The new French as a second language program in New Brunswick, which has come under the scrutiny of Education Secretary Bill Hogan for the third time in two weeks, is far from unanimous.
At a public consultation that lasted more than three hours Tuesday night in Saint John, nearly 30 people, mostly teachers and parents, spoke out against the new curriculum, Global News reported.
According to Olivia Donovan, a former teacher whose three children went through the current French immersion program, the problem lies more with the main English system. In fact, she believes more resources, teachers, and teaching assistants are needed instead of a new program.
“The system is really on the verge of collapse. Yet we have a government that wants to push through massive changes without a plan and without proper consultation,” she said.
“Go through the cracks”
While several parents have expressed concern that their children may not learn French under the new program, Brad Kennedy fears the opposite for his son. The latter has apraxia, a speech disorder that makes communication difficult, Global News reported.
“I’m worried about my little boy,” he said, close to tears. He can’t even speak English. He understands what he’s being told, but he can’t give much back. So how can I send him to school?”
The new program would require all pre-school and first grade children to complete classes equally in French and English, a change that would not benefit all young people.
“It seems so many [enfants avec des difficultés d’apprentissage] slipped through the cracks and I have a feeling it’s only going to get worse,” Kennedy said.
After the consultation, Minister Hogan told reporters that the experience had been “informative”.
“We are conducting these consultations because nothing is set in stone at this point. If it were written in stone, it would be foolish to hold consultations,” he added, adding that there was still plenty of time to refine the project, which will be approved at the end of winter or in spring.