Quebec imposes measures to fight “toxic climate” in a Montreal school

The Quebec Ministry of Education has appointed two monitors at Bedford School, in Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood, to combat a “toxic climate” of fear and intimidation at the elementary school.

The new monitors started work on Tuesday and will have to report to the Ministry of Education by November 30.

The province’s measures follow a report released last week concluding that a “dominant clan” of teachers was imposing a strict autocratic regime on students.

The government report says children are subjected to physical and psychological violence and that teachers refuse to teach or pay little attention to subjects such as oral communication, science, religion and sex education. He also said teachers refused to allow children with special needs to receive help from specialized professionals.

Quebec launched its investigation after radio reports from 98.5 FM looked into the school climate.

An investigation will determine whether 11 teachers suspected of engaging in concerning behavior committed serious misconduct and whether or not their teaching certificates should be suspended or revoked.

Education Minister Bernard Drainville has ordered audits at three other schools — two primary schools and one secondary school — under the governance of the same service center as Bedford, which are believed to have similar problems.

Unions call for “damning” report

The Autonomous Education Federation (FAE) says it “does not condone” what happened in Bedford.

“The report is damning,” FAE president Mélanie Hubert told The Canadian Press on Tuesday.

“It’s hard to imagine that in 2024, in our public schools, situations like this could last this long,” she said.

Hubert also deplored that the principle of professional autonomy was invoked by certain teachers at this school who refused, for example, to discuss pedagogy and their teaching methods.

“Professional autonomy does not mean being able to do what you want when you want, and not being accountable to anyone. On the contrary, professional autonomy is exercised in compliance with our legal frameworks,” said Hubert.

The president recalls that her federation required that students with learning or adjustment difficulties benefit from the help of qualified professionals, such as speech therapists.

The Montreal Teachers’ Alliance represents Bedford School teachers as a union. The Alliance is affiliated with the FAE.

With files from The Canadian Press