Multilingual Education: a possibility in Ontario?
Ontario Multilingual Education (OME) is hosting an event this October to discuss legalizing multilingual education in Ontario. At present, the regular school curriculum is only taught in French and English in Ontario. Other provinces, such as Alberta, have had legalized multilingual education for over 30 years to great success.
Given that Ontario has one of the most multicultural populations in the country, limiting access to Education in only two languages raises concerns about social justice and equity for all Ontarians. OME is currently bringing forward a motion to the Ministry of Education to change the law about language education in Ontario and we would like to hear from researchers, parents, students, and public officials.
A diverse group of panelists will address the impact of the current law on the lives of students and their families, as well as educational policy and practice. The audience will be invited to contribute to the discussion as well.
Yollanda Zhang is a mom of a bilingual child and the founder and director of Panda Mandarin Language Programs, Inc. in Toronto. She strongly believes in the importance of giving opportunities to all children to learn a second language, especially their heritage language.
Dr. Jim Cummins is a world-renowned educational researcher and a strong advocate for multilingual education. His work, spanning four decades, has been instrumental in shaping the way teachers and policymakers think about language education, particularly for culturally and linguistically diverse students.
Lisa Sung is a former student of the Mandarin bilingual program in Edmonton. Lisa was a former Mandarin bilingual teacher in the Edmonton Chinese Bilingual Education Association (ECBEA) in Edmonton Public Schools. Currently, Lisa is a music teacher at Mandarin Academy in Cupertino, California and looks forward to being a part of the Chinese Language Immersion Program (CLIP) in Cupertino Schools.
Dr. Mary Jean Gallagher is a former Assistant Deputy Minister of the Student Achievement Division at the Ministry of Education. Her work is visible in our education system’s on-going improvement and commitment to excellence for students as she provided leadership to our province’s new vision for education, Achieving Excellence.
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