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Media
Success Stories
Dr. Kevin Convery
While he may have been born in Ireland to Irish parents, Kevin Convery, has always considered Winnipeg to be his home. In fact, he was only eight months old when his parents moved there the first time. While still a child, Kevin's parents decided to return to Northern Ireland, but the political climate at the time was too tense. After only a few months, Kevin's parents decided to return to Canada and settle permanently in Winnipeg. That is where Kevin attended the primary and secondary school French immersion program.
His time was split between school and the rink, where he played hockey, his favourite sport. Jacques Burquier, a French teacher at Sisler High School in Winnipeg, convinced Kevin to go to university. While he was intrigued by science, Kevin also wanted to improve his French.
He spent his first year studying biology at St. Boniface University College (SBUC). Kevin admits that it was not easy at first to study in French, but the friendly students and staff at SBUC strongly encouraged him to persevere. During his studies, Kevin finally accepted the fact that the hoped-for hockey scholarship would not be forthcoming.
At the same time, he discovered the National Consortium for Health Education (NCHE) program, which is administered by the University of Ottawa through a Canadian Heritage grant. Its goal is to improve access to French education in the various health disciplines, and to contribute to the development of health research geared towards the country’s Francophone minority communities. Kevin worked hard to complete a Bachelor of Science, With Distinction, and then enrolled in medicine at the NCHE office.
From Anglophone parents, but having done post-secondary studies in French, Kevin's candidacy forced the program's managers to define what a Francophone is. The University of Ottawa's Faculty of Medicine agreed to grant him an interview. Kevin Convery proudly pursued his medical studies in French and received his MD degree on May 18th, 2005.
This summer, Kevin and his fiancée, a speech therapist, will move to Thunder Bay, ON for his two-year residency in family medicine. Other than his wedding next September, there are no concrete plans, but Kevin is convinced that he will one day return to practice family medicine in rural Manitoba.
Was all of the work studying in a second language worth it? "Absolutely." For all intents and purposes, Kevin is very sensitive to people's well-being and knows that he will best be able to meet the needs of his patients if they are able to express themselves in their mother tongue.
Dr. Rebecca Gibson
During high school, Rebecca Gibson described herself as a very conscientious student always one step ahead of what was expected of her. With her love of knowledge, especially in math and sciences, Rebecca could already visualize herself in a white smock. "I wanted a career that would have a significant impact in society." Rebecca explains that her parents and her calculus teacher were very supportive.
After obtaining her pre-health professions science degree at the University of Waterloo, Rebecca decided to enrol in an intensive French immersion program at Laval University in Quebec. Rebecca has no regrets in taking the time to perfect her French language skills, because that is where she met her fiancé. The following year, Rebecca was accepted at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa.
Looking back, Rebecca now appreciates the intensity of the first two years of the program. Nonetheless, it is her third and fourth year that she has enjoyed the most. "Getting hands-on experience in real conditions puts all our learning into context", says Rebecca. It is with great confidence and enthusiasm that Rebecca looks ahead at her future career in Family Medicine, for which she is a strong advocate, with special interest in obstetrics.
After their wedding in June, Rebecca and her husband, a French teacher, will be moving to Sudbury. While pursuing her two-year residency, Rebecca hopes to be involved with the new Northern Ontario Medical School opening in September. Dr. Rebecca Gibson's focus will be on having a family practice in a rural bilingual community, maybe in eastern-Ontario, where she will incorporate her special interest in obstetrics and teen health.
How Bilingualism Bought Me the Best Seat in the House
Published in Issue No. 94 Winter 2004 CPF National News
Having been an avid hockey player and fan for many years, I've aspired to a career in sports broadcasting. And like all Nova Scotians, I immediately wanted tickets when it was announced that the 2003 World Junior Hockey Championships were coming to Halifax.
Despite the fact that I grew up in an Anglophone family, my parents instilled in my siblings and I that bilingualism is a critical skill for success in any field.
I took part in Canada-wide bilingual exchanges like "Forum for Young Canadians" and "Interchange on Canadian Studies". I was also an active participant in CPF's Concours d'art oratoire, winning a provincial silver medal in 1999 and the provincial gold in 2000 for extended core students.
