Methinks your lawyers and even the mindless PANB should agree that the CBC made a major Faux Pas blocking me today N'esy Pas Higgy???
David Amos<david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com> | Thu, Feb 2, 2023 at 11:23 PM |
| To: "blaine.higgs" <blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, Kelly.A.Lamrock@gnb.ca, heidi.cyr@gnb.ca, Nathalie.G.Drouin@pco-bcp.gc.ca, Marco.Mendicino@parl.gc.ca, georges.r.savoie@neguac.com, "David.Coon" <David.Coon@gnb.ca>, "kris.austin" <kris.austin@gnb.ca>, "Rene.Legacy" <Rene.Legacy@gnb.ca>, "robert.mckee" <robert.mckee@gnb.ca>, "Robert. Jones" <Robert.Jones@cbc.ca>, jbosse3058@gmail.com, "robert.gauvin" <robert.gauvin@gnb.ca>, "Dorothy.Shephard" <Dorothy.Shephard@gnb.ca>, "charles.murray" <charles.murray@gnb.ca>, Ross.Wetmore@gnb.ca, "Bill.Oliver" <Bill.Oliver@gnb.ca>, "Bill.Hogan" <Bill.Hogan@gnb.ca>, rob.moore@parl.gc.ca, John.williamson@parl.gc.ca, kerri.froc@unb.ca, hugh.flemming@gnb.ca, "Mike.Comeau" <Mike.Comeau@gnb.ca>, "Mark.Blakely" <Mark.Blakely@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, "martin.gaudet" <martin.gaudet@fredericton.ca>, "Holland, Mike (LEG)" <mike.holland@gnb.ca>, "Michelle.Boutin" <Michelle.Boutin@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, mcu <mcu@justice.gc.ca>, "Bill.Blair" <Bill.Blair@parl.gc.ca>, "Bev.Busson" <Bev.Busson@sen.parl.gc.ca>, "Mitton, Megan (LEG)" <megan.mitton@gnb.ca>, "michelle.conroy" <michelle.conroy@gnb.ca>, "andrea.anderson-mason" <andrea.anderson-mason@gnb.ca>, andre <andre@jafaust.com>, Dominic.Cardy@gnb.ca, news@dailygleaner.com, oldmaison@yahoo.com, jbosnitch@gmail.com, "Arseneau, Kevin (LEG)" <kevin.a.arseneau@gnb.ca>, kevin.leahy@rcmp-grc.gc.ca, ministryofjustice <ministryofjustice@gov.ab.ca>, premier <premier@gov.ab.ca>, "Jacques.Poitras" <Jacques.Poitras@cbc.ca>, ltgov <ltgov@gnb.ca>, briangallant10 <briangallant10@gmail.com>, BrianThomasMacdonald <BrianThomasMacdonald@gmail.com>, vanessa.moreau@cbc.ca, "pierre.poilievre" <pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca>, pm <pm@pm.gc.ca>, "Katie.Telford" <Katie.Telford@pmo-cpm.gc.ca>, "jagmeet.singh" <jagmeet.singh@parl.gc.ca>, premier <premier@ontario.ca>, Office of the Premier <scott.moe@gov.sk.ca>, premier <premier@gov.bc.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nt.ca>, premier <premier@gov.yk.ca>, premier <premier@gov.pe.ca>, premier <premier@leg.gov.mb.ca>, PREMIER <PREMIER@gov.ns.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nl.ca> | |
| Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, events@frederictonchamber.ca | |
People's Alliance calls on minister to reconsider immersion change
Party whose former leader called program ‘a dismal failure’ now says it should stay
The Alliance, which has been sharply critical of how official bilingualism is implemented, says giving anglophones a chance to learn French is vital.
"New Brunswick is a unique province, proudly the only bilingual province in the country," Rudy Walters, the president of the party's board of directors, said in a recent letter to Education Minister Bill Hogan asking him to reconsider the change.
"It is ridiculous to think that we could soon be the only province in the country to not offer a French Immersion program."
The Alliance elected two MLAs in the last provincial election, including leader Kris Austin, but both members joined the Progressive Conservative caucus last March.
The province plans to begin phasing in a new program this fall for all students in which they'll spend half the school day learning in English and half in French.
Education
Minister Bill Hogan was sent a letter from Walters, asking him to
reconsider changes to the French immersion program. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
While supporters of immersion argue that's not enough French, Walters says many Alliance supporters consider it too much in a universal, compulsory program.
"Families should have the ability to choose whether or not their kids are fully immersed or just simply receive the French training as part of the English prime program," he said in an interview.
"The families should have that choice. It shouldn't be pushed on anybody to have 50 per cent of the day in French, and it shouldn't also be taken away for the families that do want that additional language training."
In 2019, then-Alliance leader Kris Austin called French immersion "a dismal failure," citing the number of graduates of the program who aren't fluent in the language.
Walters said it's difficult to call the immersion program a failure "when we haven't seen the results of it yet."
He pointed out the entry point for immersion was moved back to Grade 1 in 2017, so the students in that system haven't reached high school yet to be assessed.
Kris Austin called the French immersion program a 'dismal failure' when
he was leader of the People's Alliance Party. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Austin is now a Progressive Conservative cabinet minister.
Last fall, before the 50-50 program was announced, Austin said he would not want to see changes that were "so overriding" that children would not be able to learn math, science and basic literacy.
In an emailed statement Tuesday, Austin wouldn't say whether he supports the plan.
"Where [the department] is currently in the consultation process it would be premature to offer an opinion," he said. "As such, I will reserve any opinion until a final decision is made."
At public consultations, some parents have said they are worried that children with learning challenges will have a hard time developing reading skills in English with their classroom time reduced to just half the day in the language.
PC MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason said last month she was hearing from some parents upset their kids won't get enough French to be fluent, and from others who don't want their kids "forced to take French. That should be an option."
