Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Official Languages
Issue 12 - Evidence - Meeting of April 20, 2015
OTTAWA, Monday, April 20, 2015
The Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages met this day, at 5 p.m., to continue its study on best practices for language policies and second-language learning in a context of linguistic duality or plurality.
Senator Claudette Tardif (Chair) in the chair.
[Translation]
The Chair: Honourable senators, I call this meeting of the Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages to order. I am Claudette Tardif, from Alberta, and I have the privilege to chair this committee.
Before we start, I will ask the senators to introduce themselves.
Senator Seidman: Judith Seidman from Montreal, Quebec.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: Suzanne Fortin-Duplessis from Quebec City.
Senator Maltais: Ghislain Maltais from Quebec City.
Senator McIntyre: Paul McIntyre from New Brunswick.
Senator Chaput: Maria Chaput from Manitoba.
Senator Poirier: Rose-May Poirier from New Brunswick. Welcome.
The Chair: I want to welcome our guests. In this forty-first Parliament, the members of the committee are considering language policies and second-language learning in a context of linguistic duality or plurality.
The goal of the study is to examine current policies, challenges and best practices that promote second-language learning in countries with two or more official languages. In its study, the committee is examining both the Canadian perspective and the international perspective.
The witnesses in our first group will talk to us about the promotion of official languages in the Canadian context, and about language and cultural exchanges.
We are privileged to have with us Michael Hudon, Communications and Project Coordinator, Canadian Parents for French — Manitoba; Danielle Lamothe, Executive Director, French for the Future; and Deborah Morrison, Executive Director, Society for Educational Visits and Exchanges in Canada, SEVEC.
I now invite Mr. Hudon to make his presentation. He will be followed by Ms. Lamothe and Ms. Morrison. Afterwards, senators will ask their questions.
Michael Hudon, Communications and Project Coordinator, Canadian Parents for French — Manitoba, French for Life: Good afternoon. I want to begin by saying that I am very happy to be here this afternoon, and I hope that my testimony will meet your expectations. I have been following your committee's work, and I know that your questions will help me share the key parts of my experience.
I will begin by introducing myself. I will then tell you about my career path and about the French for Life project. Finally, I will bring up some ideas we can discuss as we go.
I am from Manitoba and I hold a French immersion diploma. My parents decided to enroll me in an immersion program — a very common decision. That was not important for me at the time, and I would not have made the decision myself. But over the years, I have often had an opportunity to use French — much more than I could have imagined when I was learning the language at school.
I would like to share a few of my experiences with you. When I was 18 years old, I went to France through a university exchange program. That was really an unexpected opportunity, and I was surprised to see that I could be successful and to what extent the program equipped me with basic skills to succeed. After that, the realization that I could be successful opened many doors to me.
[English]
I don't know if you guys had this, but does anybody remember your mid-20s life crisis where you just really don't know what you want to do? When I had mine, I took my Suzuki Sidekick and drove to the East Coast of Canada.
[Translation]
I stuck with my buddy until I completely ran out of money. On my way back home, I went through a small village called Mont-Tremblant. It was so beautiful! I parked my car and told myself that I would work there over the winter.
[English]
Like I said, I had no money, so there were no hotel rooms in my future. I was just camping in the bush on the side of the road.
[Translation]
It was November, and it was really cold. Since I had learned French, it took me two days to not only find a job, but also a place to live.
[English]
It wasn't just any job, either. I was bartending at the Fairmont Hotel, so it worked out really well. I got to meet some great people and got to snowboard just about every day. It was a huge fantasy for me.
[Translation]
When I went back to Manitoba, I started working for Canadian Parents for French. That job has provided me with a number of opportunities. I participated in a project of the Société franco-manitobaine called À vélo pour mon drapeau. A group of about 30 of us gathered to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Franco-Manitoban flag. We rode our bikes from Winnipeg to Ottawa. It was a really great experience. I also had an opportunity to volunteer at the Jeux de la francophonie canadienne, and I took another bike trip as part of the Vélo Santé-Prairies event to promote access to health services in French.
Later on, I participated in the Odyssée program. I was a language monitor in Tracadie-Sheila, New Brunswick, where I helped young francophones learn English. I then returned to Manitoba to work at an immersion school — once again as a language monitor — and help young anglophones learn French.
I can now say that French is part of my daily life thanks to the opportunities I have had to use the language in real life, outside the classroom.
[English]
French for Life is a promotional tool for Manitoban students, parents and educators. It was created in 2007 with input from immersion and core French educational experts. It has three main facets. It has in-class presentations for students and parents. It has promotional videos and booklets, as well as a website.
It is facilitated by Canadian Parents for French, so it is a project of Canadian Parents for French that is made possible through funding from the French Second-Language Revitalization Fund, which is a federal-provincial agreement. It would not exist without that partnership. That is a very valuable tool for us in Manitoba in terms of French second-language education. In Manitoba alone, that fund funds over 100 projects, not just in the city but in communities throughout the province. It's really important in Manitoba to help rural and northern communities access quality programs.
In Manitoba, we're experiencing an all-time high in French immersion enrolment, and that is a very positive thing for us. I personally have delivered hundreds of presentations to thousands of French immersion and basic French students. These presentations are still in high demand. The goal of the presentations is, first of all, to encourage students to put effort into learning the language. It's not something that's just going to happen on its own. It's not enough to come to school and to fill a chair. These students need to make a decision that this is important for them, and then they need to go out into the real world and they need to pursue that dream.
It also highlights the real opportunities that exist in this world for those who make that choice, and it serves to connect those students with those opportunities throughout their lives.
Now, in this whole thing, French for Life also works with parents. The decision to educate your child in a language that you do not understand is very challenging for parents. They have questions. French for Life is an opportunity to work with parents, to answer those questions and to ensure that they are comfortable with that decision.
One thing that is important for us in Manitoba is ensuring that our students have access to quality programs. If parents and students do not believe that their educational experience is going to put them in a position to be able to participate in the culture of the language they are learning, then they are going to quit. It is very simple. In the words of John Ralston Saul, "Language is a bag filled with culture. Without culture, the bag is empty.'' That's important.
In Manitoba, we have recently been focusing on a communicative approach to language learning. That's where we put more emphasis on the ability to have authentic conversations than we maybe have had in the past. That is a priority for us because it allows the language to become real.
Promotion is important, and that's what French for Life is. The fact that these programs exist for students doesn't necessarily mean that they will participate in them. They might prefer to watch TV just because they're teenagers, and that's okay. But the idea of going and actually speaking to them and being real with them is very valuable and encouraging for them to really participate in these programs.
[Translation]
I will stop here, and we will continue this conversation. Thank you. I now yield the floor to you.
The Chair: Yes, we will be able to continue the conversation with some questions.
Danielle Lamothe, Executive Director, French for the Future: French for the Future is committed to promoting French among students in Grades 7 to 12. Up until Grade 7, parents make most of the decisions. From Grade 7 on, children start having a say in their education, and that is where we focus our effort.
We have four programs that reflect the objectives of French for the Future. Together, they reach more than 20,000 Canadian teenagers every year.