I've been putting my bilingualism into practice by announcing sporting events at Acadia University and at McGill. When the World Juniors wanted to showcase Canada's bilingual character to the world, I was an ideal fit for the job of in-rink announcer even though I was 19 years old!
The World Juniors were called "the biggest event to ever hit Nova Scotia" and I was honoured to be a part of the event. In addition to announcing goals, penalties and generally pumping up the fans, who numbered over 10,000 for every game, I hosted the post-game press conferences. It was a thrill to interact with the Canadian and international media, including TSN/RDS and to receive words of encouragement from professional sports journalists. It was even more exciting when I myself became the subject of media coverage. The Halifax Chronicle-Herald featured me on the front page as "The Voice of the Tournament" and Global Television's "Sportsline" gave me top billing as well. Furthermore, my role allowed me to meet and befriend many of the world's top young hockey players, all of whom were my age. For instance, I chatted at length, en français, with Team Canada's Marc-André Fleury, who is now starring in the NHL as the goaltender for the Pittsburgh Penguins. None of this would have been possible without bilingualism.
I was touched to be personally thanked by Acadians and Québécois who expressed their appreciation of the tournament's recognition of the importance of the French language in Nova Scotia and Canada I can now also say confidently that French is not only important here at home but that it is valued all over the world. For example, Team Switzerland's officials told me that the reason that the name of their country appears on their jerseys in French as "Suisse" is because, of the four official languages of Switzerland, French is the most widely spoken internationally.
Announcing at the World Juniors was an unforgettable experience that further proved to me the importance of bilingualism. Not only did I have tickets to the World Juniors, my knowledge of Canada's two official languages gave me the best seats in the house!
Matthew Howatt is a Dean's Honour List and scholarship student at McGill University in Montréal, and is currently completing his third year of an Honours Bachelor of Arts. The 20 year old Nova Scotia native hopes to continue his education with a Masters in Broadcast Journalism and law school before becoming a professional sports broadcaster in both official languages.
Sandy Bisaro: Basketball and French
CPF National News Issue No. 93 Fall 2003
In what must be one of my earliest conversational memories, I can still recall asking my mother if the same letters were used in French as in English. Reassured that I would not have to relearn an alphabet I was only just becoming familiar with, I made my way to the first day of maternelle with a light heart.
Now nearly twenty years later, when asked why my parents decided to enrol me in French immersion, I can still manage no better explanation than 'they thought it was a good idea.' They were right.
I spent the past year, my first following graduation from the University of Victoria, playing professional basketball in both France and England, followed by two months of travel throughout Europe. While I had a bit of a wait following my high-school graduation to put my French immersion experience to use, I cannot count the times in the past year that I have consciously thanked my parents for their foresight, let alone the subconscious satisfaction I have experienced at being able to truly converse with people in their native language or, surprisingly frequently in parts of Europe, bridge the gap of communication with people whose repertoire of languages included French but not English.
In using French, I made the transition from just another 'American' to a person worthy of something other than condescension and the resulting change of attitude was invaluable. Still, I was not always so keen to pursue the skill of speaking French that I now value so much. I am thankful for my parents' initial decision to enrol me in the French immersion program, but their role in my continuation in French did not end there.
Some of my more vivid memories of school activities are centered around the French immersion program: the annual trip to a local movie theatre for the film festival - even now my current friends from different elementary schools speak affectionately of Le Grenouille et la Baleine.
And who could forget their first Concours d'art oratoire speech! A university roommate of mine was Vancouver champion in Grade 3, and another friend can still recite verbatim his grade 4 Concours speech, Les trous noirs. Despite all of this, the fact that some of my friends were going to English high schools, combined with any good teen-ager's desire to rebel for the sake of rebelling, I was adamant about not wanting to continue in French at high school.
Fortunately, I was overruled by my parents. My mother had been involved with CPF for a number of years and had recently begun working as an immersion librarian.
Once enroled in high school and having a place in a new social group, leaving French immersion ceased to be an issue.