Progressive
Conservative MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason expressed concerns around the
speed at which the new French-language program will be introduced into
New Brunswick's schools. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Walters said he wrote the letter to Hogan instead of current party leader Rick DeSaulniers because the issue is "deeply personal" for him, though DeSaulniers supports the position completely.
Walters has one child in immersion now and another he would enrol if the program weren't being replaced.
His son in immersion has "taken off immensely" learning French, "and if that's any indicator of how other children are doing, I believe that Grade 1 entry to French immersion is exactly where it should be."
He says if there are problems with the quality of the non-immersion English prime stream, the government should provide more resources to it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-12.html
Minority Language Educational Rights
Marginal note:Language of instruction
23 (1) Citizens of Canada
(a) whose first language learned and still understood is that of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province in which they reside, or
(b) who have received their primary school instruction in Canada in English or French and reside in a province where the language in which they received that instruction is the language of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province,
have the right to have their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in that language in that province.End note (94)
Marginal note:Continuity of language instruction
(2) Citizens of Canada of whom any child has received or is receiving primary or secondary school instruction in English or French in Canada, have the right to have all their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in the same language.
Marginal note:Application where numbers warrant
(3) The right of citizens of Canada under subsections (1) and (2) to have their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in the language of the English or French linguistic minority population of a province
(a) applies wherever in the province the number of children of citizens who have such a right is sufficient to warrant the provision to them out of public funds of minority language instruction; and
(b) includes, where the number of those children so warrants, the right to have them receive that instruction in minority language educational facilities provided out of public funds.Premier Blaine Higgs chat with Blogger on his State of the Province Address during a Full Moon!!!!
2023 State of the Province Address
Thu, Feb. 9, 2023
Attendance: 950-1,000
Type of Event: Special Event
Premier Higgs Addresses New Brunswickers.
Website: https://www.frederictonchamber.ca/
Twitter:
#SOTP23
Contact:
Adam Peabody
506.260.6228
events@frederictonchamber.ca
Methinks much to Higgy's chagrin the LIEbrano Trolls are having quite a hay day in CBC N'esy Pas?
David Amos<david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com> | Sun, Jan 22, 2023 at 7:07 PM |
| To: "blaine.higgs" <blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, Kelly.A.Lamrock@gnb.ca, heidi.cyr@gnb.ca, Nathalie.G.Drouin@pco-bcp.gc.ca, Marco.Mendicino@parl.gc.ca, georges.r.savoie@neguac.com, "David.Coon" <David.Coon@gnb.ca>, "kris.austin" <kris.austin@gnb.ca>, "Rene.Legacy" <Rene.Legacy@gnb.ca>, "robert.mckee" <robert.mckee@gnb.ca>, "Robert. Jones" <Robert.Jones@cbc.ca>, jbosse3058@gmail.com, "robert.gauvin" <robert.gauvin@gnb.ca>, "Dorothy.Shephard" <Dorothy.Shephard@gnb.ca>, "charles.murray" <charles.murray@gnb.ca>, Ross.Wetmore@gnb.ca, "Bill.Oliver" <Bill.Oliver@gnb.ca>, "Bill.Hogan" <Bill.Hogan@gnb.ca>, rob.moore@parl.gc.ca, John.williamson@parl.gc.ca, kerri.froc@unb.ca, hugh.flemming@gnb.ca, "Mike.Comeau" <Mike.Comeau@gnb.ca>, "Mark.Blakely" <Mark.Blakely@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, "martin.gaudet" <martin.gaudet@fredericton.ca>, "Holland, Mike (LEG)" <mike.holland@gnb.ca>, "Michelle.Boutin" <Michelle.Boutin@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, mcu <mcu@justice.gc.ca>, "Bill.Blair" <Bill.Blair@parl.gc.ca>, "Bev.Busson" <Bev.Busson@sen.parl.gc.ca>, "Mitton, Megan (LEG)" <megan.mitton@gnb.ca>, "michelle.conroy" <michelle.conroy@gnb.ca>, "andrea.anderson-mason" <andrea.anderson-mason@gnb.ca>, andre <andre@jafaust.com>, Dominic.Cardy@gnb.ca, news@dailygleaner.com, oldmaison@yahoo.com, jbosnitch@gmail.com, "Arseneau, Kevin (LEG)" <kevin.a.arseneau@gnb.ca>, kevin.leahy@rcmp-grc.gc.ca, ministryofjustice <ministryofjustice@gov.ab.ca>, premier <premier@gov.ab.ca>, "Jacques.Poitras" <Jacques.Poitras@cbc.ca>, ltgov <ltgov@gnb.ca>, briangallant10 <briangallant10@gmail.com>, BrianThomasMacdonald <BrianThomasMacdonald@gmail.com>, vanessa.moreau@cbc.ca | |
| Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, "pierre.poilievre" <pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca>, pm <pm@pm.gc.ca>, "Katie.Telford" <Katie.Telford@pmo-cpm.gc.ca>, "jagmeet.singh" <jagmeet.singh@parl.gc.ca>, premier <premier@ontario.ca>, Office of the Premier <scott.moe@gov.sk.ca>, premier <premier@gov.bc.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nt.ca>, premier <premier@gov.yk.ca>, premier <premier@gov.pe.ca>, premier <premier@leg.gov.mb.ca>, PREMIER <PREMIER@gov.ns.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nl.ca> | |
https://davidraymondamos3. Tuesday, 17 January 2023 N.B. premier takes political hit over immersion decision, poll suggests | |
Shift - NB with Vanessa Vander Valk
Tuesday, 17 January 2023
Higgs losing chief of staff Louis Léger
Higgs losing chief of staff Louis Léger
Top adviser to premier played 'a diplomatic role' to francophone community, Acadian leader says
PC MLA says 'pump the brakes' on immersion replacement
Deputy minister tells MLAs government could still opt for ‘something different’
Fundy-The Isles-Saint John West MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason says she shares the concerns expressed at a public meeting Thursday night in Moncton.
