A Bilingual Education

A bilingual education

“…a multilingual brain is nimbler, quicker, better able to deal with ambiguities, resolve conflicts and even resist Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia longer.” – time.com

“…multilingual individuals [are] not only superior to their single-language colleagues in terms of their ability to communicate cross-culturally, but also in terms of a wide range of other high level brain functions.” – ablrecruitment.com citing Northwestern University in Illinois research

“Bi-culturals, it turns out, are more creative than individuals who only identify themselves with a single country.” – knowledge.insead.edu

“… bilinguals have shown that they are better able to focus on demanding mental tasks despite distractions.”  Variety makes you more mentally fit. – economist.com

The benefits

Without a multicultural education, many children are unaware of these differences, and few have the occasion to experience this awakening so early in life. Preparing students to be “citizens of the world” is a key part of our educational focus. Students develop self-confidence and the ability to “think on their feet”, challenging assumptions in a way that monolingual education cannot.

Dual immersion in both French and English accelerates comprehension in both languages. Schedules vary somewhat according to age and individual configuration of lessons, but in the Anglophone Section roughly 25% of learning time is spent in a fully English-speaking environment. In such classes, students are taught by experienced, native English teachers.

Remaining classroom time is spent immersed in the French classroom, alongside both Anglophone and Francophone students. And although many of the French professors have a functional understanding of English, their role is to encourage students to strive for complete fluency in French. For students who are completely new to French language and culture, we offer “French as a Foreign Language” lessons to get them up to speed as quickly as possible.