This week is one of persistence. It was therefore entitled to a series of announcements, events, reports. As with hopeless causes, it is now "in" to wear his little pin comemoration. It is green like the color of hope. We will need it, failing to have political courage.
So do not expect too much: next week will be that of another cause and it will turn the page quickly enough. What Regardless, over the next few posts, I throw a glance hidden that we learned this week.
Iowa, land of Excellence
The JDEM gave us a series of reports on the state of Iowa which results in school dropout among boys seem very interesting. Several factors explain this success:
- the contribution of new technologies;
- the presence of sports teams in schools;
- greater availability of teachers via the Internet;
- flexible hours for students;
- the possibility for parents to better monitor performance and absences of their children;
- a more restrictive legislation on parents whose children miss school.
As I mentioned in a previous comment with the journalist who wrote these texts, Sébastien Ménard, I have great difficulty with the comparisons with foreign models. We often try to apply here what is happening elsewhere without really understanding what it is and without checking if the conditions are met for this to work with us. Moreover, these comparisons are often incomplete and intermingle dropout, persistence and performance.
Questions
Thus, for Iowa, questions remain:
- Are there any boards or individual schools in Iowa she enjoys a certain autonomy?
- What is the degree of accountability of school authorities? Are they elected or appointed?
- How much per student in Iowa he devotes to education? How much of that money actually ends up in classrooms and how much is reflected in the administration?
- How does one find students by educational staff in Iowa?
- How to compare the salaries of teachers in this state than their Quebec colleagues? Whichever is lower, is this enough to explain that there seems to have more money in schools?
- Who equips teachers with computers? Who pays for their Internet connection in the evenings and on weekends?
- When it comes to flexible hours, they are offered to students exactly what age?
Quebec, a land of desolation
Moreover, it is now unthinkable to consider implementing some measures iowaïennes in Quebec because there would be no money to support them. In fact, with a budget of 15 billion, it fails of money to implement them. It also makes you wonder where you spend it, the damn money. This question deserves a clear answer and documented.
first example of measurement impossible: to interest young people in school through the computer. As we know, Quebec schools are under-equipped in the matter. Computers in classrooms when there are outdated or not even connected to the Internet! In fact, generally, they are our managers and policy makers who are properly equipped. They have phones, Blackberry and so on.
Second example of possible action: enable parents to better monitor their child via the Internet. Our schools are under-equipped computer, there are too many teachers per computer. Moreover, I do not think the computer abuse CS are able to deliver in this area.
Words, words, words ...
Interviewed on 98.5 FM, the Education Minister Line Beauchamp said to be interested in measures that relate to computers and sport: "The presence of new technologies [...], I think that's wearer. That can not we have that the class be like in 2011 than we had in 1911, with the green chalkboard and chalk. "For cons, the minister does not believe in the use of coercive measures with parents of children" absentee. " Remains what it finds money to give his vision of the school in 2011 with that of our current classes. But she will never dare to take the means to achieve it. Like its predecessors, it will not dare question the expenditure in education in Quebec. In passing
reactions of the ineffable president of the Fédération des commissions scolaires du Québec, Josée Bouchard, who contradicts himself in the same interview. About sports and computer technology, she says, "That's what catches the boys. I think we understood that here too. "Categorical assertion: that the solution, the recipe for the guys who are all alike, we know.
But a little later, about the deterrent legal measures, she said: "If there really revenue, we are not more stupid than elsewhere. We apply the same recipe everywhere. "So I'm wondering: Is Ms. Bouchard for revenue-miracles, or rather a form of decentralization and autonomy? His speech lacks coherence and clarity. It would gain be more precise.
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