Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 10430547)

My daughter in Canada is in Vancouver. Advantages of being bilngual to her in BC that I know of include:

- academic advancement, UBC participates in competitions with other universities in English and in French, as a bilingual student she was able to participate in two sets of teams. All exposure to competition on behalf of your school raises your profile within the school and possibly beyond the school.

- ease of finding part time work, she turned up at the French Canadian cultural centre, opened her gob and was employed as the receptionist. This, it seems, is an ideal job for a student with a heavy course load as there is little or no French Canadian culture in BC.

- ease of finding permanent work, she's employed by the local equivalent of the Department of Public Prosecutions. It's a Federal agency and so acts affirmitively to advantage francophones.

In short, French has been an advantage in Vancouver in a way it would not be in Montreal where bilingual Canadians are a sou a dozen or some such chose.

Originally Posted by ExKiwilass (Post 10430717)

Of the many many people I know who live and work here and got jobs, not one has needed fluent french. In my company Spanish would be an asset. Mandarin goes without saying.

Originally Posted by ExKiwilass (Post 10430717)

The fact that the main advantage according to most of the people on this thread is working for the feds, sucking off the taxpayer, speaks volumes imo. French is not that useful, unless you're a bureaucrat.

Originally Posted by ExKiwilass (Post 10430717)

Of the many many people I know who live and work here and got jobs, not one has needed fluent french. In my company Spanish would be an asset. Mandarin goes without saying. The fact that the main advantage according to most of the people on this thread is working for the feds, sucking off the taxpayer, speaks volumes imo. French is not that useful, unless you're a bureaucrat.

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 10431241)

I'm with you up to here. I know French is not very useful for business in Vancouver. It's not in Toronto either.



Here we very much part company. Firstly, one should not learn things, or have one's children learn things just because they are "useful". There's value in book larning for book larning's sake.

Secondly, learning a second language is a gateway to a third or fourth. French is the one offered by immersion schools, if there's a choice of Spanish immersion, Korean immersion and the like, then selecting a school becomes complicated but those are not options. The options are French or not-French.

Thirdly, Canada has chosen to offer affirmitive action to francophones (and in Ontario, Catholics), unlike the US where one would have to become black to benefit, in Canada one can make one's children eligible for affirmitive action simply by changing their language or religion, it seems silly not to take advantage.

There is use for French in Canadian business, francophones buy things, francophones are in power in some companies, some documents have to be offered in both languages, French people visit Canada and a child born in Canada might, one visit Europe. That, however, is not the compelling reason for immigrants to ensure that their children speak French, immigrant parents should do that as a gesture of embrace for the culture of the country to which they have moved, they should do it to give their children a chance to be Canadians, not just Americans with metric speedometers.

Originally Posted by Novocastrian (Post 10425106)

I agree completely about the advantages of having a second language...

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 10431241)

one should not learn things, or have one's children learn things just because they are "useful". There's value in book larning for book larning's sake.

Secondly, learning a second language is a gateway to a third or fourth. French is the one offered by immersion schools, if there's a choice of Spanish immersion, Korean immersion and the like, then selecting a school becomes complicated but those are not options. The options are French or not-French.

Originally Posted by Shard (Post 10431491)

How many years will it be until Mandarin (or Cantonese?) becomes Canada's third official language? Or will its prevalence dismantle the whole "official language" policy. It does seem that it will be difficult to argue that French has official status in places like BC and Ontario when in fact Chinese speakers far out number French speakers, and will grow as time goes on.

Originally Posted by Shard (Post 10431491)

How many years will it be until Mandarin (or Cantonese?) becomes Canada's third official language? Or will its prevalence dismantle the whole "official language" policy. It does seem that it will be difficult to argue that French has official status in places like BC and Ontario when in fact Chinese speakers far out number French speakers, and will grow as time goes on.

Originally Posted by Shard (Post 10431469)

Completely agree with these comments.

But what is the "affirmative action" to which you refer (here and in another post)? Is this Federal hiring preferences or something?

Originally Posted by iaink (Post 10431556)

People should aspire to that level, not try and drag others down like crabs in bucket.

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 10431558)

Affirmitive Action is government policy to advance the interests of one section of the population ahead of the rest of the population. Such policies are intended to reverse the impact of systemic discrimination in the past. An example might be the current South African and Malaysian governments' requirements that company boards include people of specific ethnicities. In Canada such policies exist to benefit Catholics, francophones and aboriginal people.

Originally Posted by Souvy (Post 10431588)

Er, have you looked at a census recently? Catholics are not exactly a minority in Canada.

Originally Posted by dbd33 (Post 10431613)

I don't think I claimed them to be a minority, just a beneficiary of an affirmitive action program.