New Brunswick’s education minister concedes a shortage of available teachers may push back plans to change French education in Anglophone schools.
“If we don’t have the staffing to fully implement in September, then we’d be looking to do it the following September,” says Bill Hogan, in an interview.
Hogan is touring the province for in-person consultations about the changes set for September.
The provincial government proposes students entering kindergarten and Grade 1 spend half their school day taught in French and the other half in English. The change will end the French immersion program in Grade 1 this fall, where students spend 90 per cent of the day taught in French.
Students starting kindergarten and Grade 1 this fall will continue under the 50/50 model throughout their primary school years, under the province’s plan.
Hogan says the department’s long-term struggle in recruiting teachers might ultimately alter the plan’s timeline.
“So maybe we could only do Grade 1 in September 2023 and then do everything in September 2024. I mean, that’s fine. We can’t make French teachers appear out of thin air. We can only go with what we have.”
Hogan says implementing the 50/50 model in Grade 1 remains the department’s priority this fall.
“My plan is that we have it fully staffed and that we move forward and we’re working hard to get that done. But it is a reality that we may not be able to achieve the staffing goal, and we’ll have to modify in some areas what we’re going to offer."
Hogan says rural areas are the biggest challenge to staff, with recruitment ongoing.
“We’re working with the universities, we’re looking to see if there’s recruitment we can do overseas. But it is a real challenge and I’m not trying to hide that fact.”
In an interview Jan. 13, the executive director of l’Association Canadienne des Professionnels de l’Immersion (the Canadian Association of Immersion Professionals) said uncertainty within the province’s education sector was hurting the province’s efforts to recruit.
“The teachers won’t be staying in New Brunswick if they want to teach French,” said Chantal Bourbonnais. “They’ll just go elsewhere because the future is so unknown.”
In October, the New Brunswick Teachers' Association issued a statement saying the implementation of French education changes in September 2023 “would further aggravate” ongoing staffing issues.
Hogan says the department plans to release a final plan for French education in Anglophone schools before the end of the current school year.
