Breaking French immersion’s stigma as an elitist program that caters to ‘gifted’ students is the objective of Canadian Parents for French new executive director of the B.C.-Yukon chapter.
Glyn Lewis is taking over the French as a second language lobby group from Robert Rothon, who had served as Executive Director since 2008.
“As a lobby group, we need to keep reaching out to all new parents and help them understand it’s a choice for everyone. This isn’t an exclusive program open only to a select few,” said Lewis.
In other countries, students take it as a matter of course to learn second or third languages, and Lewis explained, increasingly, Canadian parents are becoming attune to the educational advantages of bilingualism.
“Parents are recognizing that there are incredibly strong second language opportunities for students in the public school system and I feel that parents are looking for these opportunities so their kids [can] have certain lifelong skills,” Lewis said.
Despite B.C.’s miniscule francophone population, it’s the province where Canadian Parents for French has its highest membership. Moreover, enrolment in French immersion has just marked its twelfth straight year of growth.
Click here to read the rest of the article