The first program is called Franconnexion Sessions. It consists of a tool kit that is available free of charge to teachers who commit to providing a Franconnexion Session to their students. The kit can be adapted to the students' level of French, and to the session length chosen by the teacher. A session can last an entire day or a quick 30 minutes.
A Franconnexion Session provides a number of options. The kit includes quizzes on a variety of topics, such as hockey or French expressions. It features first-hand accounts from bilingual individuals on their bilingualism projects, posters with a lesson plan, many suggested activities, and ideas to involve the community in the event taking place at the school.
In fiscal year 2014-2015, nearly 400 Franconnexion Sessions were held at Canadian schools. That number is divided between immersion and core French schools. Some sessions are held at francophone schools, but the program is not intended for francophones, it is rather intended for francophiles. We may be talking about an intimate group of 25 students or about very large sessions, such as the one held in the Durham region with hundreds of participants. It is a simple way for the teacher and the school to promote French and to use the language outside the classroom. It is a way to set grammar rules aside and celebrate French by living in it.
The second program I will tell you about involves local forums, which are held in 16 Canadian cities and have an average attendance of 200 students per forum. The forum is an all-day activity, conducted entirely in French. It brings together immersion students and their francophone peers, as well as students from core French programs. There are performances, workshops on a variety of topics, and improv competitions. Zumba classes have been provided in French, and bilingual individuals have given first-hand accounts.
The forum aims to create a francophone space where French is once again taken out of the classroom. The objectives are to build bridges between francophones and francophiles, to facilitate dialogue, and to encourage young people to continue their studies in French.
We also have a program called the National Essay Contest. Every year, we receive more than 400 essays on a specific topic, which changes yearly. The participants have to write an essay in order to share more than $200,000 in scholarships awarded by eight Canadian universities. The scholarships are intended for French language programs or French immersion programs. Their value ranges from $1,000 to $12,000 over four years at the University of Ottawa. The objective is once again to encourage young people to continue their studies in French at the post-secondary level.
Our smallest program, but one we feel has the biggest impact, is the National Ambassador Youth Forum, NAYF. It brings together 30 Grade 11 students and is held in a different city every year. The forum provides training in communication and leadership. All expenses are covered by French for the Future. The NAYF is a five-day forum, and its goal is to train ambassadors of the French language. The students are francophones and francophiles enrolled in immersion and core French programs. They come from across the country and represent the Canadian mosaic. In 2014, 30 per cent of our participants had French as a third or fourth language.
Together, the students experience a jam-packed week of workshops, recreation and cultural activities. Throughout the week, they have training in communication and public speaking. They discuss official bilingualism issues in Canada, attend a simulated session of Parliament and truly immerse themselves in the francophone culture of their host community. Everything is done in French. This summer, the program will be held in Moncton, New Brunswick, from August 12 to 17.
Before leaving the NAYF, each participant must commit to organize at least three activities in their own community to promote French. So far, former ambassadors have organized Franconnexion Sessions at their schools and made classroom presentations on their personal experiences. They have written articles that have been published in their local newspapers and sent letters to their MPs. An ambassador from 2012 even organized a francophone quidditch league in Alberta. Those activities truly reflect their passions and their own communities.
We believe that those students are the best people to promote French. When a 17-year-old ambassador goes into a classroom to talk about bilingualism, the message is received differently by his or her peers than when it comes from a teacher or an adult encouraging them to keep up the good work.
Through those four unique and distinct programs, French for the Future manages to reach many young Canadians. However, despite the successes, communication with teachers and students who qualify for our programs is not easy. The rules and challenges vary from one province to another, and even from one community to another.
Thanks to key partnerships with other associations, such as the Canadian Association of Immersion Teachers, the Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers and Canadian Parents for French, we can extend our reach, but we still have a lot of work to do to ensure that the entire country knows about our message and the opportunities we can provide.
Deborah Morrison, Executive Director, Society for Educational Visits and Exchanges in Canada: Thank you for giving me an opportunity to tell you about the work SEVEC does, and more particularly about the role it plays by supporting and encouraging second-language learning in Canada.
[English]
SEVEC was formed in 1981 as a result of a merger of two longer-standing exchange organizations, the oldest of which began in 1936. Today, although SEVEC is not the only domestic youth exchange provider, it is the largest one, "travelling" up to 4,500 youth and their chaperones and has the largest focus on linguistic exchanges. Roughly 45 per cent of our groups and 60 per cent of the total number of youth participants are involved with bilingual exchanges. Travel to Quebec City during the two weeks of Carnival is the third highest travel period for us, with an average of one third of all SEVEC participants gathering there in any given year.
Demand for exchange opportunities and the ratio of those seeking linguistic exchanges has remained constant. In any given year, SEVEC receives between 35 to 40 per cent more applicants than it can accommodate. I will come back shortly to the issue of groups that aren't accommodated.
Unlike many exchange programs, SEVEC focuses on pairing groups of youth together for a reciprocal exchange, meaning two groups of 10 or more agree to host their twin for one week and travel to be hosted by the same group at some other time. Typically, these exchanges are organized by teachers, although we also work with community organizations, notably Canadian Parents for French. You can see how important they are to linguistic duality in Canada.
Albert Einstein is attributed as saying, "Learning is experience. Everything else is just information.'' You have heard many presenters over the course of your proceedings talk about the need to give second-language students applied purpose to motivate them to continue with their studies and about the need to create authentic learning environments where they can build on their language competency, especially oral competencies. SEVEC provides the essential immersive experience, not just for one week but for two, in a relationship that builds and grows over many months leading up to their weeks together. These exchanges create powerful emotional connections that change youth attitudes not just about the value of learning a second language but also fostering a deep understanding and affinity to the values and needs of the second-language communities they visit.
What is interesting about the SEVEC experience is that it doesn't just benefit the youth learner but has a much broader community impact involving the families hosting students, other students in classrooms in their schools and oftentimes the employees and volunteers working to support the activities they undertake in communities. Everyone becomes a participant in testing their second-language skills and everyone learns something. For the youth, they become surrounded by people committed to encouraging second-language education. They see others being understood in their second language, however awkwardly spoken, inspiring them to have more courage and more confidence to keep trying themselves. Over time, the two groups and all that support them stop being the anglophone and the francophone group and become one exchange group.
[Translation]
In recent years, the emergence of social media has added an important aspect to communications before, during and after the exchanges. We all know that English dominates social media, but we feel that social media communications are informal enough for our young participants to feel comfortable getting involved. The relationships they forge would motivate them to continue to learn their second language long after the exchange.
[English]
SEVEC provides a successful model and strong support for language education. I have provided you with some data on long-term impacts in my briefing to the committee. The biggest problem that SEVEC faces is that we aren't doing more exchanges and we aren't reaching everyone. As an organization, we recently looked at trends and can confirm that many of our obstacles parallel those cited by other presenters here.
First, exchanges, particularly at the high school level, are declining. School boards are becoming more stringent about many issues, but most difficult to overcome is their need for students to spend the requisite hours inside the classroom to meet provincial standards. Even when we have school boards keen to support exchanges, it takes a special kind of teacher willing to undertake the extra administrative work and supervisory responsibilities. SEVEC is seeking to expand its capacity to offer more training and support for newer, less experienced teachers through videos, webinars and mentorships.
