Montréalités Education

By Dunia Abbas

Image source: Flickr.

Graduation can mean so many things. It means happiness and sadness, freedom and restriction, utter fear and absolute excitement, all at the same time. This is all due to the many decisions that must be taken as soon as graduation becomes a near event. Even the smallest decisions become big ones as all of us graduating students begin to think of what each decision could possibly translate into later on for us. Relocation is the biggest decision for international students who usually have to compare and contrast where they are now with their home. To help make their decision, they need to decide which important criteria they need to base their decision on to be able to make the best one possible. Personally, I have to make a decision on whether or not I should stay in Canada a few years after graduation or relocate back to the Emirates. I am Palestinian, which means in most countries I am considered a 'stateless' person which is what makes immigration laws and citizenship the most major decisive factors for my relocation. Canada and the UAE are both great countries that I have enjoyed and I honestly would not mind settling in either, but I need to compare and contrast immigration laws as well as employment ones for me to make a decision after graduation.

By Heather GrahamWhen a student graduates with a bachelor's degree, it is generally known that it equates a great deal of student debt. Rising financial costs of education and its affect on student debt have been discussed ad nauseam by Governments, the Private Sector, and the University Institution itself. What is not often considered or discussed are the social costs of the diminishing value of an undergraduate degree. Today's Generation Y is the highest educated, lowest employed generation to graduate after having accrued the highest level of student debt. What does this mean for Society?

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Fabienne Beauséjour

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Language remains a controversial issue in Quebec, especially Montreal. The adequacy of Law 101 is at the core of many discussions in and outside the province. People's understanding of this law depends on whether they sit among the Francophones or Anglophones. Most French speakers believe this law is very important and fair, while most English speakers see the Charter of the French language as a totalitarian law. Thirty five years after Bill 101 was passed, the government of Quebec still has to defend some of its amendments in court.

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Vera Polouvytnova Image source: Radical Graphics

Understanding the process of integration for immigrant youth and the factors at play will allow the parents and the community to support the young adults better and ensure their successful integration into the host society.

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By Julie Phaneuf The French students' lack of knowledge of the English language has been a preoccupation for our government for many years now. Recently, our Prime Minister Jean Charest announced an expansion of a new English immersion program for sixth graders in Quebec's francophone schools. Such a system already exists but it is available only to a small number of students whom have the capacities needed to be able to achieve a complete curriculum in five months. A better knowledge of English is certainly mandatory; however, the implementation of an English immersion program to every French school in Quebec will undoubtedly fail.

Image source: Flickr

Marieke Bivar-Wikhammer
Immigration is a recurrent issue in countries around the world. The meeting of the host country's and the immigrant's cultures and languages can sometimes cause conflict as nationalisms flare up and cultural and linguistic protectionisms kicks in. An interesting phenomenon is that of the more recently founded nations like those of the Americas. For some countries, like the United States, there is less emphasis on official multiculturalism and more of a tendency to regard the ensemble of citizens as being simply American. For other countries, like Canada, there is an emphasis on multiculturalism and on encouraging cultural diversity... that is, officially.

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By Cinzia Vicario
Our society is constantly changing, and its evolution seems to be affecting people's values and morals at every age. For example, today it is not uncommon to turn on the TV in the middle of the day and see scenes of violence or sexual content that should be reserved to adult viewers. In addition, some rap music, or even video-games, also add to the problem by promoting use of violence or sexist behaviour that in the long run tend to desensitize us. All of these factors, at various levels, contribute to the decline of moral values in modern society. In fact, they are valid examples of the lack of respect shown to our youth's normal psychological development, or to the dignity of those we call minorities because of their gender, race or sexual orientation.

Marieke Bivar-Wikhammer
The issue of educational integration for immigrant youth in Quebec is a complicated one. To best explore the subject, I have chosen two articles that examine the problem through studies. The first is Who's in and who's out? Language and the integration of new immigrant youth in Quebec by Dawn Allen, which focuses on the government of Quebec's definition of integration and argues for more inclusive policy. She argues that "...in Quebec's current policy documents, integration is conceptualized in such a way that immigrants are the objects rather than the subjects of integration." (Allen, 2). The second article is by Marilyn Steinbach and is based on findings from a study drawing on interviews with a number of immigrant youth navigating Quebec's "Accueil" system. Its title Quand je sors d'accueil: linguistic integration of immigrant adolescents in Quebec secondary schools refers to the isolation experienced by immigrant youth both socially and academically due to their status. As the issue is a complex one and both papers are quite long, I have chosen to focus on outlining the Accueil (meaning "welcome") system that immigrant youth are required to go through in Quebec before joining regular classes.