For five years after high school, my French went in large part unused. I spent two years at Portland State University in Oregon, not exactly a hotbed for French-speaking population. I did manage, however, the occasional conversation with our Senegalese team manager. At the University of Victoria in British Columbia, the only French practice I had was during somewhat tongue-in-cheek conversations with fellow immersion grads, competing to see whose accent was better.
Suffice to say when I was met at Charles de Gaulle airport last August by the exclusively French-speaking coach of my new basketball team, I was a bit nervous as to how my French would hold up. While I filled silences during our initial conversation with excuses about being out of practice, it was soon apparent that my French was well ahead of that of any North Americans they had previously employed and it was much better than they had expected despite having heard I was fluent.
During the first few weeks, I found myself often searching for words and occasionally being tactfully corrected.
As my nine French teammates (two or three spoke halting English) discussed the fate of the national soccer team at the World Cup (Allez les Bleus), I wouldn't catch all the jokes or snide remarks but the pace at which I improved was amazing. Over the course of my two months with the Nanterre Scorpions all my French came back to me... and more.
The basis that French immersion laid for me - at an age when learning French seemed effortless - has allowed me to be able to roll 'r's and soften 'j's. (Although apparently, I am still too nasal when saying vin, a shame since you would think that by now I would have had enough practice!)
I never imagined that I would be in a gym in Paris explaining the merits of helpside defence to a couple of Marseilleses, let alone engaging in contract negotiations in French in the notoriously unreliable world of European professional basketball. The fact that I was doing this after five years with virtually no exposure to conversational French, speaks to the strength of the French immersion program.
Having left France nearly eight months ago, I am missing being immersed in French. I did get a few brief respites during my travels through Europe and at any hostel which happened to be recommended by the indispensable French-language travel guide, Le Routard. At these stops I habitually found myself surrounded by Swiss, Belgians, Québéçois and French and I got on much better than any poor American who must have been wondering what wrong turn he took to find himself in a place where English wasn't the common language.
I know my French is better now than before I left, and I know that it will only continue to improve with each time I am immersed in it. I also know it is a skill that will be with me for the rest of my life.
Neil Thompson
Taken from note written to CPF National News Issue 87, Fall 2001
I thought I would take this opportunity to thank Canadian Parents for French and all the people who have supported French immersion programs across Canada. I can think of no other two individuals who benefited more from enrollment in French Immersion than my sister and myself.
My sister and I both began taking French Immersion courses in Spruce Grove, Alberta. From there we moved to Richmond, B.C. where both Andrea and I graduated from the French Immersion program. In university, we continued to use our French language skills be taking a variety of courses.
Andrea graduated from the University of British Columbia and gained her teaching certificate. She then returned to our old high school in Richmond where she teaches Sciences naturelles. In a highly competitive job market, Andrea's French skills were the edge.
As for myself, after graduating from UBC, I was recently hired by a leasing company in Vancouver to provide customer service for their clients in Quebec. Once again, in a competitive job market my advantage was my ability to speak French.
So please pass along my thanks to the individuals of your association, and the many volunteers across Canada. Your dedication makes a difference to thousands of students every year, and for my sister and I, it has made all the difference in the world.
Member of Parliament thanks CPF The following comment was made in French in the House of Commons on May 31, 2001. Mr. Moore at 25 years of age is one of the youngest MPs ever elected to Parliament.
Mr. James Moore (Port Moody-Coquitlam-Port Coquitlam, B.C. Canadian Alliance): Mr. Speaker, I rise today in the House to pay tribute to Canadian Parents for French. Thanks to their efforts, a growing number of Anglo-Canadians express themselves well in French. Today, over 300,000 Anglo-Canadian students are taking part in French immersion programs, and almost one quarter of Canadians between the ages of 18 and 29 speak English and French. I am addressing the House in French today, and my sister is a teacher of French, because both of us participated in a French immersion program. I am proud that the city of Coquitlam in my riding is the birthplace of French immersion schools in western Canada. I thank Canadian Parents for French and all the parents who make such an investment in their children's education. I urge all parents to consider the benefits of learning a second language at school.
Michael Arnot: French opened many doors for me
Michael Arnot was educated in French Immersion at L'école Notre Dame in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, a small town of 20,000 people. Although the decision to enroll him in French is a result of his parent's vision, he is very thankful that they made the choice.
