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

To improve the quality of the teaching personnel, Education 2000 suggested
most notably:
• To increase the university teacher training programs from four to fi ve years;
• To improve the internships during training;
• To experiment with an induction program for beginning teachers;
• To ask school districts to support teacher networking and interdisciplinary
professional development for teachers.
Following the publication of the report from the Commission on Excellence in
Education as well as the creation of a mission statement for public education, the
Educational Services Department (francophone sector) published a document in
1995 entitled The Primary School. The francophone sector also created a program
for the renewal of secondary schooling. The document on primary schools supported
the idea that for education to be a success, it was not enough to know. One had to
know how to do and how to be. It is therefore necessary to give a shape to primary
schools that would take advantage of the human and material resources available
in order to maximize the quality of education services. It is hoped that there would
be thought given to this subject: the report proposed various actions that would
lead to the renewal of primary schools. This document is different from the one
produced by the anglophone sector. In its principle orientations, this document
appears more cognitivist and socio-constructivist. In its pedagogical conceptions,
the document is clearly much more centred on the process of learning than on
performance measurements from external standards and on methods that are more
active, differentiated, and diverse. Finally, the document gives weight not only to
summative evaluation approaches but also to approaches that are diagnostic and
formative. As well, the evaluation is seen as something to be done naturally and
gradually, taking into account the learning rhythm of the student rather than the
rhythm of the group. As for the curriculum the report valorizes, it is essentially that
proposed by the Downey-Landry Commission, including its various dispositions
but with a particular emphasis on the learning of French.
In the context of a system focused around both the learner and the learning, the
student’s spirit of initiative, his or her autonomy, and the recognition of his or her
competencies in the building of knowledge are considered essential. As for the role
of the teacher, it is about creating an environment propitious to learning, arousing
students’ curiosity, and supporting their efforts. In the classroom, the asking of
questions is considered paramount. The teacher should also highlight each person’s
competencies for teamwork, both for the teaching personnel, for the students and
for the other partners as well as staying abreast of new research into education.
In contrast to the document produced by the anglophone sector, that of the
francophone sector favours a primary school covering eight years (and not a middle
school option). The advantages of keeping students together from Kindergarten
through Grade 8 are: a more “family” type school that emphasizes attachment,
security and a sense of continuity; teachers who have more time to get to know
their students; and students who have more time to prepare for the transition from
elementary to secondary school.
In March 2003, the francophone sector published a document entitled A
Renewal of Secondary Schools. Covering a period of three years, the fi rst changes
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