centred and competency-based approach called for by the Program.

The new instructional material will be approved by the Minister as it is received from the publishers commissioned to supply it.

Yes. The new Preschool Education Program came into effect in September 2000. The general objective of the program is to enable students to develop competencies related to self-knowledge, living in society and communication. The children take part in learning situations drawn from their world of play and their life experiences that prepare them to be active and thoughtful students.

Private schools are required to deliver the programs prescribed by the MEQ. This means that implementation of the reform is occurring simultaneously in private and public schools.

No. The important point here is that September 2000 is the starting point for reform rather than its culmination. In the two years leading up to the reform, the MEQ organized a number of province-wide meetings that brought together several hundred people delegated to provide support for implementation of the reform from every region, as well as training sessions for resource persons within the education community. In addition, the schools were given the opportunity to examine the draft version of the new programs, and the final version was available to them before September.

The new Preschool Education and Elementary Cycle One (Grades 1 and 2) programs became compulsory in September 2000. The MEQ is well aware that a reform of such scope is not without its challenges, notably as regards teaching methods and the professional development of teaching staff. However, the reform can be introduced gradually and can be tailored to the specific needs of the school concerned. The timeframe for gradual implementation is September 2000 to June 2001; full implementation is slated for the 2001-2002 school year.

Various activities were carried out in universities in order to provide prospective teachers with information on the reform, including:

• information and structured activities within education departments and faculties
• think-tanks on the bases for the reform
• working groups on the changes to existing programs of study
• regional meetings aimed at introducing students and professors to the content of the new programs

These activities made it possible for professors to give their students an overview of the main features of the reform, notably, those affecting programs of study.

In August 2000, the MEQ consulted the stakeholders concerned on the guidelines regarding the initial training of the next generation of teachers. The final version of the ministerial document will be forwarded to the universities at the end of the year.

Cycle-based learning is more consistent with the psychology of children and the stages of their development. Students have more time to master program content and to carry out more complex tasks. Cycle-based learning should also help break down the classroom isolation that teachers feel and promote cooperative teaching. Cycle-based teaching is also an invitation to assume collective responsibility for teaching and to mobilize the entire school team under the banner of that institution’s educational project.

This may happen, but not necessarily. School administrators and the teaching staff work together to determine whether in the particular situation in question, having a teacher remain with the same group is the best way of achieving the pedagogical goals that have been set.

As of September 2000, students in Elementary Cycle One (Grades 1 and 2) will take the following subjects:

• French (language of instruction), in French schools
• Mathematics
• Moral Education OR Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction OR Protestant Moral and Religious Education
• French and English (language of instruction), in English schools
• Arts Education (Music, Visual Arts, Drama or Dance)
• Physical Education and Health

As of September 2001, students in Elementary Cycle Two (Grades 3 and 4) will take the following subjects in addition to the above:

• Science and Technology
• History, Geography and Citizenship Education
• English, in French schools

The subjects for Elementary Cycle Three (Grades 5 and 6) will be the same as for Elementary Cycle Two and will be introduced in September 2002.

In Elementary Cycle One, two extra hours per week have been added for these subjects. This means that the number of hours allocated for English is now 7 instead of 9, and 7 instead of 5 for Mathematics.

There are no changes in the number of hours allocated for Moral Education, Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction or Protestant Moral and Religious Education in September 2000. However, new orientations were proposed by the Minister of Education in a bill adopted in the National Assembly on June 14, 2000. Changes in the time allocation for these subjects are forthcoming and could be introduced as of September 2001.

French, second language, begins in Elementary Cycle One (Grade 1). Time allocation for this subject is determined by the governing board, but must be sufficient to enable students to acquire the competencies prescribed by the program.

A report card is a document that provides parents with information about their child’s academic progress. In a competency-based program, the purpose of this information is also to describe the process used to achieve the outcomes observed. In other words, evaluation is an ongoing process concerned with ways of doing things as well as with the results of these choices.

Parents will continue to receive report cards on their child’s progress for each subject on a regular basis. The shift from traditional report cards with grades to another kind of achievement report will be phased in gradually. Parents could be given a sampling of the various assignments and other material produced by their child (portfolio, class diary, logbooks, etc.), which would give them a good idea of how their child is faring and to what extent the required competencies are being acquired.

It is important to remember that the creation of governing boards is directly aligned with one of the reform’s goals, which is to give schools more autonomy. Governing boards, composed of equal numbers of parents and school staff, are empowered to make schools "learning communities" where decisions are arrived at collectively by pooling the abilities and skills of the stakeholders concerned.

By virtue of its powers and functions, a governing board helps implement the reform, primarily by adopting, overseeing and evaluating the school’s educational project, which draws from the salient features of the reform and converts them into orientations, priorities and competencies.

Governing boards are responsible for approving the approach proposed by the principal for implementation of the basic school regulation. They also approve the overall approach proposed by the principal for the teachers’ enrichment or adaptation of the programs of study established by the Minister, as well as for the development of local programs of study to meet the students’ specific needs.

