The founder's publications
https://plus.lapresse.ca/screens/b2f80fcc-764c-4905-aea7-1b9df9432c01__7C___0.html
For a new teacher generation of quality in La Presse, 9 September 2015
https://www.ledevoir.com/opinion/idees/557537/education-porter-l-ecole-a-bout-de-bras
Carrying school at arm's length in Le Devoir, 27 June 2019
Interview to listen to beforehand: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/ohdio/premiere/emissions/gravel-le-matin/segments/entrevue/121570/transfert-ecoles-anglophones-francophones-jean-francois-roberge-ministre-education
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=2338344246488024&set=t.100009374157831&type=3
https://www.lapresse.ca/debats/opinions/2019-10-09/les-professeurs-ces-vaches-dociles
Teachers, those docile cows in La Presse of 9 October 2019
https://www.lapresse.ca/debats/opinions/2019-11-03/les-garcons-a-l-ecole-des-femmes
Boys at women's school in La Presse on 3 November 2019
This article is intended as a reply to this article: https://www.ledevoir.com/opinion/chroniques/564072/le-meilleur-des-mondes
https://www.lapresse.ca/debats/opinions/2019-11-24/proteger-l-autonomie-des-enseignantes
Protecting female teachers' autonomy in La Presse of 24 November 2019
Collective refusal in full cooperation in La Presse, 23 February 2020
Reflection on the word "collaboration" used in all sorts of ways in school micromanagement and at the Ministry of Education (ministère de l’Éducation)
https://www.lapresse.ca/debats/opinions/2020-10-12/la-lecon-de-joyce-echaquan.php
Joyce Echaquan's lesson in La Presse, 12 October 2020
Breaking the Barriers
(Counter) reports on the pandemic - Letters to future generations
French
“The closer the collapse of the Empire, the crazier its laws are.” Cicero
“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” Aristotle
Her text "Can denunciation be civic?" can be found on pages 121, 122 and 123. Turn to page 413 to read her biography.
https://libre-media.com/articles/cris-et-tremblements-a-lecole
Screams and quakes at school in Libre Média on 2 May 2023
https://libre-media.com/articles/lecole-nest-pas-une-garderie-de-la-reussite
School is not a nursery for success in Libre Média on 30 November 2023
A text denouncing the fraudulent use of words in schools.
https://libre-media.com/articles/le-francais-doit-redevenir-une-langue-de-liberte
French must once again become a language of freedom in Libre Média on 12 March 2024
https://libre-media.com/articles/univers-numerique-les-nouveaux-champs-de-bataille-de-leducation
Digital universe: the new battlefields of education in Libre Média on May 22, 2024
As a high school French teacher with 30 years' experience on two continents (Belgium, Quebec and Mexico for two months), I advocate an educational rather than a restrictive approach to the use of smartphones and social networks in schools. My experience demonstrates the pedagogical benefits of social networking to enrich learning, improve reading and writing skills and encourage cooperation between students. Rather than imposing restrictions, it's crucial to guide young people towards responsible and enriching use of these digital tools, while preserving the democratic values and intellectual freedom inspired by Athenian education.
https://libre-media.com/articles/non-a-lorthographe-simplifiee
No to simplified spelling in Libre Média on May 31, 2024
The simplification of French spelling, as proposed by the EROFA group, runs the risk of intellectually devaluing learners by weakening the richness and precision of the language. As a teacher, I defend the importance of complex rules that preserve our linguistic heritage and guarantee clear expression. Simplification is a race to the bottom, disconnecting speakers from their historical roots and accentuating social discrimination. Education must reinforce solid skills, not take the easy way out.
Police salaries: does Quebec prefer security to education? in Libre Média on 12 July 2024
This article highlights the disparity in pay rises between police officers and teachers in Quebec. It questions society's values and priorities. It highlights the undervaluing of the education profession and its consequences for the future.
https://libre-media.com/articles/lecole-daujourdhui-entre-declin-et-chasse-aux-sorcieres
Today's schools between decline and witch-hunt in Libre Média on the 21st of October 2024
This article, published in its unabridged version, deplores the devaluation of the teacher, who has been reduced to a mere coach, in contrast to the ideal of the Age of Enlightenment. It criticises the situation in Quebec, where Bill 23 and the media are creating a ‘witch-hunt’ against teachers, often before there is any evidence of guilt. Drawing on my experience as a Belgian teacher in Quebec, I call for the re-establishment of pedagogical authority and the cultivation of critical thinking. I advocate an ethic of presumption of innocence to restore the nobility of teaching.
