Politique du CSF concernant la violence, intimidation et la possession d’armes Politique F—600-4 Adoptée le : 26 janvier 2002 Préambule Le conseil d’administration (CA) croit que les écoles du CSF doivent étre des milieux de vie offrant un environnement exempt de menaces physiques ou de préjudices psycholo- giques au sein duquel les éléves, ainsi que le personnel, sont en mesure de travailler, d’apprendre et de progresser. Dans les écoles, on se préoccupe du respect des tous les in- dividus, d’avoir un environnement sécuritaire et des attentes précises quant aux comportements désirés ainsi que des me- sures disciplinaires appliquées de facon juste et consistante. Le CA est responsable de s’assurer que les écoles offrent un environnement d’apprentissage ou |’enfant se sent en sécurité et qui est exempt de toute forme de menaces, de violence et d’intimidation. (continued from page 7) Real Property School boards will have greater control over management of real property, for example, opening and closing of schools, property sales, building-sharing agreements, etc. The boards will also be able to recover a portion of the proceeds from the sale of any real property that they, in part, financed. We will have to review the details regarding control of real property management; however, at first glance, this appears to be a positive move. It allows boards to have a greater say in decisions involving school openings and closings, as long as parents are actively involved in decision-making. Being able to bank a portion of the proceeds from property sales will likely prompt the school boards to dispose of schools that are no longer needed. This could give the CSF an opportunity to purchase buildings for schools that are not yet homogeneous. System Accountability School boards will be expected to sign accountability contracts detailing the results they expect within a given timeframe. These contracts are designed to hold the boards publicly accountable for students’ success. The lieutenant governor (cabinet) will have the power to place school boards under trusteeship if students’ academic success in a given district is compromised. The effectiveness of measures to monitor and evaluate these contracts remains to be seen. Increasing the powers of the lieutenant governor is will encourage the boards to develop their own accountability contracts. However, adding to the lieutenant governor s power is a purely political action, since he already had the power to invoke trusteeship in this case, although this power was defined in more general terms. Accountability Cycle This mechanism will replace the school accreditation process. The process takes place at the Ministry of Education, school district, and school levels. Analysis will be based on the results of standardized tests, pass rate from one grade to the next, graduation rate, and results of a poll to measure the satisfac- tion of parents, students, and school staff. The information Politique Le CA considére tout acte de violence ou d’intimidation ou la possession et/ou l’utilisation d’arme(s) par quiconque a l’intérieur des propriétés de |’école, lors d’événements ou du transport scolaire comme étant une grave menace pour les éléves et le personnel. Le CA autorise les directions d’école a imposer a tout indi- vidu menacant la sécurité et le bien-étre des éléves et/ou du personnel des mesures disciplinaires appropriées et immédia- tes, pouvant comprendre le recours aux autorités policiéres. Toute conduite menagant la sécurité et le bien-étre des éle- ves et/ou du personnel sera directement rapporté au niveau trois du processus de suspension, afin d’étre traité par la di- rection générale adjointe. will be analyzed to identify strong and weak points and establish goals, strategies, and expected results. Progress will be monitored during implementation of these strategies and the strategies will be amended as required. It is all well and good to make school boards somewhat more accountable for the educational success of the students, but we must ensure that this success is not measured solely in terms of learning but also in terms of development of abilities. Francophone School Board Treasurer This clause in the bill affects only the CSF and obliges the CSF to hire a distinct person act as treasurer. In the past, according to the Education Act, the CSF director general also performed the duties of treasurer. Given the im- portance of sound, effective financial management, having a single person fulfill this function for the CSF from now on is a positive step. In Conclusion Based on a preliminary analysis of the proposed amendments, it seems that most of the changes are appropriate. One section of these amendments also validates the actions that francophone education system partners initiated several years ago, i.e. creating a partnership involving provincial and local players. Certain provisions will have no significant impact on our system. We must be careful to ensure that the education system is not based solely on the acquisition of knowledge. We are aware that one of the particularities of our system is its emphasis on the development of abilities, such as the student's potential to take responsibility for his learning. If we focus too closely on the student’ strictly academic performance,we may rob our system of a component that sets it apart from educational systems in the other Canadian provinces and territories. Lastly, in terms of parental involvement, the proposed amendments reinforce existing conditions, i.e. for an APE to be able to advise the CSF and the school on educational issues, it must be kept informed and consulted, an arrange- ment that the proposed amendments entrench once and for alll. PAGE 18 INFO-PARENTS