"I am incredibly concerned about the timing and how much more our teachers can handle," Anderson-Mason told education officials during a meeting of the legislature's public accounts committee Friday.
During that meeting, the Education Department's deputy minister for anglophone schools John McLaughlin suggested the province could still reverse course on the plan for a 50-50 model of English-French learning for all anglophone students.
During that meeting, the Education Department's deputy minister for anglophone schools John McLaughlin sugges
Anger, heckling mark Moncton consultation effort on proposed changes to French immersion
"The consultation ends on Feb. 3 and then there would be a decision made about whether to proceed with this model or something different," he told the legislature's public accounts committee.
"I want to be clear this is a proposal."
People
lined up through the foyer and down the stairs at the Delta Beausejour
Hotel in Moncton on Thursday evening to attend the in-person
consultation. The meeting became heated at times. (Maeve McFadden/CBC)
Anderson-Mason says she fears the change would be disruptive at the same time teachers in the English system are set to roll out a promising new method of teaching reading skills.
"I am so passionate about making sure that we get our literacy right in the province of New Brunswick before we tinker with anything else," she told McLaughlin.
She went further in a scrum with reporters.
"Pump the brakes. We are just getting this new literacy program in place. … So to now interrupt it to say we're going to spend half the day in French and half the day in English, I am concerned that they haven't taken enough time to address that issue."
She pointed out a recent 2021 assessment found only 59.5 per cent of Grade 4 students reading at an appropriate level.
"We're going to load even more on these educators. We've finally found out a way we can successfully teach kids how to read, and now we're going to interrupt the program by cutting their days in half."
Anderson-Mason said she was "not at all surprised" by the concerns and criticisms raised by an angry crowd of more than 300 people at the department's public consultation session in Moncton Thursday night.
John
McLaughlin, the Education Department’s deputy minister for anglophone
schools, suggested the province could still reverse course on the plan
for a 50-50 model of English-French learning for all anglophone
students. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
McLaughlin called the consultations so far "robust" and said teachers at the Moncton meeting were "very frank about what their beliefs are, and that's all very important information to us.
"The last few weeks have been quite revealing and instructive for all of us," he added. "We have this goal, we have this framework. We're hearing now what the concerns are. Many of the concerns we knew up front. They're much more clear now."
Two more in-person public sessions are scheduled for next week in Fredericton and Saint John, and two more virtual sessions will happen the week after that.
The new model will replace the French immersion program with a system of French second-language learning for all anglophone students.
Kindergarten and Grade 1 students will start the program this fall, with immersion phased out year by year.
From kindergarten to Grade 5, all students will spend half the school day in "exploratory learning" of French.
That's less French than what's offered in immersion, but considerably more than what is taught now to non-immersion anglophone students.
The goal is for all graduates to have at least a conversational level in French, and to end the phenomenon of "streaming," in which students with learning challenges tend to end up clustered in non-immersion classrooms.
No one happy?
Anderson-Mason told reporters that she has heard from some parents upset their kids will get less French, and from others who don't want their kids learning any French at all.
"I'm not hearing a lot of people in the middle saying 'This is great.' In fact I'm hearing very little of it at all," she said.
Opposition MLAs and other critics have warned there may not be enough teachers in place by fall to roll out the new program.
Forty per cent of teachers who now teach French as a second language lack the proper level of aptitude in the language, the committee was told Friday.
Initially the change was supposed to happen in September 2024 but last fall Premier Blaine Higgs said it would happen this coming fall.
McLaughlin told MLAs the change to the timeline didn't come from the department.
"There was a government decision to change that."
He said the department believes the timeline is reasonable "but we also have to make sure that our schools and our teachers feel it's reasonable and that parents feel it's reasonable."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
"As I sit in the hospital on November 19th without a Medicare Card I will take great interest in seeing if Kris Austin remains true to his word and supports Higgy for another six months as he reboots the circus with an new speech from the throne. Trust that I am looking forward to arguing the lawyers Carrier, Poirier, Logan, Eidt, Anderson-Mason and Flemming about my right to Health Care, to no false imprisonment, language rights, abortion, the whereabouts of my old Harley and Yankee wiretap tapes of the mob in its saddlebag among other things.
Anderson-Mason may act confused as Cardy yaps about education, Steeves talks of their prowess with money and Gauvin protects the francophones from Flemming's plans while Higgy battles unions and does the double talk on carbon tax and demands upon Saint John, to balance their books etc. However they are fooling nobody when Holland brags of protecting forests after they are mowed down. One thing is for certain Cardy's silly bill will be swept aside as I laugh at all the nonsense at the circus because I made certain that Vickers knows why methinks he doesn't want Higgy's job N'esy Pas? "
"At the same time, two Progressive Conservative cabinet ministers continue to spar over the need for the legislation.
Attorney-General Andrea Anderson-Mason has repeatedly signalled she's not comfortable with the bill, and in a recent Facebook post implicitly rejected Cardy's description of its opponents.
"I was originally told that the only people who would oppose this bill would be people on the fringe," she said in a May 24 post. "That was incorrect."
She said that "being told by government what you can or cannot do with your body does not settle well."
Cardy said Tuesday he was not concerned with his PC cabinet colleague's comments.
"I think Andrea Anderson-Mason's comments have been pretty clear, and I think mine are as well, and I'm happy mine are backed by science and reason, and I'm happy to go forward on that basis," he said.
Cardy also repeated his criticisms of opponents of the bill, including protestors on the lawn of the legislature Tuesday who didn't practice physical distancing from each other.