[Translation]
At times, even when we have groups that are motivated and ready to go, it is difficult for us to find groups to pair them with. More specifically, SEVEC has difficulty serving official language minority communities. Many of our francophone communities are looking for exchange opportunities with francophone schools in Quebec, but most of those schools are only interested in pairing with anglophone institutions. We might have an opportunity to help strengthen our official language minority communities and to encourage more bilingual exchanges with francophone communities outside Quebec. However, we are seeing some resistance from the organizers, as they are concerned that the level of French in French immersion programs may not be of the same calibre because of how dominant English is, even within those communities.
[English]
SEVEC is also exploring the potential of virtual exchanges, particularly for younger students in Grades 3 to 7 who are not yet eligible for subsidized travel through our program. Here, students could be connected via Skype, smartboards or other technologies available in their classrooms to work on projects that share information about their communities and cultures and then collaborate on a project related to a common curriculum outcome. This type of program could provide significant benefits to second-language teachers seeking to provide an added authentic cultural experience within their classroom program.
As you've heard many times, Grades 9 and 10 are indeed the critical times when students are going to decide whether or not to continue pursuing their second language or take other courses. This is also the time when they are presented with literally a whole world of other travel and exchange opportunities. It is a challenge even to convince their teachers that an experience within Canada should top their priority list.
SEVEC's response here has been to begin working towards a strategy that would create more thematic exchanges that focus on exploring global issues, like social justice, the environment and community development, within a Canadian context. I see this as a doubly effective strategy for our linguistic exchanges and an excellent opportunity for immersion students who are studying multiple courses in their second language. Students would be meeting and exchanging around a shared interest or theme, likely linked to another course besides their language course.
Finally, the value of having a second language as an essential part of becoming better global citizens would be reinforced and perhaps be another tipping point in encouraging them to continue with their second-language studies.
[Translation]
In closing, we feel that language exchanges provide a unique learning experience that helps change young people's perspective on second-language learning, so that they no longer see it as just a school obligation, but as something they want to do for themselves.
[English]
We know federal investments in these types of initiatives would be welcomed by Canadians. In a survey conducted earlier this year by SEVEC exploring Canadian attitudes towards youth travel and exchanges, over 95 per cent were supportive of any efforts that assisted youth in travelling and experiencing more of their country, with 87 per cent believing it was a good way to learn another language and 71 per cent believing that travel to another part of the country should be a requirement of their formal education. It's interesting to note that Quebecers were even more emphatic on this last point: 93 per cent felt it should be a requirement. Half of all respondents believed that the federal government should be the largest contributor.
Although it would be wonderful to think we could provide that experience to every Canadian child at some point in their educational life, we know it is more practical to explore other ways of replicating this type of experience in more localized and affordable ways. The best way to improve second-language education in our view is to make it more relevant, providing authentic experiences where they can see its value and importance in understanding their own communities and being more engaged as citizens. I believe the federal government can play a key role in facilitating this by providing support to these types of cross-community immersive activities through resource development, online network development, teacher training and a continued commitment to travel and exchange programming.
The Chair: Thank you very much.
[Translation]
We will begin the question period with the committee's deputy chair, Senator Fortin-Duplessis, followed by Senator Poirier.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: I want to welcome all three of you. Your briefs are very informative about the important work you are doing. My first question is for Michael Hudon from French for Life.
Your organization promotes the teaching of French as a second language across Manitoba, both in immersion and core French programs. Do you feel that French as a second language programs have enough visibility? Have a lot of students enrolled in French programs recently?
Mr. Hudon: I think we are making a major effort to ensure that all parents know about the programs available in Manitoba. At French for Life, we even produce posters through an outreach program. People are referred to the website, where they can find information about the programs available to their children. That is an important aspect of program promotion.
We are happy that the participation rate is currently very high — the highest it has been in Manitoba's history in terms of French as a second language programs. We are now mostly focusing on new Canadians. We want to make sure they feel comfortable enrolling their children in a French as a second language program.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: I have another quick question for you. What tools do teachers need to make French as second language programs effective and stimulating?
Mr. Hudon: As previously mentioned, it is important for them to provide their students with authentic experiences. It is often necessary to leave the classroom behind, so that students can enjoy some wonderful experiences. In Manitoba, the Festival du Voyageur is the biggest francophone festival in Western Canada. That is a unique opportunity for teachers to have their students participate in an extremely valuable activity.
There is also the Cercle Molière, a troupe of francophone actors. Those kinds of experiences make French more real for the students. It is not just a matter of academics, but also of culture and life.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: Madam Chair, I have a quick question for Ms. Morrison. May I ask it?
The Chair: Yes, go ahead.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: Ms. Morrison, I listened carefully when you explained how your two main programs work. Have you set up any mechanisms to assess the skills and competencies students develop through the exchanges?
Ms. Morrison: Unfortunately, we have not. We conduct surveys and, immediately afterwards, we have exchanges. The students say that their French has improved, but we do not have a formal method. I submitted to you the long- term survey we carried out. I think it is important to implement mechanisms to measure the program's success following the exchange in terms of whether the students decide to continue their post-secondary education. We currently do not have any such mechanisms.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: Thank you.
Senator Poirier: My first question is for Michael Hudon. You talked about the challenge of promoting French among young people, so that they understand the importance and the benefits of learning a second language, as you did. You also talked about parents and students. Do your efforts mostly focus on parents — so that they enroll their children in French immersion as soon as they start school — or on students when they must decide whether or not to continue learning a second language?
Mr. Hudon: We focus on parents as much as we do on students. We inform parents about the available programs as soon as their children enter kindergarten.
However, we feel that children can make their own decisions around Grade 7. A few years ago, we made a documentary with Manitobans entitled French for Opportunities and Careers, which explains the usefulness of French in their everyday lives. The documentary was aimed at students in Grades 7 to 9 to encourage them to continue learning French in high school.
That is a very important transition period. The documentary's objective was to encourage students to continue learning French throughout their lives. It is an important transition phase.
Senator Poirier: That brings me to my second question, which is for Ms. Lamothe. You said that parents decide whether or not to enrol their children in a French immersion school from Grade 1 to Grade 7. Students decide whether or not they want to continue with the program once they reach Grade 7. Do students who have never been in a French immersion program have the option to learn French once they get to Grade 7?
Ms. Lamothe: That depends on the province or the school board. Second-language learning is a matter that varies from one province to another — be it Alberta, Ontario or another province. We have no influence on programs provided by school boards and ministries of education. Our mission is to support students and teachers. A young woman, a new Canadian, who was an ambassador last year comes to mind. She arrived in Canada in Grade 8. She attended an English school in Toronto, but she was passionate about French. She started a French club at her school, and she spoke French incredibly well. When students are passionate, they will work as hard as they need to.
Of course, she is a remarkable girl with a passion for French, and we have no influence on the programs provided by school boards.
Senator Poirier: I imagine that students in immersion throughout their high school years would speak French as well as Mr. Hudon does once they graduate. Do you have any statistics that show how many students continue to learn French in college or university and that indicate if they did well at school or had difficulties?
Ms. Lamothe: That is really something we discuss with our partner associations, as it is very difficult to gather data. Even school boards cannot tell us how many students, of those who were in immersion, have chosen immersion programs for their postsecondary education.
