The Lucknow Sentinel, 1984-11-21, Page 3to 2
,4,
Lueitnaw Sentinel
•
Wednesday, November 21, 1984 --Pse 3
iSCUS. French immersion at public f�ruin 1» Goderick
By Patrick Raftls,
French Immersion is the latest hot potato
for the Huron County .Board of Education
to handle. . .
A public forum on.. the subJect, ,held '°at
Gpderich District Collegiate Institute on
Monday night, attracted about 100 inter-
ested area . residents. While many in at-
tendance were 'in favor of the' French
Immersion program; most came to learn
the • answers a number, of , questions
traditionally posed by the program's
detractors. ,
Billed as a debate, the discussion was
actually a. public information meeting,
featuring three pro -immersion speakers. '
The first •speaker was Russel McGilliv-
ray, a former, supervisor of the Carlton
Board of Education,. one of the first public
school boards in Ontario to implement the
program. •
French Immersion first began, in the
Ottawa -Carlton area, in 1970; as an experi-
ment .a few parents wanted ' to try, said
McGillivray. It has. since spread to the
point where some boards in every province
offer theprogram, with about "150,000
children across Canada taking party.
"French Immersion is no longer looked
Win at Ro�c�cl
The Rintoul girls of St. Helens did well at
The Royal Winter Fair in Toronto, winning
Grand championships in the Charolais and
Hereford classes.
Kim Rintoul . was • Junior, Champion
Charolais Showman and Grand Champion
Charolais . Showman. Her sister, Debbie
placed fourth in Charolais Showmanship,
in her second year at. The. Royal.
Carol Rintoulshowed in . the _4-11
provincial showmanship as top showman
for Huron .County and .placed in the top
four. She' also won the senior Hereford
Showmanship . and Grand Champion _Iere-
ford Showman.
Kim was ' Reserve' Junior Hereford
Showman and Debbie placed fourth in the
Junior Hereford Showmanship.
SOUTH KINLOSS
by Ruth Buchmeier
Mr. and Mrs. Herb Buckton spent last
weekend., in Waterloo with their grand-
children, George and ' David, while their
parents, Dr. and Mrs., Bill Buckton went to
Montreal to attend a medical convention.
Weekend visitors with ' Mr. and Mrs.
Dick McQuillin and Ron were Herb and
Myrtle McQuillin of Lucknow,and their
son, Sam and Marion from Galt, Gordon
and. Donna McQuillin of Sarnia and Bill and
Ruth Ann Doek, and family of Corunna.
COERECTION
Re:
arvieW Footle Ad
m.
Pre ChristmaiSale
Flyer
Hoorn Should Read
OPEN TILL
6pan..
The store will not he open
Friday evening
on as an experiment,. It's no longer a trial
and error
process - if it ever was," said
McGillivray.
Higher education is now .available to
immersion graduates, with some univer-
sities. offering; programs,- totally in French,.
to native -English ,students, he added.
McGillivray said the immersion program
is far more successful. than the traditional
,Core French programs which, "gave us all
a smattering of . French:" '
Progress for . students • taking " Core
French is "so infinitesimally slow," that,
it's difficult for a teacher to see what, has
been accomplished,' McGillivray said.
He called Core French "an intellectual
exercise and not ,much more, while
stating that French Immersion gives
students a feeling that "A language is
something to be used - rather than simply
learned:"
He encouraged parents to think of the
program as, "vocational, training", and
cited journalism, social work and law„ as
just a few of the professions in which;
biliingualism is increasingly becoming an
asset.
McGillivray said many boards do not
offer French Immersion, because they .feel
the program is too expensive to set up.
McGillivray down played the expense of
the program, saying that a big part of
immersion consists of "teachers with a
class in front of'them. That has to happen
anyway."
While . special books are needed for the.
program, 'McGillivray called this a one time
expense and said that there are grants.
available to offset the cost of the program.
Research
Gail Litt, a Kitchener researcher, who
has .been involved with . studies on the
effects of French Immersion was the next
speaker. She discussed a . number of
common concerns about the effectiveness_
of the program.
Most studies have remained consistently
Positive on the attitude.of graduates of the
immersion program, she said. The results
tend to remain positive regardless ' of
whether the student was, involved in an
early or late immersion program, she
added.
Litt addressed one of the, major concerns'
among parents of children in French
Immersion : the effect of the program on
the child's English . learning capabilities:
Although Grade 1 ' students tend to have.
lower test scores :than non -immersion
students; Litt :saidthe immersion students
are often out performing their English only
counterparts by Grade 5.
According to sbme researchers, listening
skills teststoo difficult for Grade. K-3 Core
French students, resulted in near perfect
scores when given to immersion students. .
Immersion students can attain "native
like" proficiency in listening, reading and
comprehension of French; :while their
speaking and writing French performance
is not as good, but still .acceptable.
Research shows, says Litt, that. French •
Immersion tends to enhance, rather 'than
hinder, a students ability to learn other
subjects. She also said that 'immersion
students have fewer social differences with
French students,
Late .Starter.
Carmeta Abbott, • an assistant professor
at St.. Jerome's . College, Waterloo and a
co-founder ofthe K -W area's first imrnei-
sion school, works with late corners to the
French • language. '
She works with students at the other end
of the spectrum. They come to university
and want to. have .some French.
"For many it has become a personal
conviction," she said.
"Most of them are aware of the immer-
y Turn. to page 5•
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