EARLY HISTORY

Long before the arrival of Europeans in the 16th century, Indigenous settlements were scattered across present-day Québec. Indigenous Inuit and First Nations communities were diverse cultures, with their own languages, way of life, economies, and religious beliefs. They did not have a written language, but passed their history and other cultural knowledge along to each generation through oral tradition (Battiste, 2002).

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Today, Aboriginals account for 2% of Québec’s population. They attend school at public/private institutions or schools on reservations. Unlike the rest of the education system of Canada, Aboriginal education falls under the federal umbrella (Gouvernement du Québec, 2013).

THE NEW FRANCE ERA (1534-1760)

Portrait of Jacques Cartier by Auguste Lemoine 1895

In 1534, French explorer Jacques Cartier sailed into modern day Québec and took possession of the territory in the name of French King François I, marking the beginning of French colonization in Canada. Neither the scarcity of the population nor the rigors of the climate were able to deter this colony from growing and developing, with the courage and pride of the settlers being passed on to generations to come (Manière, 1981).

Since France was mainly interested in fur trading in Québec, the establishment of great schools and universities was low on the list of royal priorities. This lack of priority allowed the Catholic Church to monopolize education in Québec with little change until the 20th century. In the absence of political stability, settlers relied on the Church for the education of young boys and girls and higher education was limited to seminary training or study abroad in France (Manière, 1981).

BRITISH RULE (1763-1867)

After years of fighting over power and territory, France lost its colony of Québec to the British in the 18th century. The Protestant British Crown outlawed the Catholic Church, halting Québec education for a time. Despite an increasingly English and Protestant environment, French Canadians clung to their French and Catholic roots in a distinct, close-knit community in Canada (Manière, 1981).

With resources concentrated on the unrest growing in the American colonies to the south, the Parliament of Great Britain aimed to secure allegiance with the French Canadians through the Québec Act of 1774. This act restored the use of French civil law and guaranteed free practice of the Catholic faith in the colony (Manière, 1981).

CANADIAN CONFEDERATION (1867)

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In the 19th century, Canada gained independence and created the Canadian Confederation. The Constitution Act of 1867 established a highly decentralized government structure, including matters related to education. The constitution states, “In and for each Province the Legislature may exclusively make Laws in relation to Education…” (Gouvernement du Québec, 2013). To this day, the province of Québec has full authority of its education system.

Since the clergy deemed that it alone was able to provide appropriate teaching to young people and that the state should not interfere in educational matters, education in Québec was entrusted to the authority of a Department of Public Instruction (DPI) made up of a Catholic committee and a Protestant committee. Catholics and Protestants had separate schools administered by these confessional school boards (Young & Bezeau, 2003).

QUIET REVOLUTION (1960s)

By the 1960s, concern about the antiquated educational system and the low level of formal schooling among French Canadians was growing in Québec. With the goal of modernizing, the provincial government made education its top priority, resulting in many educational reforms. This “Quiet Revolution” brought with it an increased role for the government and a reduced role for churches as the educational system became secularized. A ministry of education was established in 1964 (Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport) and the religious school boards were were reorganized (Pigeon, 2008).

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During this time, education became known as a right rather than a luxury. With this in mind, the provincial government placed greater emphasis on free education and the building of new schools. The age for compulsory schooling was raised from 14 to 16. At the secondary level, comprehensive high schools which provide both general and vocational programs were set up. For postsecondary education, Québec established cégeps (collège d’enseignement général et professionnel), junior general and vocational colleges with free tuition. Cégeps offer two-year pre-university programs as well as three-year vocational programs that lead directly to the job market (Pigeon, 2008).

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