"Quite simply, it has opened many doors for me", says Michael. French Immersion allowed Michael to hone his speaking skills, as he won first place in the Northern Saskatchewan Concours d'art oratoire in 5th grade. His knowledge of French served him well in representing Saskatchewan in French debating at the 1994 National Student Debating Seminar in Winnipeg, Manitoba. As well, his self confessed Saskatchewan French earned him a job teaching swimming lessons to francophone children for the City of Ottawa when he moved to Ottawa in 1994.
A graduate of Ottawa's St. Patrick's High School, Michael moved on to the Royal Military College of Canada, a bilingual institution that produces officers for the Canadian Armed Forces. "There is no doubt in my mind that having learnt French when I was young made it much easier to survive at the College", he says. Although he is exempt from French training at the College with a Public Service lifetime exemption in spoken French, Michael continues to practice his French. He credits his French for helping his acceptance at RMC, a fully subsidized university. After all, he thinks that the decision to enroll him in French was one of the best decisions which his parents could have ever made!
Learning French has allowed him to study other romantic languages. He is now trilingual English, French, Spanish and am working on Portuguese. He has graduated from McGill University's bilingual National Law Program, with degrees in Civil and Common Law. He works for the Honourable Pierre S. Pettigrew, Minister of Health, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister responsible for Official Languages. Previously, he was the Minister's advisor on Latin America and the Free Trade Area of the Americas negotations when he was Trade Minister. That is part of the reason why he speaks Spanish and Portuguese. Currently, he is a policy advisor to the Minister, but on Health Issues.
French! I love it!
My name is Julie and French has been an important part of my life. I learned French as a young child and took the French Immersion program throughout school. When I did my undergraduate education at the University of Waterloo I got a summer job working for Canadian Parents for French. It was great! I got to use my French a lot as I helped to plan "Les Jeux de la Francophonie". It was such a wonderful experience to be able to communicate with athletes and youths from all across Canada in a language that so many people mistakenly think is only in Quebec.
Not only was all the planning in French, but I also got to go to New Brunswick and spend time with all these youths. It was a very powerful experience to see how proud everyone was of his or her bilingualism.
French has helped me beyond working for CPF. After I got my BSc., I lived in Ottawa and Montreal working for a pharmaceutical company. I used my French on a daily basis to communicate with people working in the lab and even served as a translator between my Anglophone boss and some of the Francophone staff. It was so nice to be able to communicate with everyone, regardless of what language they were speaking!
Currently, I'm a medical student at the University of Western Ontario. All of my friends know about my French background and I hope to one day be able to incorporate it into my practice. Being fluent in two languages gives me so many more opportunities for locations for my practice. Over the holidays I worked in the emergency room in a small hospital in northern Ontario and I was able to communicate perfectly with all the patients, something that not all the physicians could do. It was a pretty amazing experience! I look forward to French always being a part of my life and to eventually have a practice that can accommodate patients in both languages. French has really opened up a lot of doors for me - and I'm excited to one day raise my kids proud of their two languages as well!
Julie Johnstone
Medical Student 2007, University of Western Ontario
Adam Fraser: An Incredible Program
The story is published in the complete report of the French Immersion in Alberta; Building the Future conference. The conference for education leaders was held in Edmonton in November 1998. The report comes in a binder with over 150 pages of information and easy reference tabs. For information call 780-464-2530 or visit the CPF Alberta Website.
Throughout elementary school, Adam Fraser attended École Frère Antoine, a single track immersion school in Edmonton. After extensive testing in Grade 9, he was assessed as being dyslexic with dysgraphia. He went on to graduate from École J.H. Picard School's French immersion program in 1996.
After spending a year at Grant MacEwan Community College, Adam is now working as a battery technician with Rocky's Battery.
I'm going to be the first one to admit I'm a little nervous...where do I start?
To start the whole thing off my Mom had introduced me to the French immersion program to give me somewhat of a challenge. I didn't know what kind of a challenge lay ahead, but as I soon found out, it was a difficult one--going through elementary school, finding out what learning a second language was all about. I grew up through elementary school at École Frère Antoine, not knowing what the next year would hold.
