The Quebec education system is governed by the Ministère de l'Éducation du Québec (Ministry of Education of Quebec). It has certain important differences from the systems of English Canada. A ministry is a department of a government, led by a minister. ... ... English Canada is a term used to describe either: the anglophone residents of Canada or the Canadian provinces other than Quebec and, sometimes, New Brunswick, in which French is an official language of the provincial governments. ...

Primary & Secondary education

In structure, the first twelve years are much like those in the rest of Canada. Education begins with kindergarten (maternelle) and grades 1-6 as primary school (école primaire). In the United States and Germany, kindergarten (German for garden of children) refers to the first level of a childs formal education. ... Primary or elementary education consist of the first years of formal, structured education that occurs during childhood. ...

High school (école secondaire) is five years, called Secondary I-V or simply grades 7-11. High school students who complete Secondary V obtain the governmental Diplôme d'études secondaires (DES). Japanese high school students in uniform High school, or Secondary school, is the last segment of compulsory education in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan (Republic of China) (only junior high school) and the United States. ...

Language of instruction in Quebec schools is sometimes misunderstood. Under the Charter of the French Language, passed in 1977, all students are required to attend French-language schools. However, children meeting the following criteria may attend the publicly funded English-language schools: The Charter of the French Language (also known as Bill 101) is a framework law in the province of Quebec, Canada, defining the linguistic rights of all Quebecers and making French, the language of the majority, the sole official language of Quebec. ... 1977 was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1977 calendar). ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

• children who have done most of their elementary or secondary studies in English elsewhere in Canada;
• children whose father or mother did most of his or her elementary studies in English anywhere in Canada; and/or
• children of Canadian citizens (Canada Clause) whose brother or sister did or is doing his or her elementary or secondary studies in English anywhere in Canada.

Note: the private schools have, until recently, been excepted from all this.

Religion in schools

Formerly, school boards were divided between Roman Catholic and Protestant (called confessional schools). The establishment of a confessional education system was confirmed when the Canadian confederation was created with the British North America Act of 1867 which granted power over education to the provinces. Article 93 of the Canadian Constitution made it unconstitutional for Quebec to change this system. Consequently, a constitutional amendement was required to operate the separation of the State and the Church in Quebec. The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ... The British North America Acts 1867–1975 are a series of Acts of the British Parliament dealing with the government of Canada. ... 1867 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Canada consists of ten provinces and three territories. ... The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada. ...

Many governments also failed in their attempts to create a Ministry of Education: Quebec had to wait until 1964 to get a modern education system. For more than 100 years, non-Catholic immigrants from outside Canada who settled in Quebec were not allowed to attend French Catholic schools. The Quebec Education Act of 1988 provided a change to linguistic school boards. This change has only recently finished being implemented. The secularization of education is however not yet complete. In 1997, a unanimous vote by the National Assembly of Quebec allowed for Quebec to request the Government of Canada to exempt the province from Article 93 of the constitution. It was passed by the Parliament of Canada Constitutional Amendment, 1999, (Québec). 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Quebec Parliament Building at night The National Assembly of Québec (French: Assemblée nationale du Québec) is the legislative body of the Province of Quebec, Canada. ... The Parliament of Canada (French: Parlement du Canada) is Canadas legislative branch, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario. ...

The segregation of Catholic and Protestant public schools is still the norm in the other Canadian provinces. The main public schools network offers the choice between moral or religious education while Catholics run their own separate schools.

When public schools were deconfessionalized in 2000 Catholic and Protestant religious education (along with nonreligious moral education) classes continued to part of the curriculum. In order to prevent court challeges by other religious groups wanting specialist religious education in schools the government invoked the notwithstanding clause. The clause expires after a maximum of 5 years. As of February 2005, the government of Premier Jean Charest hasn't made a final decision on whether or not to renew the clause. Any changes would take effect in the 2005/2006 school year. 2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The override power or notwithstanding clause is the legislative power under section 33 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in the Constitution of Canada. ... February is the second month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... The Premier of Quebec (in French Premier ministre du Québec, sometimes literally translated to Prime Minister of Quebec) is the first minister for the Canadian province of Quebec. ... The Honourable John James Jean Charest, P.C., (born June 24, 1958) is a lawyer and the Premier of the Province of Quebec, Canada. ...

