Public consultation on French immersion not politically motivated, minister says

Education Minister Dominic Cardy said the decision to open the French immersion entry point to public debate is not political but related to a shortage of qualified teachers. 

On Wednesday, Cardy launched a multi-pronged public consultation that he says is designed to address flaws in the existing immersion system.

One of the biggest problems in the system now, Cardy said, is that more than 40 per cent of Grades 1 and 2 French immersion teachers are not at the required language-proficiency level. The Education Department later confirmed that its records show 41 per cent of  Grades 1 and 2 immersion teachers don't have the necessary proficiency.

If the entry point is changed, the Higgs government would be the fourth New Brunswick government in a row to change it. 

"This is not the same thing as those previous changes," Cardy said. "This is a response to a classroom issue which has come up in terms of teacher qualification."

He said the consultation is not to attack French immersion but to address an inconsistent quality of teaching within the program.

There are no political gains from this at all.- Education Minister Dominic Cardy

Critics have raised the question of instability within the system, something a recent report from the auditor general flagged as hurting student performance.

Cardy responded that the same report highlighted the problem his consultation is trying to address. He said the national shortage of teachers has made it hard to recruit teachers with necessary language capabilities, and a change in the entry point is a possible solution.

"Lots of parents find the program attractive because it's seen as offering a higher standard of education, and I don't think they're going to get that if we have 40 per cent of teachers who are not at level."

George Daley, president of the New Brunswick Teachers' Association, said he would prefer stability in the system, but the association never has and never will take a stance on the French immersion entry point.

"I'm not going to presume any particular outcome here, but we do need to look at the struggles we have," Daley said.

Daley also pointed out the previous Liberal government ignored the advice of the association not to move the entry point to Grade 1 because of a lack of qualified teachers and other classroom composition issues.

If the Higgs government does decide to make changes, Daley said, the association will insist they are based on solid research.

Looking for solutions

Cardy said the problem isn't one he raised himself, but one brought to him by his department. He said he could have chosen to ignore the issue but instead decided to launch the consultation because he believes it's a problem that should be solved.

"When I got into this job, I even joked about this publicly a couple times, saying the last thing in the world I want to talk about is French immersion entry points," Cardy said.

"There are no political gains from this at all."

Cardy said he shares concerns about stability in the system but is looking to have a conversation based on facts and data and potential solutions.

"Don't just stand up saying, 'I hate French immersion, I love French immersion.' How do we figure out a system so New Brunswickers can become conversant at least in their second language?"

Cardy gave out his email address, dominic.cardy@gnb.ca, during an interview with Information Morning Fredericton, asking concerned public and parents to offer solutions, regardless of whether they are angry.