He described them as people "who subscribe to a vague, weird Trumpian ideal of how the world works."
The unusual public spectacle of two ministers sparring over a piece of legislation would normally be untenable in the Westminster system of cabinet government.
But Higgs is allowing all his MLAs, including his ministers, a free vote on the bill.
"I don't relish the idea of two ministers duking it out in the public, but it is what it is," he said Tuesday. "They can each vote their own way."
Anderson-Mason did not respond to an interview request Wednesday."
"New Brunswick's attorney general has apologized for the apparent use of her office's power to sway the Anglophone South district education council.
Andrea Anderson-Mason, who is also the justice minister, sent a letter to the council last September about transporting children from their schools to a certain daycare, something the council had said was impossible due to lack of funds.
The Progressive Conservative MLA told CBC News last week she was told the act was seen as "political interference" and shouldn't engage in that discussion.
"French immersion was the last straw between Premier Blaine Higgs and Dominic Cardy.
The education minister's dramatic resignation last week was sparked by the premier's insistence that immersion be replaced next fall by a yet-to-be-defined new program.
There's no starker illustration of their disagreement over that September 2023 date than the Higgs government's own website.
As of 4:30 p.m. on Monday, the "Evolving French Language Learning" page still showed a slow and careful two-year consultation process leading to implementation in September 2024 – a timeline Higgs has now publicly rejected as too slow.
"My goal would be that we would be able to roll out a change in the program in the fall of '23," he told reporters the day Cardy quit.
Higgs said that was the original target date, "and then it got moved."
"The deputy minister of education for anglophone schools has been fired as the Higgs government continues its controversial push to replace French immersion with a new model in less than 10 months.
An internal memorandum to deputy ministers from executive council clerk Cheryl Hansen, the head of the public service, confirms George Daley "is leaving the department."
He's been replaced by his predecessor, John McLaughlin, who retired from the position on the day Daley was appointed three years ago this week.
The Education Department has two deputy ministers, one for the anglophone school system and one for the francophone system.
In a statement to CBC News, Premier Blaine Higgs thanked Daley for "the valuable contribution he made in his role during the pandemic" but did not comment on why he removed him.
"We remain committed to creating a world-class education system and helping more anglophone sector students reach their full potential," Higgs said."
Anger, heckling mark Moncton consultation effort on proposed changes to French immersion
Organizers unprepared for large crowd, more than double what was expected
It was the third consultation put on by the Department of Education to discuss what it calls the "innovative immersion program."
Organizers were unprepared for the large crowd. They'd expected about 135 people, but more than 300 lined up at a downtown hotel to take part.
Hotel staff scrambled to extend the size of the ballroom where the consultation was to happen, delaying the start by almost an hour.
Staff with the Department of Education had planned to use a world café format for the event.
Participants were seated at tables of eight with the goal of encouraging constructive dialogue on the plan to replace French immersion starting in September and instead have students spend half their days in "exploratory learning" in French.
This format was soon abandoned.
People lined up in the foyer and down the stairs at the Delta Beausejour Hotel in Moncton to attend the in-person consultation (Maeve McFadden/CBC)
Education Minister Bill Hogan started the evening by welcoming the attendees, but people immediately heckled him.
"Here's how tonight's going to work," Hogan responded. "We can be respectful and follow the process or we just shut it off right now. You choose."
One participant yelled at Hogan, "You're not the principal here."
The minister was interrupted repeatedly as he continued to explain the purpose of the consultation.
"I'm not going to argue with you," he said. "I'm not going to debate for airtime. If you don't want to listen to me, that's fine."
Despite the interruptions, Hogan told the crowd he respected their opinions. He explained the goal of the consultation was to hear what people like and don't like about the proposed changes and what changes they would suggest.
"It's a framework, so based on the feedback we get from across the province, will help us develop what the program will actually look like," Hogan said.
Education
and Early Childhood Development Minister Bill Hogan had a difficult
time keeping the discussion on track, so much so that the expected
format of the night had to be changed. (Government of New Brunswick/YouTube)
Deputy education minister John McLaughlin was invited to give an overview of the proposed model. He explained the feedback from the public will be used to provide the minister with advice on what is in "the best interest of the province."
"I can sense in this room there's great disagreement with this model," he said. "But I also did wander around and spoke to some people who are very supportive of it."
McLaughlin was interrupted numerous times with comments and questions from the crowd, despite reminding them the session was not to be a question-and-answer format.
"I was really hoping this would be a more collegial kind of evening," he said to hecklers.
"We believe it's a good program. You may not agree. We want to hear from you in a respectful way but it's not like somebody's out there trying to ruin the lives of kids. We're trying to make it better."
Format scrapped
Despite trying to stick to the original format, organizers opted to open the microphones to anyone interested in making comments.
About 20 people spoke during the two-hour session, none in support of the proposed changes.
Hannah Davidson called the new model being proposed "flawed." The mother of two has been working as a French immersion teacher for 25 years.
She raised her concerns about the lack of French-speaking teachers to fill the new positions that would be needed for the program.
Hannah
Davidson called the new model for French-language education flawed. The
mother of two has been working as a French immersion teacher for 25
years. (Maeve McFadden/CBC)
Davidson also said the proposed model would not help the many students in the system who read below grade level and are now in the English program instead of French immersion.
"If we want to help these struggling readers," she said. " We should not expect them to spend 40 to 60 per cent of their day learning a second language as the new model proposes."
Kristin Cavoukian, a political scientist who moved to Moncton a year and a half ago from Ontario and is a member of the district education council, said her daughter is in the French immersion program.
She told McLaughlin that she read his report and she described it as "short on hard data and long on anecdote."
Cavoukian raised her concerns about the province's approach to making changes.
"It's not acceptable to have consultations after you have made a decision," she said, which was followed by loud applause and cheers from the crowd.
