At the request of Mr. Joël Garneau, director of the Portneuf school board, submitted to the Donnacona maximum security federal penitentiary in Quebec, the UNESCO Chair in Applied Research for Education in Prison was asked to present activities based on the Education in Prison theme with the prisoners and teachers at this institution.
These one-day meetings were held on December 14, 2015 and April 19, 2016 to meet all the students and teachers from both T and EH sectors.
Jean-Pierre Simoneau, director of operations, represented the UNESCO Chair in Applied Research for Education in Prison for these information sessions that covered the educational activities in prison of Cégep Marie-Victorin since 1973, and the UNESCO Chair.
First, the students and teachers watched a documentary on the actions Cégep Marie- Victorin has taken in prisons in cooperation with Correctional Services Canada and the Ministry of Education, Leisure and Sport of Quebec. 22 minutes. French, with English, Spanish and international French subtitles. Productions Flick.
They then discussed the various formal and informal college training programs offered in federal penitentiaries in Quebec since 1973. A brief presentation of the PRET 2000 programme, mentoring activities and services to help students pursue their education in the network of 48 Cégeps in Quebec, and finally a presentation on the mission, objectives, current and future activities of the UNESCO Chair in Applied Research for Education in Prison from the International Development Office since 2010.
As for the teachers, the meeting on April 19th dealt more specifically with the challenges and objectives that teaching in prisons, and more particularly in a maximum security penitentiary these professionals face. The teachers also had the opportunity to express and exchange what they would like to accomplish in the short and medium term.
These exchanges with these professionals helped us understand some of the challenges they deal with. One of them is the importance of team support, as well as having the time to exchange and communicate among teachers.
Teaching in prisons is rewarding and involves a variety of challenges. The motivation to share their knowledge is at the heart of their actions and we look forward to beautiful projects in the years to come.
The teachers at the Donnacona maximum security federal penitentiary in Quebec are:
Jessica Tremblay – French/Social Science
Christian Drapeau – Mathematics/Science
Barbara Jakubiec – Semi-specialized trades/Preparing for the job market
Suzanne Gagné – Literacy/Pre-secondary
Sarah Clark – English
Chantal Moisan – Information
Sabrina Careau – Office clerk/Exam supervisor
Nathalie Vaillancourt – French/Social Science
Mathieu Fournier – Mathematics/Science
Janie Dostaler – Francization/French as a Second Language
Joël Garneau – School Director
Katy Martel – Guidance Counsellor
Left to right: Jean-Pierre Simoneau, director of operations, UNESCO Chair in Applied Research for Education in Prison, Jessica Tremblay, French teacher and Mathieu Fournier, math teacher.