Students are under no obligation to inform their high school of their post-secondary education choices. We often talk to our partners from the French as a second language network about finding a way to obtain more information. How can we find out what the students ended up doing? Did they start a career in French? Was it useful for them or not? The only way for us to know is through surveys. It is clear that speaking two languages has never hurt anyone, but some statistics would be useful.
Senator Poirier: Do you have any statistics showing that students attending an immersion school or parents who decide to enrol their child in an immersion school do so because of similar experiences in their community? Do francophone family ties, relationships with native francophones and similar things have an influence?
Ms. Lamothe: I know that Canadian Parents for French has done research in Alberta and British Columbia, which have the highest French immersion rates, and that those rates continue to rise. New Canadians are often the ones who choose immersion, and probably not because they have had a francophone experience. They came to a country with two official languages and decided that their children would speak both of them. It is very difficult for us to obtain that information.
Senator Poirier: Thank you very much.
The Chair: Mr. Hudon, would you like to add anything in response to the senator's question?
Mr. Hudon: We have a late immersion program in Manitoba. Students can enrol in the program in Grade 7, but it is not very well developed. I was involved in a late immersion program when I worked at the school, but I think there is only one in Manitoba. Some schools also try to accommodate students as much as possible. Encouraging school boards to make the late immersion program available would be a more effective way to truly integrate new Canadians into French immersion. It's important because newcomers want to participate in the program, but it is already too late if their children are 10 years old, and that is a real pity.
Senator McIntyre: I want to thank all three of you for your presentations.
Mr. Hudon, I understand that your organization's promotional activities focus on students, parents, teachers and immigrants at the same time. Tell us a bit about those promotional activities. Are they all similar, or do they differ from one another?
Mr. Hudon: At French for Life, we do not necessarily create our own programs for students, but we want to ensure that students participate in existing programs. Our role mainly consists in encouraging people to participate by ensuring that everyone has the information they need.
We tell students about exchange programs available to them and about educational workloads. For instance, in Manitoba, we have a six-month exchange program between Manitoba and Quebec. A student visits Quebec for three months, and then a Quebec student goes to Manitoba for three months.
The interesting thing is that, after three years, the degree of improvement is really amazing. We worked with the Government of Manitoba on promoting that exchange and, after two years, the participation levels increased from 4 students to 23 students. That shows how important promotion is for participation. That's ultimately what we want to do with students. It is a good example.
When it comes to immigration, we created the document LIFE (Linking Immigrants to French and English) in Manitoba. The idea was to give newcomers an overview of programs available in Manitoba. We created that document in English and in French. Perhaps the document should be available in Chinese, Portuguese and Spanish. In your study, it may be worthwhile to look into whether the way funding is requested for these types of projects overly emphasizes English or French, so as not to miss the target we are really trying to reach with newcomers to Canada. I encourage you to explore that idea.
Senator McIntyre: Thank you, Mr. Hudon. Ms. Lamothe, I understand that two programs have been created by your organization — Local Forums and the National Ambassador Youth Forum. Are you satisfied with the results achieved by those two initiatives your organization launched?
Ms. Lamothe: We always want to accommodate more young people and reach more participants. Local Forums gave rise to French for the Future. Its founders, including John Ralston Saul, came up with the idea. A forum in Toronto was held first, and other forums were later added. However, when we host 200 students, we have to feed them and have a room to accommodate them. That's very expensive. We would like to host more and more forums. We organized 16 of them this year. But if we are unable to convince private sector companies that it is really in their interest to support this kind of organization, we will never be able to provide the experience to more students.
That is a bit disappointing because we know there are cities where we could bring together 200 students. Some places have plenty of young people in immersion programs. We have a forum in Vancouver, and we now have three in Alberta. It's a wonderful experience for those who can participate. The teachers are very satisfied. All the feedback we receive tells us the experience is a good one, but how can we make it available to more students? The same goes for the National Ambassador Youth Forum. Thirty students participate, but we pay for everything: travel, accommodation and meals. We would like to be able to do that for more than 30 kids. It would be great to be able to bring together 60 students who could promote French all over the country as a result of this activity, but that is expensive. Canadian Heritage is very supportive of us, and that is really nice, but there is a limit to what we can do. It is really difficult to encourage the private sector to support these kinds of efforts.
Senator McIntyre: Ms. Morrison, does your society work in partnership with other organizations? Are there any exchange programs for second-language teachers?
Ms. Morrison: Not at this time, but I think that is a good idea. We would like to work with teachers to make them aware of the exchange process. The best way to do that is by creating an exchange for teachers.
[English]
Senator McIntyre: Do you work with other organizations?
Ms. Morrison: Yes.
Senator McIntyre: Such as?
Ms. Morrison: Canadian Parents for French organizes groups all the time. We work with Girl Guides, Scouts, Cadets.
[Translation]
Most of the organizers are teachers.
Senator Chaput: My first question is for Michael Hudon. You answered a question from one of my colleagues earlier, and you said that it would be a good idea for the committee to look into promotion in other languages as part of its study. We are currently considering best practices in second-language learning, and we are obviously talking about Canada's two official languages.
When you mentioned other languages, such as Mandarin, was the idea to reach out to immigrant parents who speak Mandarin and who would be informed, in their language, of what is involved for their children to learn French? Is that what you meant?
Mr. Hudon: Exactly. The idea is just to make sure that parents understand the issues related to a bilingual education for their children. If we communicate only in English or in French with those parents, they obviously won't be able to understand what is available. Basically, it is important for those parents to be comfortable with the decision. It is not just a matter of enrolling their children in a program. Parents support their children throughout the process, and they can pull them out of the program at any time. For the program to be successful, it is important to make sure that the parents are well informed and, yes, perhaps we could communicate with them in their language.
Senator Chaput: My next question is for Ms. Lamothe. Ms. Lamothe, I am very interested in your National Ambassador Youth Forum. You were already asked about it. What happens after the forum ends, when the students are excited and full of enthusiasm? Can you keep in touch with them? Do they become volunteers for your organization?
Ms. Lamothe: As I mentioned, the students always commit to at least three activities. They go through the training during the summer and, once the school year starts, they become ambassadors for French for the Future.
During that first year, we're in constant contact with them; they tell us about the session they have planned and ask us for materials. They have to send us the details once they've completed their activity, and then we also follow up to see where they are with the activities they have committed to organizing. So, in that first year, we're basically communicating with them all the time. We have a small Facebook group where young people share their ideas, success stories and challenges. They're quite active, especially after the first semester, before they start applying to university.
We also have a youth advisory committee made up of former ambassadors, so we are in contact with a group of ambassadors every year. We ask them what they think about different topics for the essay contest, for instance, and they tell us their views. And, every year, we always have five or six facilitators who help us organize activities, and we try to have at least two former ambassadors as facilitators.
From surveying former ambassadors, we know that at least 60 per cent of them take French in university. After the first year, though, it is really up to them, and we do lose some.
Senator Chaput: You aren't able to reach them because they are no longer in the picture?
Ms. Lamothe: Exactly. We have email addresses, but young people don't use them. Some are glad to help us however they can, and others, not so much.
Senator Chaput: My last question is for Ms. Morrison.
