French immersion in New Brunswick 22 Mar 08
The question I haven’t seen anyone raise up is this—In a bilingual province with French and English (or both) communities everywhere, why can’t kids who were in French immersion simply go to French-speaking schools?
There isn’t a lot of money to go around in this province, nor are people willing to pay higher taxes. Many people are complaining about this recent decision, but I have yet to see a reasonable alternative given the available resources.
Right now, children who want to go to English schools but live in French communities get to ride the bus to school (albeit farther), and vice versa. There’s a big fuss raised about how the provincial government’s cutting early French immersion, but if parents and children feel that it’s such a big deal to be able to speak French at an early age (and there are proven advantages), why can’t they just send their kids to French school? It’s not like they won’t learn any English from home/their friends. Similarly, studies show that kids in English school can be just as proficient in French if they put an effort into learning the language. This isn’t British Columbia; there is no excuse for not having any opportunities to practice French.
Je ne sais pas indeed.
This ClashBang.com article was written by Chris Chu. Tired of privately venting his frustration in vain, Chris decided to share his discontent with the rest of the world.
