By Mike Spelay
As the school year rolls to a finish, parents must confront the same decision every year: Whether to enroll their children in French immersion.
For most, it’s the same yes or no as last year. But for those whose children are just entering kindergarten, the decision is harder. And it seems most are saying no.
“At Glebe, it’s showing through the number of teachers and students,” says Denise Leggat, the only full-time French teacher at Glebe Collegiate Institute.
“When I started in 1991, there were at least five full-time teachers. Now the class size only demands one.”
The National Post recently devoted a full page to the French immersion debate.
The paper concluded a high drop-out rate amongst immersion students demonstrates these programs may not be for everybody.
Of course it’s worthwhile. Anybody who graduates with a bilingual certificate knows how handy it is. The number of jobs that require bilingualism makes it clear how much of a disadvantage it is to be unilingual.
The problem with French immersion is that it’s difficult. The differences between French and English make it hard to succeed at times. Students may grow to resent French classes.
What is not always made clear, however, is the importance of language education. Students who flounder in math, science or history can rest assured that it is just not for them. Dropping out of math won’t inhibit your job choices because you probably wouldn’t be going into an arithmetic-heavy career.
The choice to drop out of French, on the other hand, is tricky. Students are taught to give less importance to language education, even though it is an asset in almost every field.
And parents aren’t getting that message the same way they were even five years ago.
“You don’t get the same encouragement from administration, starting from the Ministry of Education down,” says Leggat.
That may sound odd to anybody who was in high school before 1995. At that time there were many French courses and other subjects offered in immersion.
Now Glebe, one of the foremost immersion schools, has only three French classes.
Many students who have stuck with the program feel they have been enriched by it.
One former student, Seanine Ridgway, is now French and Spanish major at the University of Ottawa.
“You need it nowadays,” she says. “It’s all about languages. The more you know, the better you are.”
But people like Ridgway are becoming a rare breed. According to the National Post article, the number of students in French immersion has been dropping by tens of thousands since the mid-1980s, despite an increasing school-age population in the same period.
Although Quebec and the Maritimes are holding on to their numbers, French students west of Quebec have been dropping.
Some of the decrease can be expected in the prairies, where bilingualism doesn’t carry as high a value. But the fact the statistics reach Ontario is a little scary. And the drop may have to do with a sudden lack of political interest in Quebec.
“We started school right around the time of Meech Lake and the Charlottetown Accord and all the separation nonsense,” says Ridgway. “Now there’s not as much coverage about the French issue.”
This is unfortunate because French immersion not only opens up the job market, but it gives students a richer sense of their Canadian heritage.
“It’s important to learn another culture,” says Leggat.
But the question remains whether French immersion is for everybody. There is no doubt that it gives graduates an edge and extra boost of confidence.
“I feel better qualified for jobs than someone who’s not bilingual,” says Kelly McGee, a 16-year-old French immersion student at St. Mark Catholic School.
These programs may be more challenging but almost everyone involved with this story thinks learning another language is a valuable experience.
So, if you think your child can handle ordinary school subjects, there is no reason to deny him or her the benefits that come from the bilingual stream.
Your child may choose to drop out, from the lack of interest of discouraging grades. But it’s a chance worth taking. At least your child will have some French background.
When making your decision this year, allow your children the enrichment of immersion. Nobody living in Canada should be denied the opportunities and experiences that immersion offers.