To help governing boards carry out this mandate, a number of school boards offer training sessions and make various resources available. The MEQ regional offices as well as other organizations representing governing board members also provide support. A MEQ Web site <www.mels.gouv.qc.ca/conseils> features information on the various resources, a discussion group and interactive access to answers concerning the composition, operation and powers and responsibilities of governing boards.

Not really. Even though changes have occurred, the goal of instruction in elementary schools is still to enable students to develop basic skills, primarily in their language of instruction and in mathematics, but also in history and science. The role of parents is to support their children in the learning process and to encourage them to learn. It’s up to parents to provide a family setting conducive to academic success. In concrete terms, this includes making sure that children have a place where they can work productively and ensuring that they have the material they need. It also involves choosing the best time for doing homework.

The most important thing of all is to keep a close eye on the homework and studying that are assigned.

Parents who have questions or concerns about homework or, for that matter, about the new programs, can talk to fellow parents or to their child’s teacher. Some schools and school boards organize information sessions for parents. We would advise parents to keep abreast of all these issues and to attend any meetings organized by the school or school board for these purposes.

Last year, sixteen schools across Québec, including three English schools and two private schools, field-tested the Québec Education Program for Elementary Cycle One. The aim of the experiment was to assess how realistic the proposed practices were and to determine which conditions would allow system-wide enactment of the reform to occur as seamlessly as possible. The experience was very positive. A report is due to be tabled shortly, and the main recommendations will be sent to the schools and school boards concerned.

So far, the results show that school personnel are very supportive of the reform and that student motivation is up. Cycle Two pilot projects will continue into 2000-2001, with a view to implementing the reform the following year.

Because the first few years of school are crucial to a child's education, it was only logical that the Reform should first be implemented at the preschool and elementary levels.

Implementation of the new curriculum for preschool and the first two years of elementary school (now known as Elementary Cycle One) began in September 2000. The implementation of the Reform will continue until the year 2003 at the elementary level and be carried out at the secondary level from 2003 to 2006.

Implementation Timetable

The Reform will be implemented at the secondary level from 2003 to 2006.

A few basic concepts that will help you better understand the Reform

Teachers, students and parents will have to become familiar with a number of concepts that underlie the new Québec Education Program. An overview of these concepts is provided below.

A competency-based approach is now being used in the schools. This means that through classroom learning, students are to acquire two types of competencies: subject-specific and cross-curricular competencies.

Subject-specific competencies are those that students acquire in studying and mastering the topics related to a particular subject area such as English, mathematics or the arts. As a result, students will continue learning basic skills such as reading, writing, oral expression and arithmetic.

Cross-curricular competencies are related to the following four areas:

• intellectual development: (e.g. learning how to solve a problem by taking part in a group project)
• work methods: (e.g. learning how to do research and to plan their work)
• personal and social development: (e.g. doing a science experiment that involves working as part of a team and sharing the work while acknowledging each person's role)
• communication: (e.g. using the appropriate terms when giving an oral presentation)

These competencies are acquired in all subjects and in all school activities. Once they have used these competencies in different contexts, children will be able to apply them in other situations and in other ways. These competencies will be developed in situations related to the students' everyday life.

The idea of having fun while learning may seem rather strange to those who believe that you cannot really learn without hard work. However, new educational methods have shown that a stimulating environment can help students learn more effectively. If children have fun while learning and find school more enjoyable, they will be even more eager to learn. This does not mean that hard work is no longer required. All learning involves commitment, discipline and perseverance. What has to change is our attitude towards hard work.

Students cannot develop competencies without acquiring knowledge. They develop the tools that will help them to deal with complex situations and become familiar with new concepts related to subjects such as English and science. Upon leaving school, students will have acquired knowledge that will be useful to them in everyday life. Schools must ensure that students have the basic knowledge they will need to function in society.

With project-based learning, students must carry out tasks that involve learning new things by applying what they already know.

Here is an example of project-based learning:

• Carol's students are to prepare for a visit to the zoo.

They must:

• do research to find the exact names of different animals and become familiar with their way of life, the food they eat, etc.
• give an oral presentation describing what they have discovered
• classify the different species of animals

Each project provides students with challenges that will make them aware of the importance and usefulness of what the teacher is asking them to do. Nevertheless, the Reform is not based solely on one educational approach, since a project is not an end in itself. Lecture style teaching will still have its place, but increasingly more use will be made of other approaches involving greater participation on the part of the students.

This is one of the educational approaches that teachers can use. Cooperative learning is way of organizing educational activities that involves having students support and help each other in developing competencies and acquiring knowledge. With this learning approach, students in a given class do not compete with one another, but rather cooperate to carry out a task, plan an activity or complete a project. As a result, students learn that certain relatively complex large-scale projects cannot be successfully carried out without enlisting the help of many different people and coordinating their work.

The teacher may decide to use teamwork and project work, or a cooperative learning approach to help students develop competencies and acquire knowledge. This does not mean that teachers will always assign project work or that the students will always be in cooperative learning situations. These approaches must be used appropriately; no one approach provides a universal solution.