I graduated elementary school and went on to École J.H. Picard School. I had managed to skim by in elementary, getting into Grade 7 where a new door had opened into junior high school with a bunch of new teachers and students. The teachers were really good. At this point they hadn't realized quite the problem I had. Year by year I got through, until I was in Grade 9 and barely getting by.
I had problems in reading and writing. In Grade 9, I was diagnosed with dyslexia.
Actually, it is called dysgraphia. This is a form of dyslexia. It is a transference disability where I don't perceive what I read, and then I can't properly write down whatever I have in my thoughts. If it is verbal or if someone reads it to me, I can understand it a little bit better. When I found out about this, I figured, well, school was over.
Had I come all this way in French immersion just to get to this point? Now what do I do? We brought in advisors from the school board. Along with the teachers, my Mom, and me, the advisors devised plans on how to learn. Now, learning was already tough for me as it was. Learning in French made it doubly tough, and now I had dyslexia.
But, the French immersion program was incredible! The teachers were great. At this point, because every grade gets a little more difficult, I had a lot of problems reading. By Grade 9, I had begun to have all of my exams scribed to me-read on to audiocassette and taken in a separate room. I understood the exam, I understood the content, but I still had the problem of writing. Again, the school jumped in and said "Here, Adam. Here is a lap top computer. Here is a teacher that has some spare time and can write out what you are verbally telling them: the answers." Within the next year, I noticed that my marks had dramatically risen.
From there it just kept snowballing, and École J.H. Picard School, the administrators, the teachers did nothing but good things for me. They would audiotape their exams in their off-time hours after school. Like I said, teachers reading the exams to me, writing them for me, well not writing them for me, but writing the answers down as I said them.
I went on to Grade 12 and still couldn't believe that after all those years of people saying "Ah, you're just lazy," or "Why don't you do your work?" it started to all come together.
At one point in elementary, someone-I can't remember who it was-said it would be a far cry to see me go on to postsecondary education, which kind of hurt, but I had to face it. However, I graduated from École J.H. Picard School in 1996 with an average of 67%, and went on to Grant MacEwan Community College, where I took a Bachelor of Physical Education; unfortunately, only one year of it. Learning was always a little bit difficult for me, but even at the postsecondary level the support was great.
It all started within that French immersion program and on top of it being a challenge and a real tough ride for me to begin with, it ended up pretty smooth. All the teachers were really wonderful and I can't say too much more than they were really terrific!
David Lilley: Learning Helps You Build Confidence
The story is published in the complete report of the French Immersion in Alberta; Building the Future conference. The conference for education leaders was held in Edmonton in November 1998. The report comes in a binder with over 150 pages of information and easy reference tabs. For information call 780-464-2530 or visit the CPF Alberta Web site.
David Lilley graduated from the Ardossan Senior High School French immersion program in 1995. He is currently in his forth year of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Alberta. Since graduation David has used his French while travelling extensively in Europe and Quebec and has found it an advantage in his job-hunting and in his studies. This past summer he worked for Toyota in Japan.
"I seriously believe that the immersion program has more to offer than just a second language. The increased multicultural awareness and the learning skills that the program instills in the students are invaluable in today's society." David feels that increased exposure to oral French in school would result in a more natural understanding of the language and its grammar.
The first thing you think of when you get up here is "How did they ever talk me into doing this?"
I graduated from the French immersion program at Ardrossan Junior/Senior High. I'm a big fan of the French immersion program. I think it is great! And when you start talking to people about the program, most people ask you "What did you get out of it?" The type of things they want to hear are, for example: I used my French while I was travelling in Quebec for two months, I used my French when I was travelling in Europe, and while I was applying for jobs. I just got a job for the summer with CN Rail. I'll be doing a lot of travelling to Montreal where they speak French and I think the fact that I am bilingual is an advantage. I'm sure CN looked at that.
As well, both of my sisters were in the French immersion program. My older sister, Margaret, was part of the first graduating class in Strathcona County and she is currently studying in Montreal at McGill University, getting her Masters in Genetic Counselling. She actually counsels people in French on a regular basis. My younger sister only did ten years in the French immersion program. She didn't follow through to high school but she is studying to become a flight attendant and, of course, you have to be bilingual in that as well.