[English]
You have talked about virtual exchanges. I believe it is a new program, if I understood correctly.
[Translation]
Is it for students, or is it also for teachers and perhaps, eventually, parents?
Ms. Morrison: It's primarily for students who are younger than the ones we work with. Some children begin learning a second language in Grade 3. So there may be some opportunity there, and we already receive requests from teachers. They want to know whether we can arrange virtual exchange pairings because they don't have the time or the know- how to organize a real exchange. In addition, with respect to teacher challenges, we would like to develop online activities to build a stronger network for teachers and program mentors to make things easier for all exchange organizers. This year, we created a portal for parents.
When I joined SEVEC last year, I noticed that contact with parents was a bit light. As my colleagues mentioned, that's a very important component. Access to parents gives us an opportunity to learn more about children's experiences. And we only started doing that this year.
Senator Chaput: Would that be one of your recommendations?
Ms. Morrison: Yes, absolutely.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: My question is for all three witnesses and picks up on what they said earlier, as well as on Senator Chaput's question.
Are you aware of any second-language learning requests for a language other than English or French?
Mr. Hudon: From an educational standpoint, maintaining the first language is very important to second-language learning. As far as newcomers are concerned, learning a second language is not just a matter of forgetting the first. In Manitoba, students can earn what is called a heritage language credit, to show that they are maintaining their first language.
Manitoba also offers bilingual programs in German and Ukrainian, in communities where those language populations are sizable. We also have second-language learning programs for Japanese and Spanish. So, to answer your question, yes, that demand does exist.
Senator Maltais: I'd like to say two things, first, and then, I'll have a question for the three of you.
Mr. Hudon, I have a hard time believing that you studied French in France, since you don't use any anglicisms even though the French use them all the time. Anyone who's been to France can attest to that. And the proof is that, right now, there is a young man from Saint-Raymond-de-Portneuf by the name of David Thibault — you don't get any more French than that — appearing on the most popular TV talent show in France — in Paris, excuse me. What show, you ask. None other than "The Voice.'' We have a similar show in Quebec but we call it "La Voix.'' So we use the native language here, as opposed to the language of Molière.
Ms. Morrison, you talked about how challenging it is for schools to offer exchanges, and I understand what you're saying. Organizing an exchange is work. It doesn't appear on page 27 of the collective agreement. We have exchanges in Quebec. Like Senator Fortin-Duplessis, I live in Quebec City. All you have to do is go down to Old Quebec in the summertime to see groups of schoolchildren paired up with francophones, whether guides or scouts, and they are all between the ages of 12 and 16. Don't talk to the schools but, rather, to parent committees, Kiwanis clubs and Richelieu clubs for the support you need. School, don't forget, ends on June 23, so the discussion stops there. Once January hits, don't ask them to do any extra work to organize exchanges; it's way too much work for them.
I'm going to wrap up with a question for all three witnesses. Today is April 20, 2015. What would motivate a 14- year-old in each of your cities to enrol in a French-language school? What would you say to encourage them?
The Chair: Please specify whether you're talking about French-as-a-first-language immersion programs or French- as-a-second-language immersion programs.
Senator Maltais: I call all of it French. I'd like to ask the witness what she has to say to a young person to get them to enrol in an immersion or other program to learn a second language, which, in her case, is French.
Ms. Morrison: I can answer that, because I did my studies in French but attended English-language schools my whole life. I took French in school, but it wasn't until I got a job in Montreal's cultural sector — where I had to use French to understand culture, history and the like — that I learned French as an adult.
I had a 4-year-old at the time, and it was with her, that I started taking French classes. I didn't want her to have the same trouble I did.
Senator Maltais: I'm going to stop you there. I'm not asking about what motivated you —
Ms. Morrison: No, you're interested in what motivates my daughter. That's what I was getting to. She didn't have a choice when she was younger, but she did when we moved from Manitoba to Ottawa. That's when she made the choice. As I said, the reason was simply that she looked at life from a global perspective. She was well aware that being fluent in two languages was only the first step. She knew she had to learn a third and a fourth. She understood that it was better for her to keep taking French and Spanish classes, because she really wanted to be able to communicate anywhere in the world.
Senator Maltais: She's a citizen of the world. And what reasons do young people give you, Ms. Lamothe, for taking French immersion?
Ms. Lamothe: I met a 14-year-old at the Canada Club of Toronto. I was sitting next to him. His name was Michael and he had done his schooling in French, through immersion. When he got to Grade 9, he wanted to register for a French-language school so he could speak French with his friends. Obviously, he'd never attended a French-language school in Toronto, but he made the decision to go to French school. He went through tests and interviews and was accepted. What motivated him was a desire to be in a French-speaking environment. He wanted that experience.
Young people have different reasons. For one, it may be a movie that they saw, and for someone else, it may be a trip they took or someone they admire. Everyone's motivation is different.
And that's why it's in our best interest to give them a good understanding of what's available here, in Canada, as far as their options go. There are essay contests. A lot of young people want to go to the University of Ottawa or Université Sainte-Anne who don't even know that they can get a scholarship, because we aren't able to get the message out to everyone. It's really important to give them all the information they need to make an informed choice.
Senator Maltais: Mr. Hudon, not all young people have your drive. What is motivating the young people you work with to learn French today?
Mr. Hudon: Young people are motivated by the fact that an entire world is theirs to discover and that learning French opens up that world to them.
Specifically, it has to do with friendship. That's what matters. They want to be able to communicate with people, build lifelong friendships. I would say that, for them, beyond career aspirations, beyond the desire to study people's cognitive skills, friendship is what drives young people to learn French as a second language.
Senator Maltais: I'd like to end by congratulating all three of you because what you're doing isn't easy. Motivating young people is a daily challenge. You may want to consider changing the name of your organization from French for Manitoba's to French for the World, because French around the world isn't faring as well as we think. And the best example of that is Molière's own country.
The Chair: On behalf of the committee, I'd like to thank the three of you for your participation today. Your organizations work incredibly hard to promote both of Canada's official languages. Thank you for all that you do to enhance the French-speaking community for young Canadians.
Honourable senators, during our second hour, we will be discussing the economic benefits of bilingualism, and we are pleased to welcome representatives from the Conference Board of Canada. Joining us is Alan Arcand, Associate Director for Municipal Studies; and Pedro Antunes, Deputy Chief Economist and Executive Director of Forecasting and Analysis. Welcome to both of you.
In June 2013, the Conference Board of Canada put out a report entitled Canada, Bilingualism and Trade. I will now ask Mr. Arcand to give his presentation, after which, senators will ask questions.
[English]
Alan Arcand, Associate Director, Centre for Municipal Studies, The Conference Board of Canada: First of all, thanks for the opportunity to come here today. I'm going to briefly talk about the study you just mentioned, but beforehand I want to acknowledge the people we prepared the report for, the funders of the study. The three organizations are RDÉE Canada, the Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation, CEDEC, and Industry Canada.
The key question that the study tried to answer was: What are the main benefits of bilingualism? Our paper argues that one of the main benefits is increased trade.
If you look at economic theory going back hundreds of years, it's widely agreed among all economists that there are gains from trade. Countries that engage in trade are more prosperous than countries that do not engage in trade. Moreover, the literature also shows countries that share a common language are more likely to trade with one another than countries that don't.
