From: steven@spxtech.qc.ca (Steve Potter)
Newsgroups: can.politics
Subject: Re: Access to English school: quotes
Date: 11 Sep 92 03:06:10 GMT
Distribution: can
Organization: Securiplex Technologies Inc., Montreal, Canada
X-Bytes: 3836

From article <1992Sep10.024911.2596@bcrka451.bnr.ca>, by nadeau@bnr.ca (Rheal Nadeau):
> In article <1992Sep9.143447.16737@spxtech.qc.ca> steven@spxtech.qc.ca (Steve Potter) writes:
> 
>>What is wrong with allowing English speaking children to go to English
>>school?
> 
> OK Steve, just for the sake of argument.
> 
> How do you define "English-speaking children"? 

Definition is not required or necessary.

> If law 101 is softened
> to allow your kids to go to English school, how do you propose to do
> this? 

Easy - read on.

> Remember that few Quebeckers will be willing to give complete
> freedom of choice to all immigrants, so what would you consider a
> reasonable compromise? 

Allow people to choose whatever school they wanted but legislate that
ALL immigrant children must be registered in a program of at least
x percent french content.

> How do you define the immigrants who do get their choice?

Not required or necessary.

> 
> I've been thinking about this, and don't have a solution.

Allow access to English schools but insist that french must be learned
in those schools.

Now tell me that that is not a reasonable compromise.

I don't know anyone who would object to that.

>  Just add
> England to the list (along with the Canadian provinces)?  But that
> leaves out other English speakers.  Consider, for example, that English
> is one of the two official languages of India; it is no doubt the
> official language (or one of the official languages) in many other
> countries and political entities (South Africa, Hong Kong, etc).
> Should immigrants from all these countries be allowed to attend
> English-language schools?  (Even those whose first language is not
> English?)

Again, no problem. The paranoia behind all this was that immigrants
were choosing english schools and were not integrating into Quebec
(meaning french) society. The number of immigrants coming into
Quebec is not a threat at all. Requiring a level of french to be
taught in english schools solves the perceived problem.

> 
> If you allow those, what happens to people from other countries
> (without English as an official language) who happen to speak English
> (as a first or second language)?

They could learn french wherever they want.

> 
> Wherever you draw the line, you'll create arbitrary situations - some
> people who reasonably should be allowed won't be, and some people who
> shouldn't qualify will slip in through the loopholes.

That is the stupid discriminatory nature of the law as it stands now.

Why not make it reasonable, along the lines I suggest?

> 
> A side question:  anyone know the stats for country/language of origin
> for immigrants, both to Canada as a whole and to Quebec in particular?

I'll have to look them up - I'll get back to you on this.

> I would think this would be essential knowledge to answer the above
> questions.  I doubt many Quebeckers would oppose reasonable
> modifications to law 101, but hardly any will accept having the
> majority of immigrants learn English first, and then maybe French.
> (Heck, I've known immigrants here in Ottawa who could hardly speak
> either of our official languages, even after years here!  They usually
> drive taxis, or teach Physics courses at Ottawa U :-) )

I have to work on the idea that allowing immigrants to choose the school
they want while requiring them to go through an immersion program answers
all the concerns and takes away any perceived threat.

People like Denis will never be convinced - he can't be reasoned with.

-- 
  ///==================================================================\\\
  ||| Steve Potter:         steven%spxtech@CAM.ORG                     |||
  ||| Expertise/Experience: Computer Systems Engineering / Real Ale /  |||
  |||                       Politics in Education in Quebec            |||
Newsgroups: can.politics,can.general