Q&A

 What is French immersion?
 Are there any other French    programs?
 Why learn French?
 Find French language programs    in SK
 Why should I stay through to    grade 12?


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Are there any other French programs?

Yes. In Saskatchewan, from kindergarten to grade 12, you can find the following French-language programs:

• French immersion
• core French (basic French)
• intensive French
• Fransaskois (Francophone or French-first-language) Schools

At the post-secondary level, students and adults can learn or continue with their French in Saskatchewan at:

• The University of Saskatchewan
• St. Thomas More College
• The University of Regina
• SEFFA
• Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Sciences and Technologies (SIAST)
• And many communities offer independent classes or informal gatherings for adults to learn and/or practice their language skills.

What is core French?
Core French is a second-language program in which French is taught as a subject or course for one period a few times a week within the English stream program. It is a program in which the desired outcomes for students are:

• A good foundation in French from which to pursue fluency
• Insights into and an appreciation of Francophone cultures both in Saskatchewan, Canada and the world
• A program most commonly offered as early as grade one supported by a provincial curriculum

In the core French program, students develop basic oral comprehension and communication skills. At the primary level, there is a strong emphasis on helping students develop the oral communication skills they need to understand and interact with others. Many of the skills developed in lower grades continue to be developed and refined as students move on through the grades. In the core French program, students advance through an organized sequence of learning experiences that permit a steady growth of knowledge and skills.

The amount of French studied in a school year per week varies with school jurisdiction. Some programs start in elementary school, while others begin in high school. French is usually offered as an option at the high school level.

What is the difference between core French & French immersion?
In core French, your child learns French as a specific subject within the curriculum of English-language schools. In French immersion programs, ideally all activities and learning, except for English language art classes, are in French.

What are quality core French programs?
A good core French program should:

• Begin early in elementary school and continue through secondary school
• Include at least 40 minutes of instruction daily
• Be taught by a teacher who is fluent in French
• Use French as the language of communication in the classroom
• Follow a curriculum emphasizing communicative skills and vocabulary suitable to the age and interests of the students
• Provide opportunities to use French in communication with native speakers
• Have French-language materials in the school library at a level that the students can read and understand
• Provide out-of-classroom opportunities to use French
• Include written and audio-visual materials that foster an appreciation of the cultures of French-speaking people

Are the results from core French programs very different from French immersion?
Yes. Students can achieve a moderate level of proficiency in core French programs while graduates of early French immersion are expected to be functionally bilingual.

What is intensive French?
Intensive French, otherwise known as intensive core French, is defined as an enrichment of the core French program by the creation of a period of intensive exposure to French, which enables students to receive, in one school year up to four times the number of hours of instruction normally devoted to French. It is a program where the class instruction is carried on in French 65% to 80% of the school day, usually incorporated into the core French program in grades five or six for a period of five months, usually from September to the end of January. This integrates two different concepts: amount of time and concentration of teaching. Three important consequences follow:

• The enrichment of the curriculum
• A change in the pedagogy or methodology used by the teachers, and
• The compacting of the regular curriculum

Intensive French is not a replacement of French immersion, but an added enrichment to the core French program and experience.

What are Fransaskois schools?
The Conseil des écoles fransaskoises is the school division responsible for ensuring Francophone education services to first-language French right-holders across the province of Saskatchewan and it is recongized equally among the other school divisions in the province. The CÉF currently runs 12 schools across the province and is governed by the conseil scolaire fransaskois (CSF) that acts as a school board. Most of the schools run from kindergarten to grade 12 and each one offers an excellent education.

CÉF schools are dedicated to provide a quality education in French to children of Francophone heritage. In a Francophone school, students are taught exclusively in French from Kindergarten to grade 12, with the exception of English Language Arts, which is taught starting in Grade 4. Francophone schools teach the English Language Arts approved by the Ministry of Education for use in all of the provincial school systems. We also focus on teaching identity, language and culture. For more information, visit www.myfrenchschool.ca .