Kristin
Cavoukian moved to Moncton from Ontario a year and a half ago. She told
deputy minister John McLaughlin she read his report on the
French-language instruction and described it as 'short on hard data and
long on anecdote.' (Maeve McFadden/CBC)
She said the district education council hears from parents who are "fuming mad" about the changes.
Cavoukian said some parents are deciding to leave New Brunswick because they say their children will have a better French immersion education elsewhere.
"My sincere advice to you", she continued "is to withdraw this proposal now."
There will be two more in-person public consultation sessions this month:
- Jan. 24 at the Delta Saint John
- Jan. 25 at the Delta Fredericton
Each will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
There will also be two virtual sessions, one on Jan. 31 and the other on Feb. 2.
The online survey will continue to be available until Feb. 3.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
(and any other language spoken in this province)
out of your last name Mr.
Yeah that's why there is no such thing as British Comedy that can be understood by English speaking Canadians.
N.B. premier takes political hit over immersion decision, poll suggests
72 per cent of respondents say opinion of premier has ‘deteriorated’
The New Brunswick chapter of Canadian Parents for French has released a poll by the research firm Leger suggesting the Opposition Liberals now have a big lead over the PCs in voting intentions.
It also suggests the plan to replace immersion is deeply unpopular.
"It tells me that the government of New Brunswick is not in sync with the people of New Brunswick," said the chapter's executive director Chris Collins.
According to the poll, taken in December, 72 per cent of respondents said their opinion of Premier Blaine Higgs had deteriorated "over the past few months."
Chris
Collins of the New Brunswick chapter of Canadian Parents for French,
said he hopes the poll results will persuade some PC members of the
legislature to push back against the replacement of immersion. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
The same percentage told the pollster they agreed it is "important for anglophone parents in New Brunswick to have the opportunity to send their child(ren) to a French immersion school."
Asked which party they'd most likely vote for if an election were held now, 40 per cent of respondents said the Liberals compared to just 22 per cent for Higgs's PCs.
The Greens were at 15 per cent, the NDP at 12 and the People's Alliance at nine.
The next provincial election is scheduled for Oct. 21, 2024. Higgs said in December he hasn't decided whether to lead the party into that campaign or retire.
The government announced in December it will replace immersion starting next fall for students entering Grade 1 and kindergarten.
Those students will instead spend half their days in what the province called "exploratory learning" in French. That's more time than what non-immersion students get now but less time than the immersion program.
Collins said he hopes the poll results will persuade some PC members of the legislature to push back against the replacement of immersion.
"I think it will change the minds of members of the legislative assembly who are on the precipice of losing their seats in areas like Moncton, Saint John and Fredericton," he said.
"I think there's going to be a lot of dissension in caucus when people are seeing those kinds of numbers on their premier, and they're thinking, 'How does this set me up for the next election in '24?"
On Monday night, Education Minister Bill Hogan took part in the first of several public meetings on the changes.
During a series of vetted questions and scripted answers, Hogan said it was still possible the new model could change.
"Let me be clear," he said. "There's still a chance for New Brunswickers to have their say."
In the Leger poll, 63 per cent of respondents said they were against "abolishing" French immersion.
In response to another question about the policy change, only 22 per cent of respondents agreed that immersion "must be abolished and a new French as a second language program should be implemented."
A far larger share, 55 per cent, agreed that "the current French immersion program should be maintained, but make it accessible to more students, even if they are not in immersion programs."
The 18-point gap in voting intentions in favour of the Liberals over the PCs is a bigger lead than what the Liberals have enjoyed in recent surveys by Halifax-based Narrative Research.
The last Narrative poll from November 2022 had the Liberals ahead 39 to 30.
Leger said it conducted its web-based survey of 500 New Brunswickers from Dec. 15 to 23, a period that included the announcement on replacing immersion.
Because the poll was done with an online panel and not a random sample, the firm said it was impossible to calculate a margin of error. But it said a poll that size using a random sample would be accurate to within 4.4 percentage points 19 times out of 20.
The company said the results were weighted by gender, age, mother tongue, education, region and presence of children in a household to reflect New Brunswick's population.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lol! Seriously Jacques?
Say hey to Higgy et al for me will ya?.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/chris-collins-legislature-new-brunswick-1.6044697
"Collins filed a lawsuit, saying Gallant and the legislature abused their authority and breached his privacy and his employment contract, effectively ending his political career. Collins ran for re-election as an independent in 2018 and lost.
https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-12.html
Minority Language Educational Rights
Marginal note:Language of instruction
23 (1) Citizens of Canada
(a) whose first language learned and still understood is that of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province in which they reside, or
(b) who have received their primary school instruction in Canada in English or French and reside in a province where the language in which they received that instruction is the language of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province,
have the right to have their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in that language in that province.End note (94)
Marginal note:Continuity of language instruction
(2) Citizens of Canada of whom any child has received or is receiving primary or secondary school instruction in English or French in Canada, have the right to have all their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in the same language.
Marginal note:Application where numbers warrant
(3) The right of citizens of Canada under subsections (1) and (2) to have their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in the language of the English or French linguistic minority population of a province
(a) applies wherever in the province the number of children of citizens who have such a right is sufficient to warrant the provision to them out of public funds of minority language instruction; and
(b) includes, where the number of those children so warrants, the right to have them receive that instruction in minority language educational facilities provided out of public funds.
Education minister maintains changes can still be made to immersion replacement
Bill Hogan defends the consultation process after one participant calls it a 'con job'
In the first of several public consultation sessions about New Brunswick's new approach to teaching French to anglophone students, Education Minister Bill Hogan said Monday night that he's eager for parents to participate and share their thoughts.
But he was called out by one participant who called the whole exercise a "con job."