Basically, there's a cost in trying to make a transaction with another country where you don't share a language. You have to do one of three things. You need to learn the other language, the other person needs to learn the language, or you need to hire a translator. All those costs, everything else being equal, would reduce trade.
In essence, our paper focuses on this relationship between trade and language. Through empirical analysis, we wanted to see if knowledge of the French language in Canada boosts bilateral trade between Canada and other French- speaking countries.
For the purposes of this study, we divided the country into groups: provinces where at least 30 per cent of the population knows both English and French, and provinces and territories that don't meet the threshold. In essence, two provinces meet the threshold of 30 per cent knowledge of both official languages — Quebec and New Brunswick. The rest of the provinces are grouped into the other group. We have a bilingual Canada and what we refer to in the report as a less bilingual Canada.
If you look at the trade data, it shows very clearly that bilingual Canada trades more with French-speaking countries than less bilingual Canada. In fact, in 2011, 3.4 per cent of bilingual Canada's exports — that's Quebec and New Brunswick — went to French-speaking countries. That compares to 1.7 per cent for Canada as a whole. Likewise, in terms of imports, 10.6 per cent of bilingual Canada's imports originated from French-speaking countries. That compares to 4 per cent for the country as a whole. In other words, bilingual Canada's exports to French-speaking countries are two times higher than the national average, and bilingual Canada's imports from French-speaking countries are 2.5 times larger than the national average. So it definitely bears out in the data.
Based on these numbers, you might come up with the hypothesis that knowledge of the French language boosts trade between bilingual Canada and other French-speaking countries. In order to test this hypothesis, we used a tool that's very common in the international trade literature. It's called the gravity model. It's named as such because it draws its inspiration from the actual gravity equation. I'm not going to give you the equation right now, but two factors determine the force of gravity: the size of objects and the distance between the two objects. What's interesting is that if you replace these data with international trade data, you get a similar relationship. So the level of trade between two countries is determined largely by the size of the two countries' economies and the distance between them. The bigger the countries, the more trade you get, and the closer they are in distance, the more trade you get.
However, the literature has also shown other variables affect trade between countries, and one of those other variables common in literature is spoken language. The literature has shown time and time again that spoken language is positively related to trade. Countries that speak the same language trade more with one another than countries that don't.
In essence, there are two main barriers to trade — distance and language.
Looking at our gravity equation, we find the same exact thing. For bilingual Canada, the variable in our equation for French as a spoken language is statistically significant, whereas for the rest of Canada it is not. Our equation agrees with the literature that French language plays an important role for bilingual Canada and its relationship with other French-speaking countries.
In essence, our gravity equation says that bilingual Canada's trade with French-speaking countries is about 65 per cent higher because of proficiency in French. The knowledge of French boosts trade with French-speaking countries by 65 per cent.
If you look at a meta-analysis of the literature, it's very similar. The literature finds on average that sharing a common language boosts trade by 44 per cent. In level terms, this shows that in 2011, for example, exports and imports between bilingual Canada — Quebec and New Brunswick — and other French-speaking countries were, on average, $3.3 billion higher because of the knowledge of French.
Of course, these results shouldn't be much of a surprise because it's pretty clear in the literature that common language plays an important role in determining the level of trade between countries. It shows that bilingual trade is one mechanism through which the country can benefit from Canada's status as a bilingual country.
The Chair: Thank you very much.
Mr. Antunes, do you wish to add anything?
Pedro Antunes, Deputy Chief Economist and Executive Director, Forecasting and Analysis, The Conference Board of Canada: Maybe a couple of points. At the Conference Board of Canada, Alan and I work together.
[Translation]
I can speak French. We work together. We've done a number of studies on bilingualism and the economic contribution of the French language. That's a very important point. It's a clear advantage that we can see in bilingual provinces, provinces that are able to increase their trade with those countries. That's just one benefit of bilingualism, of course. I'd say that another way to look at that relationship is to view human capital in what we call the production function. Bilingualism, the ability to speak both languages, increases human capital. A number of statistical linkages are apparent: we see that bilingual people are more educated. But if we consider strictly bilingualism, we see that it adds to human capital, enhances economic potential, and the result is greater prosperity than in a non-bilingual region.
The Chair: Thank you very much. That was very informative. You've certainly given the committee another perspective to think about.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: Welcome to both of you. I see that you do a lot more than just economic forecasting. In your research and reports, you examine all the socio-economic factors that make a community dynamic, prosperous and attractive as far as new opportunities and skilled workers are concerned. What did you observe in municipalities with a large bilingual population? Did you see any specific trends in those regions? Does it have a significant impact on job creation, average income and job stability?
[English]
Mr. Arcand: Of course, our paper focused on the benefits of increased trade. It's also pretty clear in the literature that on an individual basis, as Pedro was alluding to earlier, learning a second language is part of a human capital accumulation. It's pretty clear in the literature that people in Canada who speak both languages tend to earn a higher salary.
As for the attractiveness, it reminds me of another paper showing that one of the benefits of bilingualism in New Brunswick has been the attraction of certain industries to the province. For instance, the customer contact centre industry has done really well in New Brunswick because of its bilingual status. That's one area where you can see a benefit.
[Translation]
Mr. Antunes: When we look at economic growth — you talked about municipalities — that's very important. The drivers of economic growth are now in cities, and it's very important to examine that aspect. If we look at the sectors and industries that have done well over the past 10 years — I know we hear a lot about the manufacturing sector and the goods sector — but it's really the service sector where we've seen economic growth happening for the past decade or more. Further to restructuring, the manufacturing sector has lost 500,000 to 600,000 jobs, but we've seen nearly equivalent gains in Canada's professional services sector. Those are well-paying jobs in what we call the knowledge economy. It comes back to the human capital component, and that includes French.
We examine the gains made in another document that we were asked to analyze, the one prepared by David Campbell and Pierre-Marcel Desjardins. They talk about the financial and insurance industries that have become established in New Brunswick thanks to bilingualism. The initiative came from entrepreneurs, themselves, who wanted access to that kind of skilled workforce in order to provide their services to the public. Where insurance companies made gains was in the external market, and the same is true of the financial sectors. This is a key economic driver for Canada. This is where we are competitive and where we have seen prosperity in recent years. It's important to make that clear and to be aware of that impact.
Senator Fortin-Duplessis: Thank you.
Senator Poirier: Thank you both for being here.
[English]
My first question is for Mr. Arcand. I'm curious: In the whole study we've heard a lot about French immersion, teaching our students and encouraging a second language or French to make sure that we can answer to a lot of the needs of Canadians in the workforce in the future. I'm from New Brunswick, so I'm from a province that's officially bilingual. I want to look more at the business industry sector. In your study, you mentioned the importance of it in trade and higher salaries. You mentioned three or four initiatives that would be key factors for people to encourage them to want to take that second language. Within government in New Brunswick, there is a lot within the system such that adults in the workforce have programs available to help them learn that second language.
Do you know if there has been any increase in the last 10 years or so within business and industry for companies to be able to offer that same initiative to their adult employees, specifically for going into more of a service sector than a manufacturing sector, like you were mentioning a while ago, to give another opportunity for an adult, maybe the second time around, to learn that second language?
