Culture in Schools program

Registration of writers

• Presentation
• Program Objectives
• Eligibility
• Conditions for carrying out activities
• Professional fees and expenses
• Writer consent and Statement concerning copyright
• Selection of applications
• Ineligible activities

Presentation

The Répertoire de ressources culture-éducation is associated with the Culture in the Schoolsprogram. Jointly administered by Ministère de la Culture et des Communications (MCC) and Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport (MELS), the program encourages teachers, artists, writers, and cultural organizations to create cultural activities that are in line with education reforms and help give schools a broader world view. The program also supports regional projects, especially those related to implementing school board cultural policies.

The writers selected in this call for applications will be listed in Répertoire de ressources culture-éducation. This bilingual directory contains information on hundreds of artists, writers, and cultural organizations able to offer artistic and cultural activities to students in public and private preschools, primary schools, and secondary schools across Québec. The directory, available on the MCCCF website, is an indispensable resource for teachers and school governing boards as well as artists and cultural organizations.

Program Objectives

The Culture in the Schools program is designed to

• Allow young people to meet professional writers in the classroom and discover their own creativity

• Help students develop an interest in reading and the desire to improve the quality of their oral and written expression, while introducing them to Québec authors

• Supplement native or second language instruction and encourage teachers to draw on literature and writers to enrich the content of subjects taught at school

• Raise young people’s awareness about writing as a career, while promoting careers in literature and culture

• Ensure that the cultural dimension is integrated into classroom and school activities in accordance with the Québec Education Program

• Offer students a range of experiences that will have a positive impact on their learning and allow them to develop open-mindedness, curiosity, critical judgment, and aesthetic appreciation

• Promote concerted action among schools and cultural organizations, while taking regional realities into account.

Eligibility

Professional writers working in any one of the following literary genres are eligible:

• Children's and young adult literature
• Comic book
• Creative nonfiction
• Essay
• Folk and fairy tale
• Novel
• Poetry
• Short story
• Theatre

Moreover, each applicant must

• Be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident under Section 2 (1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and have resided in Québec for the past year

• Have at least two books published[1] by an accredited publisher, including one in the last seven years from the aforementioned categories

• Or have at least five creative texts published in the last seven years by a professional book or magazine publisher

• Or have at least one script for cinema or television produced by a producer recognized by Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) or Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC), including one in the last seven years

• Or have at least one dramatic work published by a professional publisher or produced by a professional theater company, including one in the last seven years

Illustrators must register in the artists’ section of the directory and submit their application as part of the call for applications intended for artists.

The following persons are not eligible: authors of university studies and theses, tourism guides, exhibition catalogues, recipe books, instruction manuals, personal development books, and texts published in community newspapers and newsletters of associations or organizations. Publications made and paid for by the authors themselves are not recognized for the purposes of the program.

In addition, any cultural or artistic activities or works that violate the law or regulations or that conflict with government policies, especially with respect to violence, sexism, pornography, or discrimination, will not be considered.

Conditions for carrying out activities

• The teacher, or the person responsible for a school’s cultural activities, communicates directly with a writer listed in the Répertoire to plan the event; discusses its content, duration, and how it will play out; and establishes its costs (transportation, accommodations, and special equipment as necessary). The teacher also makes sure that the writer’s approach is line with his or her own teaching objectives.

• Once the project has been approved and the financial assistance has been confirmed, the school signs a letter of agreement with the writer. This letter, prepared in duplicate (one copy for the writer and the other for the school), is very important as it lays out the terms of the verbal agreement reached between the writer and the school.

• The school must use the money allocated to it to buy a certain number of the author’s works before the activity is held in order to adequately prepare students for the writer’s classroom visit. The school must obtain the works from an accredited bookstore in its administrative region, choosing only from titles listed in the Répertoire de ressources culture-éducation.

• The teacher prepares the students for the event and offers assistance when the activities are taking place.

• In order to allow for long-term projects, there is no limit on the amount of time writers may spend at each school. The writer can meet with the same group several times to carry out a project. However, under no circumstances does the writer take the place of the teacher while activities are in progress.

• The workday entails three 1-hour periods per day if the writer meets with three different groups or two 2-hour periods if the writer meets with two groups.

• Workshops must be given to only one group at a time. The number of students per group is limited to 35.

