Invest in education or invest in yourself?

The strike from December 8 to 14 seems inevitable to me given the contempt shown by the government towards its public sector workers. Be careful, I have a lot to say…

I have been teaching at CEGEP as a philosophy teacher since the fall of 2016. I have spent several sessions as a teacher with a precarious status, with all that that implies: financial instability, unpredictability, the accumulation of fragmented tasks and uncertain, adaptation to circumstances that require a lot of tact (creating a bond of trust while the session is underway, reassuring worried students, adjusting the schedule of activities, picking up leftover corrections and so on).

As a precarious worker, I had to make sacrifices — starting with my doctorate. What a sadness, moreover, to have to give up pursuing studies or research projects, when we are working precisely to transmit knowledge. The intellectual that I am was not formed on nothing and passion is something that can be maintained. Brief ! I had to give up my doctoral research for several years. I also gave up, of course, the stability and serenity that comes with it. Some will sacrifice a job offered at another college, all sorts of opportunities, and even (often) some quality of life.

If precariousness were only a status or a question of social benefits, things would still be fine. But because they have no choice and cannot refuse a task (otherwise they harm their possibilities of getting out of this precariousness since it is necessary to gain seniority), the precarious find themselves forced to exercise their profession in almost impossible conditions. The precarious are those who often recover the boat before it sinks, who take care of bringing it to port, while they obtain, in return, no recognition of the challenges that such a feat entails. nor any accommodation to protect their physical and mental health.

After seven years of precariousness, I unofficially obtained my tenure only a few months ago. Unofficially, because I am off work. Ironic, isn’t it? : obtain your permanence when you are on the ground. My permanence has a bitter taste.

In my department, I see the “new precarious workers” arriving and some are already exhausted. I also see permanent teachers who choose (when they can) to opt for the PVRTT (Voluntary Working Time Reduction Program). Of these, many recognize that currently, a 100% “full task” is too much. Our “full task” is, in reality, an overtask.

A question of survival

Let’s take the time to name it frankly: even teachers who can rely on a certain stability sometimes turn to a “voluntary” reduction in working time (to what extent is it voluntary to avoid exhaustion by sacrificing part of of his salary, I wonder!) to be able to do their job correctly. Others will look for different releases in order to more specifically lighten the teaching load.

So we have apparently reached this point: having to pay for some time release ourselves to be able to meet the demands of a task that is too full or favor other activities over teaching to obtain a certain release. It’s a question of survival. This situation serves no one and is costly for everyone.

I can’t speak for the other disciplines, obviously. But in philosophy, having to be responsible for between 130 and 150 students per session, with the objectives that must be achieved – in particular the correction of long essays within the prescribed deadlines – and taking into account the learning challenges which are constantly increasing: all this makes our work more and more difficult. I won’t even talk about the issues surrounding distance education or the consequences of artificial intelligence. I stick to the essential: it is the relationship between the teacher and the student that suffers first.

Let us add that our students are also evolving in increasingly precarious conditions. A majority must work to survive. With current inflation, some can no longer do it. They are exhausted, anxious and unwilling to learn. They are also, for the most part, at an age of great upheaval. They go through all kinds of tragedies and many are left to their own devices: the psychosocial support service does not (not all!) provide what is required. I can no longer count the number of times students have turned to their teacher to vent.

As far as I’m concerned, it’s unfortunate, but the current context means that I feel less and less like I’m teaching. To maintain the passion for my job, I try to create breathing spaces, so as not to feel swallowed up by the heaviness of the task. Since 2016, I have carried out all kinds of projects with my students for which I have not obtained any release. And to access these small spaces where we breathe, there will be no gifts either. You have to force them. That’s time, resources and a lot of energy. If you only knew how we get involved!

We must understand how great the needs are, how urgent it is to act. I’m going back to teach in January. I can’t wait to see the students again, I can’t wait to think with them. As for the government, I really hope to see its sincere desire to improve things materialize. When we talk about investing in our public services, do we need to specify that it is not just workers who must invest?

To watch on video