Private schools

Quebec has the highest proportion of children going to private schools in North America. The phenomenon is not restricted to the well to do. Many middle class, lower middle class and even working class families scrimp and save to send their children to private schools. The government of Quebec gives a pro rata subsidy for each child to any private school which meets its standards and follows its prescriptions, but the tuition remains very high. The middle class (or middle classes) comprises a social group once defined by exception as an intermediate social class between the nobility and the peasantry. ... The term working class is used to denote a social class. ...

Most of the private schools are secondary institutions, though there are a few primary schools, most of them serving precise religious or cultural groups such as Armenian Orthodox Christians or certain Jewish faiths. The Armenian Apostolic Church, sometimes incorrectly called the Armenian Orthodox Church is the worlds oldest national church and one of the original churches, having been founded in 301. ... The word Jew (Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ...

17% of the high school population of Quebec currently goes to a private high school. The figure is even higher in urban centers such as Montreal, where 30% of high school students are in the private sector. A study released in August 2004 by the Quebec Ministry of Education revealed that, over the preceding five years, the private sector had grown by 12% while the public sector had shrunk 5.6%, with slightly steeper rate in the last year. 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: August 2004 in sports Deaths in August 2004 • 30 Fred Whipple • 26 Laura Branigan • 24 Elisabeth Kübler-Ross • 18 Elmer Bernstein • 15 Amarsinh Chaudhary • 14 Czesław Miłosz • 13 Julia Child • 8 Robert Bootzin • 8 Fay...

Private secondary schools usually select their students by having them go through their own scholastic exams and by making a study of the entire primary school record.

The Quebec public sector teachers' unions oppose any form of subsidy to private schools. They state that by selecting only the brightest and most capable students and rejecting children with learning difficulties, private schools leave a burden to the public sector. Private schools usually have teachers who are not unionized, or who belong to associations not affiliated with the main body of Quebec public sector teacher's unions. The debate over the subsidies has been going on for several decades.

Post-secondary education

CEGEPS

Most students continue to CEGEP, or Collège d'enseignement général et professionel (general and professional education college). These students can specialize in a number of different vocational or pre-university fields. The term of study is two years for pre-university and three years for most professional degrees. Students completing CEGEP earn the Diplôme d'études collégiales. Like primary and secondary schools, both state-run and private CEGEPs exist. CÉGEP (Collège denseignement général et professionnel - College of General and Vocational Education, pronounced say-jep [fr/en] or see-jip [en]) is a type of educational institution in Quebec. ...

The word CEGEP should legally be used to describe only the state-run post-secondary schools, where tuition is free, but in fact very little attention is paid to this distinction. The 26 private institutions which offer a post-secondary program recognized by the Quebec Ministry of Education receive a pro rata subsidy for each of their 15,000 students. Unlike the state-run CEGEPs, the private post-secondary schools usually do not combine pre-university and vocational programs in one institution. About half offer pre-university and the other half offer vocational programs.

Universities

Primary school, secondary school, and CEGEP add up to 13 years of pre-university study, one more than other provinces. For this reason, most undergraduate university degrees in Quebec universities are only three years in length for Quebec students who have obtained a CEGEP diploma. Students from outside Quebec have this term supplemented by a freshman year at the beginning of their university career. University education is much like in other North American jurisdictions. In addition to private institutions, the government of Quebec has a network of universities in several Quebec cities, called the Université du Québec. A university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees. ... World map showing location of North America A satellite composite image of North America North America is the third largest continent in area and in population after Eurasia and Africa. ... The Université du Québec is a system of ten provincially-run public universities in Quebec, Canada. ...

Quebec subsidizes post-secondary education and is known for the low cost of its university education; Montreal has four universities, and a greater percentage of its population are students than in any other large city in North America. {{Canadian City/Disable Field={{{Disable Motto Link}}}}} Motto: Concordia Salus (Salvation through harmony) Ville de Montréal, Québec, Canada Location. ...

External links

• Quebec Ministry of Education (http://www.meq.gouv.qc.ca/GR-PUB/m_englis.htm)
• Government of Quebec - Language of instruction (http://www.meq.gouv.qc.ca/rens/brochu/anglais/lang_inst.htm)
• Government of Quebec - Denomination (confessional vs. linguistic school boards) (http://www.meq.gouv.qc.ca/rens/brochu/anglais/denomina.htm)
• History of Education in Quebec (http://www.meq.gouv.qc.ca/rens/brochu/anglais/history.htm)
• Réseau Étudiant - Resources and services for the student community in the province of Quebec (http://www.reseauetudiant.com/)