Professional fees and expenses

• Writer professional fees are set at $325 per person per day of activities. These fees are non-negotiable. This amount covers administration and activity preparation costs (preparation time, preparatory materials, telephone, photocopies, slides, etc.).

• Transportation costs are reimbursed at $0.43 per kilometer traveled using a personal automobile. These costs are only eligible on return trips covering a minimum distance of 25 kilometers between the school and the main office or residence of the artist or writer. For return trips totalling less than 25 kilometers, an amount of $9.90 may be claimed with proof of travel (notification, travel invoice, etc.). Actual public transit or car rental costs may also be reimbursed.

• The following meal expenses will be reimbursed to the writer for a trip of less than 12 hours without overnight stay: breakfast ($10.40), lunch ($14.30), dinner ($21.55).

• A per diem allowance of $146.25 to cover travel expenses (lodging and meals) may be granted to a writer who makes a trip of over 24 hours with an overnight stay.

• The school or school board provides the basic supplies for the activities. Under certain circumstances, costs for special supplies (equipment rental, non-reusable supplies, purchase of CDs or DVDs, etc.) needed to carry out activities may be submitted for reimbursement, up to $100 per day of activities. Special supplies must be specified in the designated area on the writer registration form.

• If the writer is required to collect GST and QST, taxes must be calculated on the total eligible expenses.

• The school or school board is responsible for paying the writer’s professional fees and other billed expenses, including taxes. Full payment of these expenses will be made to the artist either on the day the workshops are held or within 30 days of this date.

Writer consent and Statement concerning copyright

As registration in the Répertoire de ressources culture-éducation is a prerequisite for taking part in the Culture in the Schools program, writers must agree to allow their surname and given name, contact information, information on their professional background and goals, and the proposed activities, as well as a photograph of the writers or of their work to appear in the directory. For this purpose, the registration form contains a clause whereby the writers grant MCCCF or its representatives a license to reproduce, publish, and convey by telecommunication or otherwise, as needed, photograph of them or of their work and the texts describing their activities, free of charge. In addition, writers must state that they hold the copyright for these documents to be used for the purposes of the program.

Selection of applications

Note: The following details are provided for information only. It is not currently possible to apply. The call for applications ended November 18, 2011.

Applicants and their proposed activities are evaluated by a selection committee made up of well-qualified individuals from outside the government, chosen by UNEQ for the Francophone committee and by the Quebec Writers’ Federation for the Anglophone committee, as well as by Ministère de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition féminine.

Writers must apply using the designated application form, making sure to outline their professional background and educational goals. They must briefly describe the activities that they intend to carry out in the classroom. Applicants must include with their application five copies of two of their publications that will be used in their activities with students.

The evaluation of each applicant will take into account the following:

• The quality of the language of the works submitted, particularly of the works that will be used in activities with students

• The material quality (illustration, printing) of the books and publications that will be distributed in schools

• The credibility of the work (fictional works do not necessarily have to reflect reality, but they must at least propose a strong internal logic)

• Pluralistic values: the work must develop critical thinking and depict subjects, situations and social issues adapted to the students’ age and level of study

• The proposed activities’ compliance with the objectives of the Culture in the Schools program

• The relationship between the content of proposed activities and suggested books

• The level of interaction with students in the proposed activities

• The age-appropriateness of the activities proposed for students

The selection committee will make comments and recommendations to Ministère de la Culture, des Communications et de la Condition féminine on each application submitted. The selection committee’s decisions cannot be appealed. However, writers whose applications are not selected may obtain information regarding their evaluation from UNEQ.

Ineligible activities

• Activities that do involve sufficient student participation

• Activities that are usually provided by a specialized teacher

• Identical activities presented both to the writers selection committee and to the artists selection committee

• Any cultural or artistic activities or works that violate the law or regulations or that conflict with government policies, especially with respect to violence, sexism, pornography, or discrimination.

For information

Geneviève Lauzon
Union des écrivaines et des écrivains québécois
3492, avenue Laval
Montréal (Québec)  H2X 3C8
Téléphone : 514 849-8540, poste 225
Sans frais : 1 888 849-8540, poste 225

Télécopieur : 514 849-6239
Courriel : ecrivez@uneq.qc.ca