From: southiea@JSP.UMontreal.CA (Southiere Alain)
Subject: Re: Americans on English schools in Quebec (Was: Quebec)
Organization: Universite de Montreal
Date: Tue, 10 Nov 1992 05:23:03 GMT

In article <1992Nov8.105159.6767@spxtech.qc.ca> steven@spxtech.qc.ca (Steve Potter) writes:
>>>Naturally, since more than 80% of the population in Quebec is francophone,
>>>he/she would be pretty stupid not to have his/her children learn french.
>>>This can be done in perfectly good immersion programs in English schools.
>> 
>>    Get serious ! If a law is needed to get these people to put their children
>> in a french school, it might be because they wouldn't do it in the first
>> place, no ?
>>
>
>Such a law is not needed. People are demanding more and more French programs
>in English schools. Many anglophone families place their children in French
>schools in Quebec by choice (about 10,000 of them).

   If it's not needed, why so many people complain about it ? If a law is
not needed, noone would even notice it !

   Yes, many anglophones put their children in French schools by choice, but
much more of them don't and seem to do whatever in their power for not
doing so.

>>    So, if for some reason they're not interested to to have their chidren
>> go to a french school, do you seriously think that they're interested in
>> learning/improving/perfecting their french ?
>
>Your assumption is wrong and, in any case, I don't think forcing parents to
>send their children to French school, whether they would choose to send them
>there or not, encourages them to learn/improve/perfect their French, do you?

   There's nothing wrong with this assumption, it's only pure logic. Would
you beleive someone is interested in learning something when they don't
want their own old to do so ? Get serious ! 

   You're right, a law will not encourage these people to learn/improve
or perfect their french, but it will for their children.
>
>>    I don't mind of immigrants coming to Quebec, but hey, if they want to
>> live in an English community, there's all other provinces in Canada and
>> all of the USA they can go to !
>
>There is also an English community in Montreal that is on the decline -
>why shouldn't they join that English community if they want to?

   The english community on the decline ? Well, not here ! There's an english
school just in my backyard and each year, there's more and more children
attending. BTW, a great deal of them are immigrants, not even knowing a
single word in french and very little in english ! It would seem that there
are some ways to get around the law...

>Children can learn French as a second language, perfectly well, in a French
>immersion program, in an English school. Their English mother tongue
>education, on the other hand, in a French school - is another matter?

   In the case of immigrant, as a third or fourth language, not second. And
usually, a third or fourth language is far less important to someone than
his/her first or second language.

-- 
Alain Southiere           | You can't always get what you want,    
southiea@jsp.umontreal.ca | But if you try sometimes,              
--------------------------| You might find you get what you need ! 
 * This space for rent *  |                   - The Rolling Stones 
Newsgroups: can.politics