�ducation
Dans le domaine de l'enseignement, o� l'autonomie des provinces canadiennes est particuli�rement sensible, le Qu�bec, attach� au principe de d�centralisation, a choisi de renforcer le pouvoir des diff�rentes instances provinciales. La question linguistique et le statut de la langue fran�aise jouent un r�le primordial dans le secteur �ducatif. L'universit� la plus ancienne de la province est l'universit� Laval, pr�s de la ville de Qu�bec!; elle a �t� fond�e, en 1663, en tant que s�minaire et elle est devenue une universit� en 1852. Au d�but des ann�es quatre-vingt-dix, la province comptait sept universit�s. L'universit� Laval, celle de Montr�al, celle de Sherbrooke (1954) et celle du Qu�bec (1968) sont francophones, tandis que McGill University et Concordia University (1974) � Montr�al, ainsi que Bishop University (1843) � Lennoxville sont anglophones.
Culture
Dans le domaine culturel, le Qu�bec poss�de sa propre originalit�, fond�e sur l'usage de la langue fran�aise, que l'on retrouve � la fois dans les arts, la litt�rature, la musique et le cin�ma. En 1987, la ville de Qu�bec a �t� le si�ge du deuxi�me sommet de la francophonie. Voir Canada!; Canada, art du!; Canada, litt�ratures du.
La province poss�de un pass� historique riche, dont on trouve les t�moignages dans les lieux d'exposition et les mus�es. Ainsi, Montr�al abrite un mus�e des Beaux-Arts, le mus�e McCord (consacr� aux arts et coutumes des peuples canadiens), le mus�e d'Art contemporain et le mus�e de la Banque (consacr� � la numismatique et � l'histoire du Canada). La ville de Qu�bec abrite le mus�e du Qu�bec, d�di� � la peinture et � la sculpture, et le mus�e de la Civilisation (1988). On peut �galement citer le Mus�e canadien des Civilisations, � Hull.
Le Qu�bec pr�sente plusieurs sites historiques dignes d'int�r�t. Dans la ville de Qu�bec se trouvent le Parc des Champs de Bataille, qui a �t� le th��tre de la bataille d�cisive des plaines d'Abraham, victoire des Britanniques sur les Fran�ais en 1759, et le parc Cartier-Br�beuf o� l'explorateur fran�ais Jacques Cartier a pass� l'hiver 1535-1536. Le parc historique national du Fort-Chambly, � Chambly, abrite les ruines d'une forteresse b�tie par les Fran�ais de 1709 � 1711. Les forges du Saint-Maurice, � Trois-Rivi�res, offrent les restes du premier site sid�rurgique canadien, fond� en 1729.
Education
Qu�bec maintains two separate school systems, one for French-speaking students and one for English-speaking students. The two systems are administered by the provincial department of education. Nearly 90 percent of all students attend French-language schools. As a result of elaborate reforms in the 1960s, public education has moved away from its former classical and religious emphasis toward the liberal arts and sciences.
In the French-language schools courses are taught in French, and English is an elective subject. With few exceptions the English-language schools give instruction in English and require the study of French. School attendance is compulsory from ages 6 to 16. The government of Qu�bec also sponsors technical institutes and special schools in such fields as architecture, agriculture, textiles, and household sciences. About 10 percent of the schools in Qu�bec are privately run. Adult education courses are offered by the universities, libraries, museums, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, as well as by the provincial government.
Higher Education
Graduates of secondary schools may go directly to a university or may enroll in a Coll�ge d'enseignement general et professionnel (CEGEP), which is roughly equivalent to a junior college in the United States. The CEGEP offers two alternative programs of study: a two-year program leading to university entrance and a three-year course culminating in a trade certificate. Three further years of schooling beyond the CEGEP lead to a bachelor's degree.
There are a few private boarding schools in Qu�bec, at the primary and secondary level. Some of them are operated by religious orders. Instruction is mostly in French. The coll�ges classiques are generally affiliated with degree-granting universities, and their graduates receive their degrees from these universities. Of the ten degree-granting universities in the province, seven use French as the language of instruction, and three use English. In 1969 the University of Qu�bec, a French-language institution with no official religious affiliation, was established. It operates university-level campuses at six locations.