with Graham Fraser

Ottawa-born Graham Fraser carved out a career for himself at the country’s major print media outlets (Le Devoir, The Globe and Mail, the Montreal Gazette, The Toronto Star and Maclean’s) by being one of the few journalists who could work in English and French. His respect for both languages prompted him to write his fifth book, Sorry, I Don’t Speak French: Confronting the Canadian Crisis that Won’t Go Away, which — combined with his bilingual work experience — made him the natural choice for the Commissioner of Official Languages appointment in 2006. Responsible for promoting Canada’s two official languages, as well as protecting language rights, Fraser believes that “Every Canadian child should have the opportunity to become bilingual — to participate fully in the country’s economy, governance and society.” Read on for Fraser’s insights into the current (and sometimes complicated) state of bilingual education.

Is the French language in danger outside of Québec?

Almost 10 million Canadians speak French, including the approximately 7.3 million who count it as their first language. The number of francophones outside of Québec is about a million, which is an additional 10,000 since the 2006 Census report.

Integrating French-speaking immigrants into francophone communities is more important than ever. The number of fluent speakers whose mother tongue is not French is increasing significantly. In addition, I see a greater solidarity and mobilization in francophone communities — they are growing in Canada, slowly but surely.

How important is the opportunity to learn an additional language?

The country needs to provide a true continuum of second-language learning opportunities from the elementary to post-secondary levels.

The broad challenges that we must overcome are the lack of second-language teachers and the increasing number of immigrants outside of Québec who cannot converse in both official languages.

In 2011, more than 341,000 students were enrolled in immersion programs — it was an all-time high. We hear stories of parents lining up in school parking lots overnight in British Columbia to ensure their child gets a spot. In other districts, coveted slots are awarded via lottery. We’ve been told that the lack of qualified teachers restricts the number. The federal government has a responsibility to work with the provinces and universities to increase this supply.

I’ve also recommended that the prime minister take measures to double the number of Canadians who participate each year in short- and long-term language exchanges at the secondary and post-secondary levels.

How can OCTs get students excited about French?

We need to remind the government and our schools of the advantages that come from offering French learning opportunities that will give graduates an edge in the labour force. I invite teachers to create daily opportunities for students to converse in their second official language. This practice will help to improve their knowledge and allow them to thrive in the workforce, and as Canadian citizens. My office has created a teachers’ corner of resources (bit.ly/1v23p1Y) to help students learn and maintain their second language.