A friend sent me a link to a Web site that presents the 10 most spoken languages in the world. I thought that I would share with you some of the statistics on the French language.

 Did you know?

• There are 6,000 languages in the world.
• 50% of them are endangered.
• 96% of them are spoken by 4% of the world’s population.
• 90% of them are not represented on the Internet.
• A language disappears every two weeks.
• 90% of African languages have no written transcription. Read more…

Have you noticed the promotional campaign for French-language education (FLE) launched in Ontario in April 2009? It is essential to the Canadian identity.

Indeed, many Ontario citizens ignore that they have access to French-language preschools, elementary schools, secondary schools and colleges, as well as French programs offered in bilingual universities. These services are of superior quality and ensure that the French language and the Francophone culture are passed on. Read more…

Education Week is an annual event celebrated by school boards and schools across the province. It is an opportunity for students, teachers and parents to celebrate the teaching excellence and student achievement that make our schools engaging, inspiring, and conducive to learning.

Education Week is a time to create awareness and to recognize the hard work, achievements and success of everyone involved in education and the well-being of our society. Read more…

These are excerpts from an article by Annik Chalifour that was published (in French) in L’Express, a Toronto-based publication.

Following the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, several volunteers from the Ministère de l’Éducation (MEO) and the Ministère de la Formation et des Collèges et Universités created a support group for Haiti, independent from these departments, to raise money to send school supplies through humanitarian aid agencies. The group is now planning to send 16 teachers and 4 other participants to Haiti this summer to offer training to 300 Haitian counterparts in Port-au-Prince and in the town of Les Cayes. Read more…

In 2004, French-language Education in Ontario was visionary by initiating the balanced school calendar (also known as the year-round school calendar) as a pilot project in the Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est. This project was focused on the needs of its clientele and adapted to the pace of contemporary life.

École élémentaire catholique Bernard-Grandmaître is the first Francophone school in Ontario to have adopted a balanced school calendar. Although the total number of days off remains the same as in the traditional calendar, summer vacations in the balanced school calendar are shorter, for a period of about 6 weeks. Students, teachers and administrative staff enjoy a week of leave in October, two weeks of holidays at Christmas (like everyone else), two weeks of leave in March (instead of one), and one week of leave in May. The school year ends a week later than in other schools. Read more…

This week, we chose to publish a testimonial by the Meunier family from Timmins. The Meunier family is an exogamous family, which is a two-parent family with children, in which only one of the spouses is Francophone.

In the Meunier family, Lori (the mother) is English-speaking, and Jay (the father) is Francophone. Jay attended French-language schools, which made it possible for Lori and Jay’s son, Owen, to attend a French school. Owen, who is currently in 5^th grade, has attended École catholique Anicet-Morin since Grade 1. Owen had unfortunately not been exposed to the French language before school. At home, English is predominantly spoken.

I have submitted a series of questions to the Meuniers on French-language education in Ontario. Here are their answers.

FLE

How did you choose a French-language school?

Jay

We chose a French-language school for our son Owen after many family discussions and after having registered Owen in a school with a francization program in pre-kindergarten and kindergarten (a program which helped Owen integrate the French education system). Lori had some concerns in relation to not being able to help Owen with his homework and not being able to understand or appreciate the school activities. Read more…

The following information will help you understand the struc­ture of Ontario’s public education system and the roles played by schools, school boards, and the Ministry of Education.

In Canada, public education is a provincial responsibil­ity.

 The Ontario Ministry of Education

The Ministry of Education is responsible for oversee­ing all aspects of Ontario’s public education system. Ontario’s Education Act sets out the duties and respon­sibilities of the Minister of Education, school boards, supervisory officers (superintendents), principals, teachers, parents and students.

The Minister of Education, the Honourable Laurel Broten, is appointed by the Premier of Ontario and is an elected member of the Provincial Parliament (MPP).

In Ontario, the Direction des politiques et programmes d’éducation en langue française ensures that the specific needs of Francophone school boards and colleges, as well as universities offering programs in French, are met. Read more…

In order to expand the Francophone space in Ontario, community liaison officers have been supporting the French-language education sector since September 2007. This initiative contributes to the implementation of the Ministry of Education’s Politique d’aménagement linguistique (PAL)-A Policy for Ontario’s French-Language Schools and Francophone Community.

To maintain and strengthen the vitality of the French-speaking community, three areas of intervention are targeted for the creation of partnerships: community groups, the private sector and government bodies. Read more…

Before I start my blog, I would like to share with you some information on this event.

Since 1990, every year, we celebrate the International Day of La Francophonie on March 20th around the world, to recall the day in 1970 when the treaty creating the first intergovernmental body of the Francophonie, called Agence de coopération culturelle et technique (ACCT), was signed in Niamey (Niger). Since that day, the ACCT has evolved and is known today as the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.

This anniversary is an opportunity for us to celebrate our attachment not only to the French language and the rich and diverse Francophone culture, but also to the values of peace, democracy and respect for human rights. These are all elements that unite the members of the International Organization of La Francophonie.

Canada’s involvement in La Francophonie reflects our country’s linguistic duality and the importance we place on our shared values. French is an essential component of Canada’s history and heritage, and a vital asset for our future.¹   Read more…

It’s true! Bilingualism pays. This is the case in Ontario (see Profile of Ontario’s Francophone Community), across Canada and around the world.

It is obvious that the development and maintenance of skills in French is achieved by pursuing studies in French (Youth Bilingualism in Canada, Statistics Canada).

Then do yourself a favour and discover the network of twelve French and bilingual postsecondary institutions which, from their many campuses, offer an impressive choice of programs and services across the province. In addition, the two French-language colleges and ten bilingual academic institutions that make up this network enrich the cultural life of each of our communities, while contributing to the economic growth and the improvement of the quality of life in Ontario and the Canadian society. Read more…