The evolution of professionalism - Centre for Policy Studies in ...

Table 3.
Indicators of education in Quebec
Probability of obtaining a secondary school diploma
Total
Adult sector: 20 years of age or over
Youth sector or before the age of 20 in the adult sector
Total per-student educational spending
Elementary and secondary education ($)
Full-time and part-time enrollment
Elementary education (youth sector)
Secondary education (youth sector)
Elementary and secondary education (adult sector)
2002-03 e
78.8%
13.0%
65.8%
2001-02 e
$7,492
2002-03
564,559 students
455,467 students
247,258 students
Student-teacher ratio in school boards 2002-03e 15.7
Number of private schools
1993-94
Elementary education
134 schools
Secondary education
121 schools
Elementary and secondary education
55 schools
Total
310 schools
Number of students in private sector
1993-94
Elementary education
24,052 students
(% of students in private primary schools)
(4.3%)
Secondary education
77,081 students
(% of students in private secondary schools)
(10.7%)
Number of schools in function
e = estimates.
1989-90
3,136 schools
2002-03
131 schools
150 schools
57 schools
338 schools
2002-03
29,462 students
(5.2%)
81,672 students
(11.6%)
1999-2000
3,218 schools
The Estates General on Education: An Exercise in Participatory Democracy
In 1995, the new Parti Quebecois government established the Commission
for the Estates General on Education to review the entire education situation
in Quebec; the Commission was intended to conduct an extensive, 18-month
consultative process and, from there, draw out perspectives on and priorities for
the future. In October 1996, the Commission published its fi nal report The Estates
General on Education 1995-1996: Renewing our Education System: Ten Priority
Actions. The report emphasized that two fundamental political principles should
guide both refl ections on and action for education. The fi rst was the concept of
equal opportunity, defi ned as providing 100 percent of young people with the
qualifi cations necessary to enter the world both professionally and socially. The
second concept reiterated the notion that school is at the heart of society, a lever
for pushing forward economic, social, and cultural development and a means of
creating a more just, democratic, and egalitarian society.
The Commission proposed three main education goals: to instruct, by sharing
knowledge; to socialize, by transmitting foundation values (respect for institutions,
common rules, and diversity); and to qualify, by ensuring the training and retraining
necessary to engage in professional activities that correspond to both market needs
and the interests and aptitudes of students of all ages.
Chapter 6: Quebec 101