So there are a lot of reasons I can give for joining French immersion. But I think that even if you were to spend your life as a farmer in Hannah, Alberta there are advantages-even if you never use French again. I studied Biology in high school but I never use my knowledge of the function of the kidney on a regular basis. All through high school we learn things that we don't apply, but that doesn't mean that they are not worth learning. I'm sure that there are a lot of people out there who would agree that the value of knowledge is a lot more than its practical application.
Learning helps you build confidence. It's empowering. Just to be able to understand your environment is incredibly meaningful. And today, with Internet and teleconferencing and e-mail and affordable international travel, our environment is growing. It is not longer just Canada. So to have this little pocket of French exposes you to so much more.
Language is the basis of society. When I went to Japan this past summer, I was only going to work there for two months, but I spent one month in Victoria in an intensive Japanese immersion program before I left. The reason for that is that I firmly believe the more you know about a language the more you can understand and appreciate its society and culture. It was incredibly helpful to be able to go over there and to be able to communicate with the Japanese. I was ecstatic at the end of my one month of immersion and two months of living in Japan if I could ask someone how to go to the bathroom-I mean how to get to the bathroom! If they answered me and I understood them-that was fabulous!
I really began to appreciate how much French I do know. I think it is amazing and I think that the value of French is far greater than just being able to speak French. It is hard to be close-minded about other cultures when you know their language.
Having said that, though, and having spent thirteen years in the French immersion program, I think that there are some things that can be improved upon. Upon graduating, I spent two months travelling around eastern Canada. My first month was spent living in Quebec. The one thing I realized was that, while I was fairly proficient in French, a lot of the vocabulary I learned was to discuss the cell composition and politics. I didn't know what a sidewalk or an Instabank was. Those are the words I really could have used while I was there. I wasn't about to start debates on World War II or anything.
I think that is one of the areas where French immersion can improve. As we go through, we hear a lot of French in all of our classes. I think that is very beneficial, but in the actual French Language Arts class most of the time is spent memorizing verbs. My high school French teacher tried to make it interesting for us, but there was a lot of self-taught work, and, unfortunately, the problem with that is that you don't communicate with others as much.
I think hearing and speaking French is more important than being able to read and write it. If you can speak French fluently you can probably put it down on paper. We should focus on learning it so it is natural; rather than memorize how to conjugate a verb in passé composé we should use the verbs in conversation.
When I was in Japan I had two friends who could speak English. They had both lived in the States for a couple of years. One lived there for eight years when he was thirty-five. The other lived there for two years while she was in junior high school.
While their level of language proficiency is about the same, the accent of the girl who lived there while in junior high was phenomenal. If I was talking to her on the phone I would not have been able to tell that she was Japanese. The other fellow I strained to understand a lot of the time even though his exposure to language was so much more. I think it is because the younger you are exposed to language, the more you pick it up, the more natural it becomes, and the easier it is to train your mind and mouth to speak it.
So I think as we bring these kids through French immersion-I think it is done a lot better in elementary school than in junior and senior high school because it is more oral-as they progress, I think too much of the focus is on conjugation and things like trying to memorize which nouns are masculine and feminine. I know I can't do it. I can't memorize ten thousand nouns. But if you just heard them all the time and you just spoke them all the time, you would pick these things up.
If you look at how we learn English, for those of us whose first language is English, you first hear, then speak, and then you read and write it. In high school it flips around; we start to just write, write, write and we don't have casual conversations. I'm not saying to forget the other stuff, because it is important. I just feel that if we focus a lot more on oral French then we would end up with students whose French seems so much more natural. You don't ever have to think about what verbs you are going to use; it just feels right.
Dr. Patti Farrell: Endless Opportunities
The story is published in the complete report of the French Immersion in Alberta; Building the Future conference. The conference for education leaders was held in Edmonton in November 1998. The report comes in a binder with over 150 pages of information and easy reference tabs. For information call 780-464-2530 or visit the CPF Alberta Web site.
"I grew up in Edmonton in a family of ten children. My parents valued the importance of studying a second language, and although they did not speak French they were instrumental in supporting the French immersion program. Seven of their ten children completed their schooling in the program."
