Quebec schools to adopt anti-bullying plan under Bill 56

QUEBEC – All public and private schools in Quebec will have to adopt an anti-bullying, anti-violence plan under Bill 56, presented Wednesday in the provincial legislature by Education Minister Line Beauchamp.

The minister also announced a major media campaign against bullying, in partnership with publicly owned Tele-Quebec, and Quebecor Inc., urging people to be “ordinary heroes” by standing up to bullies.

“Bullying doesn’t start at 8 a.m. and doesn’t finish at 4 p.m.,” the minister said, adding that everyone has to get involved and the new policy will extend to cyber bullying as well.

But the opposition response to Bill 56 was chilly.

Sylvain Gaudreault of the Parti Quebecois noted that the premier and two ministers joined Beauchamp Sunday in announcing the bill, suggesting it is a priority, but she said the minister is putting no new money into fight bullying and no new resources, such as more psychologists and social workers.

As well, Gaudreault said, the drawing up by each school of a plan to combat bullying and school violence will add more paperwork for all schools across the province.

“I think it’s not enough,” the PQ critic said, adding that the intentions are good, “but the money is not there.”

Eric Caire, the Coalition Avenir Quebec education critic, also found positive elements in Bill 56, but like Gaudreault deplored the additional bureaucracy and wondered whether it was an exercise in “pre-electoral marketing.”

Beauchamp defended the lack of new money in her plan, saying the government has added 4,200 learning specialists to Quebec schools since 2003 and established a $6-million annual anti-bullying budget for schools in 2008.

Caire said diverting this money to the anti-bullying effort would reduce other services for students.

In a statement, an association representing administrators at 69 school boards across the province applauded the move, saying they would co-operate “to ensure our students evolve in a safe, respectful and conducive environment for learning.”

While admitting there is no new money, beyond a $75,000 contribution to Quebecor, which is committed to mounting a television and Internet campaign against bullying costing an estimated $900,000, an aide to the minister said the bill also calls for schools to establish partnerships with the police and social services in their area.

In addition to school action plans against bullying, each school must designate someone responsible for the anti-bullying effort, and must produce an annual report detailing what has been done in the past year to eliminate bullying.

The bill empowers the minister to impose financial sanctions on school boards that do not comply with the law.

“The school principal will be obliged to lead the effort, will have to communicate with parents,” Beauchamp said. “The parents of children who are bullies will have to get involved, to see that such behaviour ends.

“The school principal will have to report transparently on what is happening,” she added, saying she thinks Bill 56 proposes an end to school bullying “as quickly as possible.”