Modern pedagogy at the heart of ideological chaos and a witch-hunt in Le Devoir on the 23rd of October 2024
The noble mission of the teacher, inherited from the Enlightenment, is now being undermined by a systemic devaluation in which the teacher becomes a mere coach, deprived of their authority as an expert. In the face of modern challenges and Bill 23 in Quebec, the challenge is to rekindle the flame of knowledge in a world that favours the instantaneous, while preserving teachers' presumption of innocence in the face of hasty accusations.
https://libre-media.com/articles/le-francais-nest-pas-une-arme-ideologique
French is not an ideological weapon in Libre Média on the 24th of October 2024
In this article, I defend the traditional grammatical rules of French, explaining that the pre-eminence of the masculine is the result of historical simplification and not sexism. I also criticise inclusive writing and the forced feminisation of professions, preferring to focus on teaching French and equal pay for women.
https://libre-media.com/articles/le-sombre-futur-de-leducation
The bleak future of education in Libre Média, 21 January 2025
In a meditation on La Peau de chagrin, I denounce the commodification of education and the desertion of qualified teachers, the consequences of a system devoted to illusory success. I oppose the impoverishing standardisation of knowledge, defend critical thinking, and point out that emancipation depends on a mastery of language and thought.
The shipwreck of schools: when conformity kills intellectual emancipation in the Journal de Montréal (JDM), 1st February 2025
I deplore the drift towards uniformity in schools, which have become a formatting tool that sacrifices intellectual awakening and critical thinking. Between excessive standardisation, administrative pressure and coercive laws, this institution encourages conformity rather than autonomy. I call for education to be reinvented as a space for emancipation, where doubt and free thought are the pillars of a truly enlightened democracy.
History and literature: without them, it's impossible to understand the world in Libre Média, February 27th, 2025
Teaching classical literature and the history of language forges critical thinking, preserves our cultural heritage and sheds light on contemporary issues. In the classroom, the works of Molière, La Boétie, Kattan or Aquin provide students with the tools to analyze the world and affirm their thinking. Despite the criticism, this transmission remains essential to the formation of enlightened citizens. In a context where reference points are wavering, this literary anchoring remains a fundamental pillar of an enlightened democracy.
https://libre-media.com/2025/03/06/lecole-au-rabais-une-aubaine-pour-les-puissants
Schools on the cheap, a boon for the powerful? in Libre Média, March 7th, 2025
Quebec is drastically loosening the conditions of access to the teaching profession on the pretext of making up for the shortage, but this reform serves above all to produce a docile and standardised school system. Behind the veneer of accessibility lies a strategic project aimed at shaping consumer citizens rather than critical minds. Far from being a simple political blunder, this drift is part of a deliberate desire for social control through education.
Quebec manufactures its teachers: schools on the cheap, a boon for the powerful in the Journal de Montréal (JDM), March 8th, 2025 in its entirety
I hereby present in a clear and concise manner the concerns regarding the loosening of the conditions for access to the professoriate in Quebec. My article highlights the potential implications of this reform for the quality of education and the training of citizens. It also highlights the issues surrounding social control through education, offering a critical analysis of the current situation.
Chronicle of the heralded domestication of an endangered Quebec education in Le Devoir on Thursday 20th March 2025
On 17th March 2025, St Patrick's Day, Quebec education sank into a fiasco orchestrated by Bernard Drainville: two ministerial videos imposed on schools, greeted by chaos and protest. This disaster illustrates a system in crisis, where student failure contrasts with falsely flattering PISA tests and reforms that weaken teaching. Between political interference and syndicate hypocrisy, Quebec schools are drifting away from their emancipatory mission, at the risk of becoming an instrument of domestication.
https://libre-media.com/2025/04/15/le-quebec-et-la-france-cousins-unis-par-la-censure
https://x.com/libremediaqc/status/1912173902958113254?s=48&t=5ma_FDBQ9w9TcEObTc5sOw
Quebec and France, cousins united by censorship in Libre Média on the 15th of April 2025
I am alarmed by the erosion of freedom of expression in France and Quebec, where recent measures threaten public speech and muzzle teachers. Faced with a shrinking democracy, I call for resistance through reflection and mastery of language. My indignation, fuelled by historical references, invites debate to preserve the essence of pluralism.
