Massey-Vanier High School (MVHS) has made changes to the Secondary 3 timetable that resulted in cutting the French Immersion program for the 2022-2023 school year. The decision has caused concern amongst some parents who feel that they were not properly consulted or informed of the decision. The French Immersion program offers MVHS students from Secondary One to Secondary Three with the opportunity to do their studies in French with limited help in English. Michael Murray, chair of the Eastern Townships School Board (ETSB), said that the decision came down to wanting to provide students with the opportunity to broaden their horizons. 

“The decision of removing it was all about running groups that give students a greater range of choices in their courses and their groupings. We are educators, we are about change, the purpose of education is change, (…) the primary motivation for looking at changes is to improve the social and emotional growth of our students,” said Murray. 

Murray noted that staff and educators support the idea that being limited to certain programs and/or classes hinders that development. 

“For several years now, we have been discussing the merits of greater choice and more alternatives to students in the middle of their high-school year. The choice of other options inevitably led to not offering immersion, which requires a “closed group,” he said. 

By “closed groups,” Murray explained that the French Immersion program is reserved for a particular group of students with a particular goal. The program also has a limited number of students and teachers, resulting in a tight time-table. 

“So, there is no movement between cohorts, between those students who are in immersion and who are not in immersion. We have a wide variety of other options. (…) By opening up the groups, we give each of those students a choice to pursue the kind of level of challenge and interest that suits them individually,” explained Murray. 

The decision sparked some concerns within the community after some parents felt like they were not properly consulted about a decision that affected the opportunity for their child to improve their bilingualism. 

Murray added that MVHS prides itself on bilingualism, incorporating more French than what is required under Quebec’s education system regulations, and that there are other ways to learn French as a practical skill. He also mentioned that the decision will be reviewed at the end of the 2022-2023 school year. 

“French Immersion is not some type of silver bullet. It’s not the one and only way to become bilingual. In fact, our orientation is to increase bilingualism, to increase practical bilingualism, and that doesn’t always necessarily require an immersion program,” he said. 

CIDI has reached out to parents for comment and is expecting to do a follow-up in the upcoming week. 

Listen to the full interview below: