French immersion enrollment on the rise for Medicine Hat Public School Division

Connaught School staff and students are adjusting to life as a fully French immersion school, a change that was announced in 2018 due to the program’s rapid growth.

Moving to exclusively as a single-track French immersion building has already made a difference five months in according to educators like Neigum.

“The division was adding portables, we were changing rooms that were not classrooms into classrooms just to accommodate the growth,” said Neigum. “Now, we do have the space to accommodate growth without really being a draw on the infrastructure.”

Over the past three years, the Medicine Hat Public School Division has seen their French immersion student enrollment at Connaught School and École Crescent Heights High School jump from 501 students in 2017 to 541 students this past fall.

MHPSD assistant superintendent of universal learning and design Jason Peters said that increase in student population was a big reason by Connaught School decided to go single-track.

“Certainly, the program has been on a growth cycle, that’s why we had to make a decision for our elementary program,” said Peters. “So, we anticipate that will just continue to funnel up and we’ll increase our numbers at the high school level too.”

While less than 150 French immersion students attended Crescent Heights in September 2017, that number has grown by 17 percent to 173 students in 2019.

“At the high school level, the more numbers we have it just allows us to increase programming,” said Peters. “It creates that critical mass that we can add additional teaching staff that can cover more courses.”

Three Medicine Hat Catholic Board of Education schools offer French immersion in École St. John Paul II School for K-6, St. Mary’s School for 7-9, and Monsignor McCoy High for 10-12 students.

Their French immersion numbers are expected to be released at next week’s MHCBE board meeting.

As for Prairie Rose School Division, they don’t currently have any French immersion programming available to students as there hasn’t been enough demand from their families.

However, assistant superintendent Reagan Weeks added nothing is off the table.

“Because our schools are so spread out, we haven’t necessarily had a collective expression of interest in French immersion,” said Weeks. “But should that change, it would certainly be something that we’d be looking to explore further.”

Entry into the public division’s French immersion program could see some major changes as demand increases, as they’re looking at possibly implementing a late entry framework.

“Currently we only offer early entry, so they have to start in kindergarten or grade one,” said Peters. “But, we are exploring whether that’s an opportunity, as other divisions have and bigger centres have, a late entry immersion.”

An information session was held with MHPSD parents on Monday night to discuss the highlights of the French immersion program and what direction they’re trending in.

Neigum believes that direction is positive and hopes to see the upward trajectory continue.

“I think we’ve seen a real resurgence in parents’ recognition of the benefits of the program, the benefits to the students while they’re here at school learning, and also the benefits that exist outside in the community,” she said.

Connaught School will be hosting an open house from 8:00 am until 5:00 pm on Thursday as part of their Registration Day.

by Scott Roblin

French immersion enrollment on the rise for Medicine Hat Public School Division

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