Source: French to English Tester Published on: 2026-05-12
Source: The Conversation – in French– By Simon Bilodeau-Carrier, Doctoral student in Education Sciences, University of Montreal
The Quebec school system fosters inequalities. With its three distinct streams, it distributes students, notably according to their socioeconomic reality. It is boys from disadvantaged backgrounds who pay the highest price.
In his recent white paper“Those we escape from”, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois details the effects of this system from several angles, namely school delay, dropping out, mastery of French, and access to higher education.
To address these issues, the deputy is promoting an ambitious reform aimed at bringing together all sectors of the school system. Can this reform truly both reduce educational inequalities and ease emerging social tensions?
I am a doctoral student in the sociology of education, specializing in the study of educational pathways and the inequalities that affect them. In this regard, the debates surrounding school segregation in Quebec and the proposed solutions to address it fall directly within my field of expertise.
School segregation in Quebec
Quebec high schools are divided into different streams.They are often grouped into three categories, which are sometimes called the “three speeds” of the system: 1) the “regular” programs of public schools, 2) the special educational programs of public schools (e.g. sports-study programs), and 3) all programs offered in private schools.
Only the first category admits all types of students, while the other two involve selection processes. Furthermore, several special programs and all private schools require parents to pay certain fees for their children to enroll. This is called aquasi-school market.
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In theory, all students can enroll in all streams, while in practice, the real opportunities vary greatly. For example, selection criteria such as academic results and entrance exams exclude a good number of students,including several living with disabilities. On the other hand, some sports-study programs require parents to pay for additional equipment, which immediately excludes several students from less well-off families.
Thus, the various selective educational pathwaysare often inaccessible for students from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds. It is therefore an unfair and segregative system, particularly on the socioeconomic level.
Moreover, although the reproduction of social inequalities also depends on factors external to the school system, such as the neighborhood or the parents’ level of education, this system contributes to prolonging them in the long term, insofar as thestudents from regular secondary programs enroll less often in CEGEP and university than others
The white paper
Nadeau-Dubois’s work explores the effect of exclusion from selective programs on boys from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds. The author explains that the interest is to prevent these frustrations from fueling polarization, hatred, and exclusion towards women.
Drawing on numerous studies and statistics, the Solidarité deputy highlights the inequalities experienced by boys from more modest backgrounds in the “general” program of the public system. On average, according to the data consulted, boys perform less well at school than girls.
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However, the gaps observed between genders, for example in school results or in relation to literacy, are systematically larger in less selective environments. The conclusion is therefore that school segregation is particularly harmful to boys’ academic success.
Faced with this observation, the author highlights thesolution of the citizen movement School Together, wanting the school system to be unified into a single pathway. The idea is to offer all students special programs linked to their interests, free of charge and without selection. This would abolish the “regular” pathway and subsidized private schools as they exist today. The initiative stipulates that private institutions wishing to maintain their government funding should join the common network and therefore cease selecting students.
For the remainder of this article, I will explore the scope of the proposed solution from two perspectives. I will first detail its effect on inequalities in educational pathways and then on prejudices and polarization between genders.
A solution to unequal study opportunities
Public administration researcher Étienne-Alexandre Beauregardcriticize the proposed approachby Nadeau-Dubois. According to him, withdrawing funding from private schools refusing to join the network would reduce students’ freedom of choice, both in terms of programs and institutions.
On the contrary,some arguethat the loss of accessibility in some private schools would be largely offset by increased access for the majority of Quebec students, thanks to a more equitable school network.
Beyond this fundamental debate,as described by the sociology of education researcher Véronique Grenier, the proposed reform could be circumvented. For example, if a private school joins the public network while retaining superior facilities and equipment, wealthier parents might choose to move nearby in order to enroll their children there.
Thus, the removal of official selection mechanisms does not constitute a complete solution.Informal mechanisms are likely to emerge and produce similar effects.
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Promote the socioeconomic diversity of students
To prevent the reform from being circumvented, it should be accompanied by significant investments in public infrastructure to make it as attractive as that of the private sector.
This limit more broadly refers to the structural nature of educational inequalities.As shown by several studies in the sociology of education, these do not stem solely from the material resources of the institutions, but also from the public policies governing educational pathways.
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Specifically, when certain institutions and programs mostly group students from privileged backgrounds while others mainly host students from disadvantaged backgrounds, achievement gaps tend to widen. Conversely, more integrated structures, where students from different social backgrounds attend the same schools and the same classes, promote greater diversity and help reduce these disparities.
In this perspective, investing in public infrastructure remains necessary but insufficient. Without transforming the mechanisms for student allocation, segregation dynamics are likely to persist.
A solution to avoid polarization
As theemphasizes sociology professor Maryse Potvin, the very functioning of school systems and schools can have impacts on polarization, exclusion, and sometimes evenradicalization.
School markets, including quasi-school markets such as the Quebec system, are notablyidentified as vectors of inequality and discrimination. From this perspective, the solution proposed by Nadeau-Dubois seems relevant to reduce polarization, but it is possible to go further.
Indeed, other school practices can also contribute to exclusion. For example, certain implicit norms, such as ways of expressing oneself or participating in class, favor students whose habits align with the school’s expectations. As presented in Nadeau-Dubois’ white paper, girls’ socialization is often more in tune with the school environment than that of boys. Conversely, boys may be perceived as less engaged, which can fuel misunderstandings and feelings of injustice. These implicit expectations therefore contribute to exclusion and boys’ school problems.
In this perspective, the implementation ofinclusive educationconstitutes another relevant avenue. By valuing the diversity of experiences, recognizing different forms of success, and adapting teaching practices to the needs of all students, this education aims to reduce these gaps and promote more equitable interactions, helping to limit exclusion dynamics.
A good starting point
In summary, Nadeau-Dubois’s white paper produces relevant discourse regarding issues related to school segregation in the Quebec system, particularly concerning boys from disadvantaged backgrounds. The proposal for a unified network appears as a promising path to reduce these gaps and limit school segregation.
However, its effects will depend heavily on the resources that accompany it and the pedagogical practices implemented. Without investments and without a broader transformation of the system, inequalities are likely simply to shift rather than disappear.
Simon Bilodeau-Carrier is a doctoral student in educational sciences at the University of Montreal. He is the recipient of a research grant awarded by the Quebec Research Funds. Finally, he holds a membership card for the political party Québec Solidaire, without holding a position there.
–ref. Three-speed school: disadvantaged boys pay the high price –https://theconversation.com/school-at-three-speeds-disadvantaged-boys-pay-a-high-price-281693