The opposition parties accuse the Minister of Education Jean-François Roberge of not having done enough to counter the shortage of teachers.
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The newspaper reported Tuesday that the shortage of teachers reached new heights in Quebec schools, according to a compilation made by two associations of school administrators.
In only 500 schools, nearly 900 jobs remain available a few days before the start of the school year, while the province has around 2,300 public schools.
“It is absolutely alarming to note that the situation is not improving and that it is getting worse, while the situation has been known, documented and decried for many years,” insisted PQ member Véronique Hivon.
In power for three years now, the Legault government is the only one to blame for this mess, she adds. Mme Hivon cannot explain why it was not possible to set up a program allowing students from the faculties of education to come and lend a hand to the school network.
Same story from Liberal MP Marwah Rizqy. “The minister does not want to see the problem, he has never solved it and he does not even talk about it. We are sinking instead of improving, ”she says.
At Québec solidaire, MP Christine Labrie is worried about these students in difficulty who will be deprived of services because remedial teachers will have to take charge of classes this year.
The opposition parties are also urging Quebec to put a stop to the deployment of 4-year-old kindergartens, as school principals are now demanding.
For his part, the Minister of Education said it was too early to draw conclusions, since official figures from the school network are not yet available.
He also pointed out that the staff shortage is affecting all of Quebec and that the school network is no exception.
While recalling various measures put in place recently to counter the shortage, he said that we will have to wait a little longer before the problem is resolved. “It will take some time before we get through this crisis, we are very confident and we are working on it,” he said.
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