Cree schools face major absenteeism issues, for students and staff

Students skipping classes and teachers taking time off add up to major problems in Cree schools, according to a presentation Thursday by the Cree School Board at the Cree Nation Government's annual general assembly in Oujé-Bougoumou, in northern Québec.

Almost one in four students missed school on any given day over the past three years, according to the report. School staff and managers took a total of more than 7,000 sick days in one year.

"Teachers too need to become accountable," said Mistissini Chief Richard Shecapio. "In some cases, teachers are not there and the students end up with a substitute teacher.  So some students don't feel motivated... and their education becomes compromised."

Cree School Board Chairperson Kathleen Wootton made absenteeism a focus of her yearly presentation, saying the numbers are a concern and need to be worked on.

Wootton says in some cases, kids aren't showing up for school because they are struggling with violence, hunger and other problems at home.

"Some students are being abused," Wootton said. "Emotional, physical, and even sexual abuse, these are some of the realities that some students live through. And also overcrowded houses where students can't find a quiet space to do homework."

Shecapio said resolving complaints can be a long process.

"If there is a complaint by the parents for instance, the union steps in for the teacher, and it is the student in the end who gets caught in the middle of this situation."

Teachers in the Cree and Inuit schools of northern Québec are represented by the AENQ, the Association des employés du nord québécois. 

The Cree School Board provides elementary and high school education in all nine of Québec's Cree communities.