Upon graduating from École J.H. Picard High School in Edmonton, Patti Farrell studied music in Washington and then returned to the University of Alberta medical school. She completed her residency in Family Practice in Newfoundland. Since returning once again the Edmonton area, she has practised family medicine in Sherwood Park. Patti is the mother of three children, two of whom are now school aged and attend a French immersion school in Sherwood Park.
Often I get asked about how my family got so involved in the French immersion program, at a time when it wasn't really a common concept. It stems back to my oldest sister knowing what she wanted to do at a very early age. She approached my parents when she was ten years old and said to them, "I want to learn a second language." She had chosen Ukrainian, but my parents didn't have a clue about the Ukrainian alphabet, and so after mulling it over between themselves they felt that French, being our second official language, should be the one we chose. They proceeded to have her tutored for the summer, and then she was taken under the wing of the Assumption Sisters and started the program at the Assumption Academy in Grade 5.
The rest of us followed suit and the younger ones entered the more formal immersion program. I went to Assumption Academy for grades 1 and 2, then transferred to Grandin School, which was a dual track school, for grades 3 to 6. I completed 7 to 12 at École J.H. Picard School. We were the first graduating class to go from Grade 7 to 12 at J.H. Picard.
For all of us, the opportunities opened to us with our second language have been endless. Two of my sisters teach in the immersion program. The oldest sister, who started all of this, is a linguist. She speaks six languages and teaches at Université de Montréal as a theology professor. There are two journalists in the family.
My chances to use French are somewhat more limited than others in the family, but I do get the opportunity to use it in my medical practice. I have some Francophone patients who come to see me, as well as the occasional translation in the hospital. I now have the joy of assisting my two school-aged children in speaking French. I speak with the teachers and I am always amazed that I can dig it out no matter what it takes. I got into trouble this week as I had misspelled the word maisonette for my daughter and she got it wrong on her dictée.
In studies where root words often come from another language, the knowledge of a universal one such as French can only be an asset. Even in our own maternal tongue some of the words can be translated back and forth from French to English. We had an opportunity at our supper table recently. My youngest child, who doesn't speak French yet, was explaining to the older children about the nativity scene with the manger. The manger was "a box" that the animals ate out of. The two older children proceeded to tell her that the word "manger" in French means "to eat."
For travel-we've had endless opportunities for travel. I took an exchange program in high school and I've since kept in touch with the family that I did the exchange program with. I've gone to Quebec many times and their children have come here, lived with my parents and worked for the summer. They've picked up the English end of it. We've had a lot of fun with that. My parents don't speak a word of French, although they've caught on to a few words that they probably shouldn't have caught on to! And they've always been able to figure out when we were trying to plot something when we started speaking French.
My sisters have had the opportunity of participating in the Olympics because of their second language. One of my sisters was a liaison officer for the Olympics as well as the Commonwealth Games, and another sister went on to World Youth in Haiti. It was a great opportunity and she has had endless friendships as a result of that travelling experience.
One question asked of us when we were preparing for this presentation was did we see any problems or drawbacks with the French immersion system? The one drawback that I can see is that it isn't for everybody. Unfortunately, in today's competitive society parents are very concerned with their children's ability to succeed in education. They don't want them to have learning disabilities that would hamper them from succeeding. One of our panelists [Adam Fraser] showed us how he managed to succeed in the French immersion program even with a significant disability, which I think is amazing. I think this has a lot to do with his great ability to overcome obstacles.
As a parent, I have had to evaluate each of my children's ability to cope with the challenge of an immersion program. I think that some children excel in different areas and one of the problems with the French immersion program is that this is not always recognized.
It must not be felt that by acknowledging this we are creating an elitist society, as the enthusiasm for French immersion may have decreased due to concerned parents wishing their children to be highly successful academically and the fear that a second language is one more obstacle to be overcome.
The latest studies on the ability to learn: on the brain and the way it understands things, including the integration of language at an early age, and on the way the sounds of the language have to be integrated and actually internalized before the age of ten, are really interesting concepts, I think, and all can be used to influence the immersion program. Thanks.
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