Although project work requires time, students can learn much more and acquire longer-lasting knowledge if they concentrate on situations that motivate them, instead of skimming over a large number of topics and receiving only lecture style instruction. The goal is to motivate students, to get them to take an interest in school and to encourage them to play an active role in their education.

The Reform involves a return to the essentials, to the basic subjects. Teachers are called upon to adapt educational approaches in order to make topics more accessible to their students. Teamwork and project work can be extremely useful in this regard.

Repeating a year should be an exceptional measure. Educational research has shown that repeating a grade does not usually help students succeed and may even hamper their academic progress, not to mention that it also has a negative impact on their self-esteem.

A competency-based approach used over a two-year cycle offers a great deal of flexibility. A student may not progress at the same rate in every subject and may need more time to acquire certain competencies. In the past, students who repeated a year and who had more difficulty in a given subject were required to do all the subjects for that grade level over again, which often had an extremely negative effect on their motivation.

In addition, the competency-based approach will call for new ways of evaluating the students' work and supporting them throughout the learning process.

To that end, all members of the school staff must work closely together to determine whether students have developed the required competencies. Their judgment in this regard will be based on a set of observations compiled during the learning process and not solely on the results of a few end-of-cycle exams. With this information, school staff can provide a much more accurate picture of the students' progress and of what they have actually learned, and will be able to make the necessary adjustments along the way to help the students improve.

Organizing education by two-year cycles gives teachers enough time to achieve the objectives in question and makes it possible for students to receive the support they need to overcome any difficulties.

The end-of-cycle progress report provides an overall assessment of the student and, if necessary, is used to determine transitional and support measures that will help him or her move on to the next cycle.

In fact, a competency-based approach makes it possible to take into account each student's situation, to closely monitor the rate at which he or she learns and to design activities during the learning process that reflect his or her progress.

Two-year cycles are more in keeping with the actual learning rates of students; they make it possible to avoid repeating a year and take into account the needs of students whose difficulties call for long-term remedial instruction. Teachers will be responsible for providing this type of instruction and, in this regard, will be assisted by a specialist (e.g. special education teacher), if necessary.

Not at all. In fact, the new curriculum gives teachers the necessary leeway to enrich the course content for more gifted students when required. The time set aside for helping weaker students with their basic learning can also be used to provide the more gifted students with more challenging assignments.

In the Social Sciences, for example, students are asked to study the establishment of a society in a given territory, to see how this territory led people to dress, eat and get organized in a certain way, and to examine how this territory changed as a result of what these people did. Two societies will be examined in the basic Social Sciences program (Cycle Two). The teacher can have the more gifted students study two societies at more than one point in history. Students will therefore develop a better understanding of the world in which they live and increase their knowledge.

The area of the arts embraces four subjects: drama, visual arts, dance and music. Two out of the four subjects are compulsory in elementary school. The school and its governing board determine which two arts subjects will be taught and the amount of time that will be designated for them. In Elementary Cycle One, a total of five and a half hours per week are to be shared among two arts subjects and physical education and health. It is expected that students will be able to acquire the learnings prescribed in the program within this time frame. In Cycles Two and Three, the Basic School Regulation provides for nine and a half hours per week, to be shared among the two arts subjects and the following subjects: physical education and health, geography, history, citizenship education, and science and technology.

History is a special focus of the new curriculum and is studied throughout elementary and secondary school. In Cycle One of elementary school, there is no program per se in geography, history and citizenship education, but students learn specific things related to this subject area within the context of all their school activities. Geography, History and Citizenship Education programs will be taught in Cycles Two and Three.

In fact, this is the goal of the Reform. Until now, academic programs focused on subject-specific knowledge and on the students' ability to memorize information. The new curriculum is designed to make school learning more viable and durable so that students will be better prepared for real-life situations. This should also help increase their motivation and make school activities more meaningful.

Of course. Even though changes have occurred, the goal of elementary school education is still to enable students to acquire knowledge and develop basic competencies, primarily in their language of instruction and in mathematics, but also in other subjects. The parents' main role is to support their children throughout the learning process and encourage them to learn. It is up to parents to provide a family setting conducive to academic success. In concrete terms, this includes making sure that children have a place where they can work productively and ensuring that they have the materials they need. It is also involves choosing the best time for doing homework and keeping a close eye on their child's schoolwork.

Parents who have questions or concerns about homework or, for that matter, about the new curriculum can consult information brochures (hyperlien ici) prepared by the Ministère de l'Éducation, talk to fellow parents or ask to meet with their child's teacher. Schools and school boards organize information sessions for parents. Parents should keep abreast of what is going on and attend any meetings organized by the school or school board in this regard.

Teachers are professionals who are responsible for guiding students through the learning process. Students can learn according to a project-based approach or any other method, but teachers are always there to supervise them. Discipline and rigour still play a role in any learning process.

Project work is one approach among others that encourages students to take responsibility for their own education. The focus is on getting students to function as independently as possible. It has been observed that students who are motivated to carry out projects and who are involved in their own development find school more enjoyable and usually cause fewer disciplinary problems.

Page updated on October 30, 2000