Québec and the rest: A survey of national and international approaches to adult language training

2023 - 11 - 1

Authors

Executive Summary

Cimminnee Holt, Policy Researcher, Provincial Employment Roundtable

Sithandazile Kuzviwanza, Director of Policy and Research, Provincial Employment Roundtable

Since the 1970s, the Québec government has made significant investments in the development and implementation of French-language training programs. In 2022, Québec updated its Charter of the French Language and committed to expanding the provision of adult French language learning services with the goal of helping individuals acquire sufficient French language skills. New investments in adult French language training have been accompanied by a public re-examining of the effectiveness, quality, and accessibility of French-language training in Québec. This is particularly important given that French is the language of work in Québec, and individuals with low French language proficiency can face barriers to navigating the labour market.

This study aims to contribute to the improvement of Québec’s adult French-language training ecosystem. It surveys how various jurisdictions in Canada and worldwide have deployed adult language training. Although Québec’s unique linguistic landscape cannot be mapped neatly onto another jurisdiction, examining other jurisdictions can be valuable in identifying policy approaches and innovations that can be adopted into the Québec context. In this study, the adult language training approaches of New Brunswick, Ontario, Wales, Catalonia, Basque Autonomous Community, and Finland are surveyed.

Secondary research and qualitative interviews with subject matter experts are used to develop overviews of each jurisdiction’s government-sponsored adult language training framework. Focus is placed on language programs for individuals in the labour market in order to examine how jurisdictions address both language planning and labour market integration priorities.These jurisdictions and their experiences are analyzed and used to develop recommendations for Québec policymakers and stakeholders

Recommendations:

Increase collaboration between the government, the community sector, and the private sector to expand the provision of adult French-language training programs.
Leverage the private sector to increase workforce-oriented French-language training.
Regularly collect and publish linguistic data in Québec to track French-language competency levels.
Develop and implement a strategy to better leverage technology to improve learner outcomes
Improve the francisation website by enhancing its usability, navigation, and comprehensiveness as a one-stop-shop online government platform that provides all resources and information related to adult French-language training in Québec.
Establish a province-wide network of French-language assessment and referral centres to provide free and affordable assessments for all Québec residents in partnership with community organizations, schools, and language centres.
Create volunteer language training programs to match language learners with fluent French language speakers