Mr. Arcand: Our study didn't specifically go into that detail. From doing the study, I'm aware of research that shows that. Pedro mentioned that in the services sector, when you break down the data by industry, the importance of a common language increases as you move into a more complex industry. One thing we talk about at the Conference Board of Canada is that we should focus more on exporting services going forward. The empirical literature shows that the common language is even more important for the services sector. Communicating in a common language with another country becomes more important in the services sector than in the goods sector in our traditional industries. In that sense, yes, it's important; and it's going to be more important going forward that a bilingual workforce is there.
Senator Poirier: You're not aware if any of the companies or industries are doing it more today than they were 10 years ago or offering that.
Mr. Arcand: No, I do not.
Mr. Antunes: In general terms, I don't think we have been very good at guiding youth as to where the opportunities are in terms of employment prospects, et cetera. We have a workforce that is constrained in some parts of the country, in some regions and in some industries, yet we have an excess workforce of youth that aren't fitting into the labour market. Language may be part of that.
We listened a bit to the earlier panel. There was a lot of discussion about what motivates youth to do this. I'm not quite sure we're educating the youth in many ways, including their language skills.
In terms of professional language development for adults, I'm not sure if anything has changed there.
Senator Poirier: Is there anything that business or industry can do to help motivate youth to become bilingual by giving them information like you just gave us about salaries? Is there anything industry can do in the role of promoting it?
Mr. Antunes: I hate to pin this on industry. It is hard to know where the responsibility lies. I think industry would be motivated by the fact that they have a workforce that is restrained in terms of its growth. It's not because there are no new people coming into the workforce. It is because it is hard to replace the number of people retiring.
We know that 1.2 per cent of the workforce is retiring now on an annual basis. When we look at employment statistics saying that employment is growing by 1 per cent, behind that, another 1.2 per cent are leaving and have to be replaced.
Business is motivated to find qualified workers, but whether they're motivated on the language issue, I'm not sure. That would be part of that quality of the workforce piece.
The other question is this: Is business willing to invest today and wait three or four years for the worker to be qualified and to then be competing with other businesses to bring that worker in? It is a big investment for a company, and I'm not quite sure that they're willing to do that.
Senator Poirier: On your comments regarding the number of people leaving the industry, in recent months it was reported that for the first time in the history of New Brunswick there were more deaths than births last year. It's scary.
Mr. Antunes: In all the Atlantic provinces, that's the natural rate of increase. That is the other very real factor for the Atlantic provinces.
[Translation]
Senator Maltais: Good evening, gentlemen. Canada and the business community pay close attention to what the Conference Board of Canada has to say. I come from the business community and I know full well that, when the Conference Board of Canada issues an opinion, it means something.
I want to talk specifically about Quebec. It's the only province where the official language is French and the only province where more than 40 per cent of the population is bilingual. And the reason is quite simple. If people want to do business, they aren't going to do it with Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. They're going to deal with Ontario, the Maritime provinces, the New England border states, which are mostly English-speaking, even though it's always surprising to learn that French is spoken in those areas.
Business is changing. And the fact that the manufacturing sector has shed 500,000 to 600,000 jobs, as you mentioned, isn't unusual. Eventually, big industry has to modernize, and the population isn't decreasing; it's increasing.
The types of services you mentioned are the way of the future. Quebec, among others, provides services that are world renowned, such as aerospace, pharmacology, artistic creation and marketing.
The younger generations are increasingly moving towards the new markets opening up to them. We're getting ready to sign a free-trade agreement with the European Union. That doesn't really help us, though, since the language of the European Union is English. Although he is brilliant, the president will probably end up going crazy given the number of languages he has to deal with. I think the vast majority of Quebec's young people have understood that, despite the fact that reluctance persists in small pockets where nationalist ideology is strong, which we shouldn't even mention, because that isn't where the future lies.
Do you think that, over the next decade, the service industry will have to expand, potentially becoming an asset for the entire country?
Mr. Antunes: Absolutely. In fact, we believe it's a trend that will continue. It affects not just the sectors you mentioned, but also areas such as engineering, architecture, infrastructure and mining. We have a lot of skilled capacity in some traditional sectors. People often think of traditional industries such as mining and forestry as "old tech.'' But that isn't true. Those sectors attract considerable capital and are, in fact, "high-tech.'' The same goes for the manufacturing sector. Keep in mind that we can compete in the manufacturing sector. The sector doesn't have a huge workforce but, rather, one made up of experts in robotics and statistics who analyze production lines. That's the knowledge economy I was talking about.
Yes, that's where we can be competitive. You mentioned free trade with Europe. That agreement is different from the rest, because it's no longer a matter of removing and dismantling tariff barriers on goods; instead, the focus is on knowledge and opportunities to transfer knowledge and skills, having people whose skills are recognized in both regions so that they can work on service contracts in Europe. That's really the way of the future for Canada.
Senator Maltais: As far as Canada's free trade agreements with Europe, the U.S. and other countries are concerned, do you think it's an asset for Quebec when European multinationals set up offices in Montreal or Toronto, when French or German companies like ABB choose Quebec because they can work on cutting-edge technology in both languages?
Mr. Antunes: Yes, absolutely. Again, that isn't something we looked at specifically in our report.
As far as what you just said, there are many details we can add. That's actually what we call direct investment, and it's very important. We've done a lot of research on that showing linkages with Canadian productivity. When investment takes place, we learn from those investors from other countries. We, too, bring our knowledge to countries we do business with, enhancing our companies' competitiveness and productivity. The problem of productivity is well- known in Canada. We don't rank very high when it comes to productivity as compared with certain regions, the U.S., in particular. Those linkages are very important, and, yes, there are benefits there. Mr. Arcand spoke earlier about the importance of language and having a solid grasp of the language in high-tech, advanced and technical sectors. That is increasingly difficult. When you trade oil or wheat, it may not be that complicated, but when you're dealing with computers and aerospace, sharing a common language is important.
Senator Maltais: Thank you. That's very nice.
Senator Chaput: It's important to recognize French's contribution to Canada's economy. It's more than just significant; it's inevitable.
Gentlemen, how did you choose the indicators to measure the economic contribution of French to Canada? How did you determine which factors were more important? Then, I'd like to know how you went about your work. I find it fascinating.
Mr. Antunes: We examined different aspects, one of which being trade. That's the report Mr. Arcand spoke to you about.
Senator Chaput: Yes.
Mr. Antunes: In the past, we've done other studies on the contribution of francophone businesses and SMEs run by a francophone. The report really focuses on trade, and that's important. Mr. Arcand talked about a contribution that can be calculated in a variety of ways. It is clearly visible in the trade sector of bilingual provinces; the figure was $3.3 billion.
We are able to measure that impact in quantitative terms, meaning, in a virtual world without bilingualism, we can estimate what the loss would be for a given region. It's very tough to compare a bilingual region with a unilingual region today. The analysis has to take all the other variables into account. We consider economics to be very science- based, a little less so than pure science, but it is still possible to control certain variables, as Mr. Arcand discussed, to isolate the impact of bilingualism.
