Special education teachers in schools say they are exhausted and overworked, with nearly 45% of them having considered quitting their job in the last six months, according to a Le Devoir poll.
“We apply plaster and put out fires, which means the workers get very burned because we don’t do the job right,” says Mylène Brault, a special education teacher who left the school last February, where she has worked since 2016.
“We really want to understand the student, but we don’t have the time or the resources to do that,” says the woman who now works in the health network.
Last January, an online survey of 2,001 special education teachers across Quebec was conducted by the Schools Sector of the Federation of Public Service Employees (FEESP-CSN). According to the survey, 43% of them have considered quitting their job in the past six months.
“It’s sad,” comments Angelo Soares, full professor at UQAM’s School of Management Sciences. These people don’t consider leaving their job because they don’t like it anymore, but because of the “very, very disappointing” working conditions, says the specialist in mental health and emotions at work.
work overload and violence
34% of respondents find their work “fairly” emotionally draining, while 29% find it “very” and 17% “extremely”.
Special educators are exhausted due to the workload and “steady increase” in violence against them from students with behavioral problems, says Annie Charland, President of FEESP School Sector – CSN.
While working in a special school with students with serious behavioral problems, Mylène Brault says she was physically assaulted on a daily basis. “Headbutts, bites, pulling out hair, scratching the face, spitting,” lists the 41-year-old.
She is not alone. 60% of the special education teachers surveyed say they have experienced physical violence from students in the past six months.
We don’t have enough time to prevent and deal with emotions, says Annie Charland. “When we used to do prevention, I would arrive in the morning and see the student getting off the bus. I could tell you, ‘I need to sit down with him because I’m going to have a terrible day,'” she says.
Having more time to prevent violence is one of the demands made by special education teachers affiliated with FEESP-CSN as part of negotiations with Quebec to extend their collective agreement. This expired on March 30th.
The Ministry of Education, which agrees with Le Devoir, believes the results of the survey are worrying. He wants to move forward quickly in the negotiations, he says. As part of this, “several proposals from employers are aimed at responding to the problems raised by special educators in schools,” writes press secretary Esther Chouinard.
“Achieve more with less”
Many special education teachers are forced to work during their breaks and lunch breaks, says Annie Charland. In fact, 79% of those surveyed said they had to forgo those moments of quiet in order to be able to get all their tasks done. The staff shortage is blatant, says Mrs. Charland. “You always have to do more with less,” she laments.
Despite the recruitment efforts of school service centers, staff retention is a major problem, points out Claudine Léveillé, vice president for the special education sector and the general sector of the professional association of administrative staff (APPA). “The conditions are not attractive,” she regrets.
For special education teacher Francis Marois, the biggest stress related to his job is financial instability. To be considered permanent, you must work at least 26:15 per week. The 32-year-old man, who has worked in a school setting for about ten years, makes him 26. Hours are often added to him throughout the year, but nothing is guaranteed. After the start of the school year, he has to wait until November to do so.
Although he loves his job, Mr. Marois thought about a reorientation. However, he put the project on hold because he bought a house two years ago. “It’s hard to stop working, going to school and making all the payments. »
Francis Marois is not an isolated case. Annie Charland believes several school service centers are afraid to give employees permanent employment. Lacking sufficient hours to meet their needs, some workers have to resort to blackboards, Ms Charland says. “Our employees are forced to have two or three jobs because they don’t work enough hours. »