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Christine FournierAccess to an education in English through the public system should be a right and not a privilege in Quebec. However, that is all about to change.  A recent development in the National Assembly of Quebec, regarding language of instruction, has lead to the creation of Bill 115. This bill will block access to public English education unless someone has considerable means to pay for entry into the system. Bill 115 should not be received with open arms because it is rather unnecessary and the legislation is confusing, unconstitutional and unfair.

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• Grade A Tutors Montreal - Lists tutors available in Montreal by area providing help for students in all grades and subjects
• Liberty Tutoring - Offers 1-on-1 tutoring for students in the Montreal area

If you know of any quality tutoring services, please drop a note in the comment box below.

• Alexander von Humboldt Schule Baie d'Urfé, Quebec PK to 12(Coed)
• Athol Murray College of Notre Dame Wilcox, Saskatchewan 9 to 12(Coed)
• Bishop's College School Sherbrooke, Quebec 7 to 12(Coed)
• Centennial Academy Montreal, Quebec 7 to 11(Coed)
• Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf Montréal, Québec 1 to 4(All Boys)/5 to 5(All Boys & All Girls)
• College Prep International Montreal, Quebec 5 to 11(Coed)
• The Gow School South Wales, New York 7 to 12(All Boys)
• Kells Academy Montreal, Quebec K to 11(Coed)
• King's-Edgehill School Windsor, Nova Scotia 7 to 12(Coed)
• Kuper Academy Kirkland, Quebec PS to 11(Coed)
• Maplebrook School Amenia, New York UE to UE(Coed)
• Villa Sainte-Marcellines & College International des Marcellines Westmount, Quebec K to 11(All Girls)/12 to UE(Coed)
• Miss Edgar's & Miss Cramp's School Westmount, Quebec K to 11(All Girls)
• Selwyn House School Westmount, Quebec K to 11(All Boys)
• Stanstead College Stanstead, Quebec 7 to 12(Coed)
• The Storm King School Cornwall on Hudson, New York 8 to 12(Coed)
• The Study Westmount, Quebec K to 11(All Girls)
•  The Sacred Heart School of Montreal Montreal, Quebec 7 to 11(All Girls)
• Trafalgar School For Girls Montreal, Quebec 7 to 11(All Girls)
• Venta Preparatory School Ottawa, Ontario SK to 10(Coed)
• Villa Maria Montreal, Quebec 7 to 11(All Girls)

Christine FournierLooking for educational activity children will enjoy? Why not visit the Ecomuseum in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, on the western tip of the island of Montreal. This 28-acre wildlife park houses over ninety species of birds, amphibians, reptiles, fish and mammals that can be seen in their natural habitat.

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Mohamed NaiemOne of the most alarming issues educators and teachers discuss these days is the decrease of children's academic performance and the escalating aggressiveness among them. The scope of this awful fact has reached a dreadful point: teachers are only 'pushing' students from one grade level to another. In the meantime, electronic devices providing access to movies and video games that are full of sexuality and violence--intended for children-- are booming. As children's mental abilities (still in development) can be shaped by whatever they are exposed to, these digital devices, used mainly to entertain with movies and games, may have played a role in the wrong turn of children's education. In other words, the technological advance, that once was anticipated to enhance children's education, has turned out to be rather harmful to their cognitive and social skills development because technology marketers have set consumption, not education, as a main goal to electronic innovations. To investigate this matter deeply, I relied on works of renowned educationists in an attempt to raise awareness about this subject. Indeed, understanding how technology may harm some precious elements of our society, children, may draw parents' and teachers' attention so that they act to save kids before it's too late. To apprehend the topic at hand, I first explained what the basic objectives of children's education are. Second, I showed how technology may contribute in teaching and learning. Then, I detailed the harm the unguided use of computers and other consumption oriented technology tools may cause to children's health, behaviors, and education.

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By GB Harding
Quebec parents have the right to educate their children in the language of their choice, in primary and secondary schools. These rights are immutable. Every child who attends English school will continue the rights for generations to come. Choosing an English school will stop the declining number of English schools in Quebec and ensure the survival of this important linguistic heritage.

Canada is a multi-cultural country where minority language rights instruction in education (English in Quebec and French in the rest of Canada) have been guaranteed under the law since the British North America Act.