Senator Chaput: First, you took into account small and medium-sized businesses, and second, you looked at small and medium-sized business success stories in French-speaking Canada, if you will. Was that the basis you used for your study?
Mr. Antunes: Yes. Another study was done as well. I don't have all the details with me, but, yes, it was more or less looking at those elements.
[English]
If you want to jump in, please do so.
[Translation]
That was another study that compared the economic strength of Canada's francophone community, domestically. The study looked at businesses and the people who work there to measure their contribution to Canada's economy.
Senator Chaput: Did you make any recommendations?
Mr. Antunes: In that case, a very analytical and quantitative approach was used. In the document we presented to you today, we identified the positive impact of bilingualism. The Conference Board of Canada examines a domestic economy that isn't as strong as it was in the past. We look for ways to keep raising our quality of life and revenues. And one of the ways to keep growing our economy, wealth and revenues is through trade. Trade opens up a number of avenues. It also provides other opportunities. Some developing countries are experiencing very rapid growth, and they shouldn't be overlooked, regardless of whether they are French-speaking or not. It may be advisable to consider those countries with rapidly growing economies. Bilingualism is a significant part of that global opportunity.
Senator Chaput: If I were to ask you to identify a tangible measure to increase economic spinoff, would you be able to? A measure targeting youth, for example. Would you be able to give me a tangible measure?
Mr. Antunes: Growing bilingualism isn't easy, but if it could be done overnight, it would generate positive economic spinoff. Perhaps a faster or easier way to increase bilingualism and trade would be through immigration. We need workers and skills.
As far as bilingualism goes, it's hard to see the direct relationship because it's a long-term process. Earlier, we talked about the investment needed to encourage someone to speak French. It brings economic benefits, but it takes time and patience.
The Chair: I have a question that follows up on Senator Chaput's. Do you think employers are sufficiently aware of the findings of your study?
Mr. Antunes: Most of our clients are large businesses in Canada. We have good relationships with them and we keep them informed.
When it comes to trade, an area where we see a lot of spinoff, growth and potential is small and medium-sized businesses. Those entrepreneurs are usually in a race to stay in business, and they have a hard time. Do they have the time to stay as informed as large businesses? I wouldn't say so. Are they as aware of Mr. Arcand's recent report? I wouldn't say so. That's why we go to great lengths to raise awareness through media and committees. A number of our reports are available on our website for free. Our goal is to improve Canada by enhancing its ability to compete. We want our businesses to be successful on the world stage.
The Chair: I certainly encourage you to do more to get that information out there. The new Express Entry immigration system, for instance, places a lot of importance on the role of the employer in finding workers. If a bilingual workforce is deemed as having more value, small and medium-sized employers need to be made aware of that.
Senator Chaput: I have a follow-up question. The study was commissioned by organizations, was it not? Or was it on your own initiative? I was under the impression that RDÉE Canada was connected to the study. Am I right?
[English]
Mr. Arcand: It was requested by three organizations, funded by three organizations, RDÉE Canada —
Senator Chaput: The report was given to them?
Mr. Arcand: Yes, they have it.
Senator Chaput: To me, they would or should have a responsibility to make the report known to their members or whatever, right?
Mr. Arcand: I assume they did that.
[Translation]
The Chair: I see that a similar study was also done in New Brunswick showing that proficiency in both languages benefits business. I believe that report, by New Brunswick's official languages commissioner, is more or less consistent with your report.
[English]
Senator McIntyre: First of all, I think it is important to note that the Conference Board of Canada has acknowledged the economic contribution of Canada's official languages in a number of ways over the years.
Mr. Arcand, you are the author of the study Canada, Bilingualism and Trade. Two years ago, the Conference Board of Canada presented your study to Industry Canada, RDÉE and so on. My question is a follow-up to Senator Chaput's question. Was your study well received?
Mr. Arcand: It appeared to be well received, yes.
Senator McIntyre: Have you had any feedback following the receipt of your study?
Mr. Arcand: Not specific feedback, but we had a launch event two years ago. It seemed to be well received, from what I gather. The report has been cited in other studies, even in a big economic report in France recently. It was good news, I guess. The funders would have a better idea about the life of the study after we presented it to them.
[Translation]
Senator McIntyre: It is true that for my province, New Brunswick, and for Quebec, for instance, French stimulates trade with French-language countries. Bilingualism increases bilateral trade. It is true that speaking the same language stimulates trade.
However, beyond all that, it seems to me that the economic contribution of French spills over beyond the borders of the francophone space. From that perspective, would you agree that French also contributes to our national and cultural identity, Mr. Antunes?
Mr. Antunes: Yes, of course. Our science — I always refer to it as a science — is very imperfect, as we capture and quantify what we can. The results are always expressed in dollars, and often this exposes us to criticism. In most of our studies we mention that there are other benefits beyond what can be captured in our models and analyses.
Of course, French is a part of our identity and our culture and we are proud of it. Economists attempt to measure what we call "utility'', that is to say the well-being of the consumer. There are a lot of intangible variables that come into play. In my experience I think that French and pride in the two languages are very important to those who have taken the time and made the effort to learn the second language.
The Chair: Are there any other questions from senators? Gentlemen, did you want to add other comments that have not been expressed as questions?
Mr. Antunes: I might mention something. In other meetings the attraction the two languages hold for students was discussed. We examined the impact on what we call the export of services, that is to say what occurs when a student from another country comes to Canada to study in our universities, who lack for students. Perhaps you are aware of this: most universities are looking for students. So their arrival has that impact; they fill a space in one of our educational institutions and this is very advantageous.
However, there are also other important indirect spinoffs from these events. That is something else we did not discuss. The economic spinoffs generated by international students have very strong multipliers that are very important for our country.
Senator McIntyre: With your permission, I would have one more question. Last month another study was published in New Brunswick entitled Two Languages: It's Good for Business. The study was carried out for the Commissioner of Official Languages for New Brunswick. The study showed the economic advantages of bilingualism in New Brunswick. Are you aware of that study?
Mr. Antunes: Yes, in fact, I often worked with Mr. David Campbell. Yes, we are aware of this study.
Senator McIntyre: That study follows in the footsteps of your study to some extent.
Mr. Antunes: It does not quantify all of the aspects, but it sheds some light on other areas besides trade. In that study they do discuss trade, as well as the interprovincial benefits — not only international trade, but interprovincial trade as well. Moreover, they discuss the intangibles, such as like the potential effects of the presence of foreign students, and the immigration potential. That is similar to Mr. Arcand's work as well. A city or a region that is diverse tends to attract immigration and that is important.
We agree. The matter involves aspects that have not necessarily been quantified but which provide a broader perspective. This adds to the debate.
Senator McIntyre: The study shows that bilingualism facilitates trade links and tourist activities.
Mr. Antunes: Absolutely, yes. The study discusses Quebec tourism at length. It must be understood that even if we increase bilingualism everywhere, Quebec can only provide so many tourists per year. If we can attract tourists from other countries such as France, I think that Quebec and New Brunswick also have these links.
The Chair: Finally, on behalf of the committee, I want to thank Mr. Arcand and Mr. Antunes. Thank you for having shared your expertise and your experience with us, and for having carried out this very important study. Honourable senators, we are going to meet in camera for just a few minutes.
(The committee adjourned.)