Through Twitter, someone named Chris asked, "How can you possibly call this a consultation when you have cancelled [French immersion] registration and announced the plan before you consult?"
Hogan announced the changes to the way French is taught last month. The changes mean more French for non-immersion students, but less than immersion students currently receive.
Hogan
assured people the goverment will listen to their concerns during
consultations about French-language instruction in the province, and the
current plan can still be changed. (Government of New Brunswick/YouTube)
Hogan said he appreciated the "candour" of questioner Chris during the livestream on the government's YouTube channel.
But he said the department has been consulting various groups and individuals over the past year.
"We've also benefited from the findings of the outstanding consultation work that was done through the Official Languages [Act] review and the report on second-language learning," Hogan said. "We used all this information to develop a proposal."
And Hogan promised that "changes are coming."
"Let me be clear," he said. "There's still a chance for New Brunswickers to have their say."
Hogan reminded the audience about a number of public consultation sessions that will be held around the province, starting Tuesday:
-
Jan. 17 at the Gowan Brae Golf Club in Bathurst.
-
Jan. 19 at the Delta Beauséjour in Moncton.
-
Jan. 24 at the Delta Saint John.
-
Jan. 25 at the Delta Fredericton.
Each will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
There will also be two virtual sessions — one on Jan. 31 and the other on Feb. 2.
And online survey will continue to be available until Feb. 3. As of Monday morning, Hogan said, the department had received 6,500 responses.
Less French by middle school
With the new program, the percentage of instruction students will get in French will drop from 50 to 40 per cent when they reach grades 6 to 8 in middle school.
Under the existing immersion program, students receive 80 to 90 per cent of their instruction in French.
Students entering grades 2 to 12 in September who were already enrolled in French immersion can continue in that program through to high school graduation.
The changes will take place at the start of the 2023 school year, with final details of the plan to be announced this spring, following the public consultations.
Questions vetted in advance
The questions for last night's session with Hogan were submitted by people through social media and vetted by education officials in advance. Hogan's answers appeared to be scripted.
One of the questions came from someone who identified themselves as a New Brunswick teacher and, according to the moderator Tiffany Baskin, "[seems] to be a French immersion teacher."
The person wrote, "I don't want to teach oral French all day. I want to teach reading, writing, math, art, science, social studies and health. You will probably end up losing teachers with this new program."
In response, Hogan said there's been some confusion about "what an average day will look like."
He said students need "reading and writing experiences" in order to develop language skills.
"These skills will be developed through French-language arts and exploratory learning."
Students will be exposed to French in a variety of subjects "in fun and engaging ways," Hogan said. "This includes lots of play and learning activities."
Will all teachers have to be bilingual?
Another participant wanted to know who's going to teach all this in primary grades. She asked, "Are you now going to require all teachers to be bilingual?"
Hogan said no.
"We will continue to need English-speaking teachers for the portion of the day that students are learning in English."
But he acknowledged that "there will continue to be challenges when it comes to recruitment, retention and training of French second-language teachers."
He said more "professional development opportunities" will be created for existing teachers and the department will be "ramping up" recruitment efforts.
- N.B. radically rethinks French second-language education
- No French immersion could lead to weaker bilingual services, teacher association says
He said the department is already "working on an aggressive recruitment campaign over the past few months."
Officials are also trying to remove barriers for international recruitment, he said.
Hogan was also asked whether the department consulted the teachers' association, and he said the group had been involved since "early on in discussions."
"We've always asked them to be part of the process because we know how valuable their input is — particularly when it comes to issues of staffing. We very much want teachers and the teachers' associations to come to the table and to talk to us about what we're proposing."
Those with unique needs
Several parent expressed concerns about children who are already struggling with some basic concepts in English and worry the new model will just make it more difficult for them to succeed.
Hogan acknowledged there is "plenty of data that shows children with additional social, emotional or behavioural needs are currently disproportionately placed into the English prime program."
"This has been creating imbalances between classrooms, behavioural challenges and increased pressure regarding inclusive education practices for years."
Hogan said students who currently have personalized learning plans, known as PLPs, will continue to do so.
He was also asked what models were used to develop the proposed program.
Program tried out in 1990s
One of the prototypes was a program that was used in the anglophone north school district in the late 1990s and early 2000s that used a 50-50 split between English and French, Hogan said. The Grade 12 oral proficiency assessment results were among the highest in the province, with 97 per cent reaching the conversational level.
Hogan said students "even outperformed last year's graduating cohort of early immersion students."
At least two participants worried about how newcomers, especially those who speak anything other than French or English will be integrated into the new program.
Hogan said individual plans will be created "that address the specific needs of students," but he didn't offer any specifics.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/chris-collins-legislature-new-brunswick-1.6044697
"Collins filed a lawsuit, saying Gallant and the legislature abused their authority and breached his privacy and his employment contract, effectively ending his political career. Collins ran for re-election as an independent in 2018 and lost.
He claims Gallant's office revived an old allegation against him and pushed the legislature to act on it to punish Collins for rejecting a Liberal motion attacking then-Opposition leader Blaine Higgs."
Deja Vu Anyone???
Wes Gullison Interview
1 Comment
2018 New Brunswick Provincial Election Saint John Region Candidate Messages
Kris Austin, People's Alliance - Voice of the Province - February 20, 2020
Kris Austin, the leader of the People's Alliance of New Brunswick, joins us to talk about the current state of the New Brunswick government as it heads into a potentially turbulent March session.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oA1KzEXJMR8&t=2182s&ab_channel=Rogerstv
I take false arrest very personally Former Speaker Chris Collins can't sue N.B. Legislature, judge rules
Collins tried suing legislature over its handling of harassment allegations against him
Former Speaker Chris Collins can't sue the New Brunswick Legislature over how it handled harassment allegations against him, a Court of Queen's Bench justice has ruled.
Justice Terrence Morrison says the principle of parliamentary privilege, which has protected the independence of parliaments from other branches of government for centuries, applies in the Collins case.
"I can envision no greater a threat to the autonomy of the Legislative Assembly than outside interference into the discipline, sanction, and/or removal of one of its members," Morrison writes in the 25-page ruling.
Collins is also suing the provincial government and former premier Brian Gallant. The decision doesn't affect those parts of the lawsuit, which can continue.
The case centres on harassment allegations against Collins by a former employee that became public in April 2018.
A subsequent report by an independent investigator, commissioned by the legislature, found the complaint was "founded in part," and Collins later offered what he called a "complete and unreserved apology" in front of reporters.
But last April, Collins filed a lawsuit, saying Gallant and the legislature abused their authority and breached his privacy and his employment contract, effectively ending his political career. Collins ran for re-election as an independent in 2018 and lost.
He claims Gallant's office revived an old allegation against him and pushed the legislature to act on it to punish Collins for rejecting a Liberal motion attacking then-Opposition leader Blaine Higgs.
The suit against Gallant and the provincial government can still go ahead. (CBC)
Morrison's ruling cites a 2020 Ontario Court of Appeal ruling on Senator Mike Duffy's lawsuit against the Senate over its handling of his expense claims. The court ruled that the Senate's proceedings were privileged and it could not be sued.
The Supreme Court of Canada later refused to hear Duffy's appeal of that decision.
Morrison says in his decision that the facts in the Duffy case are "strikingly similar" to the Collins case.
Duffy argued that interference by then-prime minister Stephen Harper's office in the Senate investigation of his expenses meant that parliamentary privilege no longer applied, an argument the Ontario Court of Appeal rejected.
Collins made a similar argument about Gallant's alleged role in influencing the actions of the clerk and deputy clerk of the legislature, as well as the legislative administration committee which oversees discipline cases.
The legislature's lawyer Jamie Eddy persuaded him that Collins's allegations "fall within the scope of the established parliamentary privilege over discipline of its members, authority over its internal affairs and authority over its internal parliamentary procedure," Morrison wrote.
Collins was ordered to pay $2,000 for the legislature's legal costs.
Gallant has disputed Collins's claims in his own statement of defence.
There is no date yet for when the remaining part of the lawsuit would go to trial.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Too Too Funny
Chris Collins (@ChrisCollins506) / Twitter
Automatic reply: YO Nathalie Drouin Methinks David Lametti and his many minions must know all about at least 3 Interesting hits when one Google's 3 words "David Amos Lawsuit" N'esy Pas?
Premier of Ontario | Premier ministre de l’Ontario<Premier@ontario.ca> | Sat, Jan 21, 2023 at 12:04 PM | ||||||||
| To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com> | |||||||||
Thank you for your email. Your thoughts, comments and input are greatly valued. You can be assured that all emails and letters are carefully read, reviewed and taken into consideration.
There may be occasions when, given the issues you have raised and the need to address them effectively, we will forward a copy of your correspondence to the appropriate government official. Accordingly, a response may take several business days. Thanks again for your email. ______
Merci pour votre courriel. Nous vous sommes très reconnaissants de nous avoir fait part de vos idées, commentaires et observations. Nous tenons à vous assurer que nous lisons attentivement et prenons en considération tous les courriels et lettres que nous recevons. Dans certains cas, nous transmettrons votre message au ministère responsable afin que les questions soulevées puissent être traitées de la manière la plus efficace possible. En conséquence, plusieurs jours ouvrables pourraient s’écouler avant que nous puissions vous répondre. Merci encore pour votre courriel. | |||||||||
Premier<PREMIER@novascotia.ca> | Sat, Jan 21, 2023 at 12:03 PM |
| To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com> | |
Thank you for your email to Premier Houston. This is an automatic confirmation your message has been received. | |
YO Nathalie Drouin Methinks David Lametti and his many minions must know all about at least 3 Interesting hits when one Google's 3 words "David Amos Lawsuit" N'esy Pas?
David Amos<david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com> | Sat, Jan 21, 2023 at 12:03 PM |
| To: Nathalie.G.Drouin@pco-bcp.gc.ca, Marco.Mendicino@parl.gc.ca, "blaine.higgs" <blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, georges.r.savoie@neguac.com, "David.Coon" <David.Coon@gnb.ca>, "kris.austin" <kris.austin@gnb.ca>, "Rene.Legacy" <Rene.Legacy@gnb.ca>, "robert.mckee" <robert.mckee@gnb.ca>, "Robert. Jones" <Robert.Jones@cbc.ca>, jbosse3058@gmail.com, "robert.gauvin" <robert.gauvin@gnb.ca>, "Dorothy.Shephard" <Dorothy.Shephard@gnb.ca>, "charles.murray" <charles.murray@gnb.ca>, Ross.Wetmore@gnb.ca, "Bill.Oliver" <Bill.Oliver@gnb.ca>, "Bill.Hogan" <Bill.Hogan@gnb.ca>, rob.moore@parl.gc.ca, John.williamson@parl.gc.ca, kerri.froc@unb.ca, hugh.flemming@gnb.ca, "Mike.Comeau" <Mike.Comeau@gnb.ca>, "Mark.Blakely" <Mark.Blakely@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, "martin.gaudet" <martin.gaudet@fredericton.ca>, "Holland, Mike (LEG)" <mike.holland@gnb.ca>, "Michelle.Boutin" <Michelle.Boutin@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, mcu <mcu@justice.gc.ca>, "Bill.Blair" <Bill.Blair@parl.gc.ca>, "Bev.Busson" <Bev.Busson@sen.parl.gc.ca>, "Mitton, Megan (LEG)" <megan.mitton@gnb.ca>, "michelle.conroy" <michelle.conroy@gnb.ca>, "andrea.anderson-mason" <andrea.anderson-mason@gnb.ca>, andre <andre@jafaust.com>, Dominic.Cardy@gnb.ca, news@dailygleaner.com, oldmaison@yahoo.com, jbosnitch@gmail.com, "Arseneau, Kevin (LEG)" <kevin.a.arseneau@gnb.ca>, kevin.leahy@rcmp-grc.gc.ca, ministryofjustice <ministryofjustice@gov.ab.ca>, premier <premier@gov.ab.ca>, "Jacques.Poitras" <Jacques.Poitras@cbc.ca> | |
| Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, "pierre.poilievre" <pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca>, pm <pm@pm.gc.ca>, "Katie.Telford" <Katie.Telford@pmo-cpm.gc.ca>, "jagmeet.singh" <jagmeet.singh@parl.gc.ca>, premier <premier@ontario.ca>, Office of the Premier <scott.moe@gov.sk.ca>, premier <premier@gov.bc.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nt.ca>, premier <premier@gov.yk.ca>, premier <premier@gov.pe.ca>, premier <premier@leg.gov.mb.ca>, PREMIER <PREMIER@gov.ns.ca>, premier <premier@gov.nl.ca> | |
---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Ministerial Correspondence Unit - Justice Canada <mcu@justice.gc.ca> Date: Sat, 21 Jan 2023 01:13:31 +0000 Subject: Automatic Reply To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail. Thank you for writing to the Honourable David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. Due to the volume of correspondence addressed to the Minister, please note that there may be a delay in processing your email. Rest assured that your message will be carefully reviewed. We do not respond to correspondence that contains offensive language. ------------------- Merci d'avoir écrit à l'honorable David Lametti, ministre de la Justice et procureur général du Canada. En raison du volume de correspondance adressée au ministre, veuillez prendre note qu'il pourrait y avoir un retard dans le traitement de votre courriel. Nous tenons à vous assurer que votre message sera lu avec soin. Nous ne répondons pas à la correspondance contenant un langage offensant. Deja Vu Anyone??? https://www.cbc.ca/news/ Forestry professor was fired for harassment and discrimination, college says Maritime College of Forest Technology alleges Rod Cumberland made sexist remarks and belittled students CBC News · Posted: Jan 17, 2020 4:04 PM AST "Rod Cumberland was fired from the Maritime College of Forest Technology on June 20 of last year. (CBC) A biologist teaching at the Maritime College of Forest Technology was fired for harassing his students and colleagues, making sexist and discriminatory comments and undermining his colleagues' authority, according to court documents filed by his former employer. Rod Cumberland, who's now a People's Alliance Party candidate for the Saint-Croix byelection, was terminated from his teaching position at the college on June 20, 2019. Cumberland filed a wrongful dismissal lawsuit against the Maritime College of Forest Technology on Nov. 18, 2019, saying he was fired for expressing his views on the forest industry's use of the herbicide glyphosate." 74 Comments David Raymond Amos Methinks whereas Paul Champ should remember my concerns with his litigation about ladies versus the RCMP he should go to Federal Court the next time he is in Fat Fred City and pull docket No T-1557-15 and start reading N'esy Pas? David Raymond Amos Methinks if I were the lawyer acting on behalf of the Maritime College of Forest Technology I would have surprised Paul Champ and David McMath with a counterclaim stating those things but what do I know I am just a layman who loves to sue lawyers N'esy Pas? David Raymond Amos Reply to @David Raymond Amos: In my humble opinion this is a lawsuit filed to support Cumberland's bid for public office Methinks is the reverse of what I have done in the past Many politicians and lawyers know that I ran for public office with no false illusions about ever being electing in order to shed light on the reasons for my litigation N'esy Pas? https://encyclopediadramatica. David Raymond Amos AKA Gandalf The Kray-zay (born 1600 A.D.) is an old-ass troll from way, wayyyy back in the pen and paper days of trolling; writing to various authority figures and officials in Canada and The United States about shit nobody cares about. Now that he has upgraded to the internet, he is a constant fucking nuisance to everyone in existence who just happen to get their e-mail address collected by this sick loony fuck. Everyone from Stephen Harper, to the RCMP, to Justin Trudeau has added David Amos's e-mail address to the block list. David contacts them for various transgressions ranging from a conspiracy involving slaughtered cows being killed by vampires to a shitty racist old geezer's blog because he said mean things about him. (No really!) The many lengthy e-mails he sends are filled with various idiosyncrasies ranging from saying "HOKA HAY" to calling everybody by some odd pet name. For example: John Smith would be "Johnny-Baby Smith." Clearly the thought process of an unmedicated retard. Google his phone number: (because he just LOVES posting that the fucking idiot) 1-902-800-0369 and see the number of people complaining about being crank called by this fucking moron. It's hilarious. https://groups.google.com/g/ David R Amos Fights Back!!! 172 views Subscribe teslacoils2006's profile photo teslacoils2006 Dec 24, 2006, 4:26:54 PM to For the record Date: Mon, 30 Oct 2006 14:11:03 -0800 (PST) From: "David Amos" Subject:Fwd: Sgt Vaillancourt just talked byway of 506 452 3431 now I will take a guess at his email address To:mle...@stu.ca, jwa...@stu.ca, pl...@stu.ca, carl...@stu.ca, oldm...@yahoo.com, kelly....@gnb.ca http://www.charlesinthehouse. Everybody knows that Chucky Leblanc wasn't the only dude covertly banished from the Legislative Buildling. How come he get all the press I must ask? Perhaps you should ask his old pal and your cohort Kelly Lamrock what gives with this shit sometime N'est Pas? Hell everyone in your University knows that I was illegally evicted from the polling station at the Student Union Building on January 23rd. Tell me what would Stevey Boy Harper do if that had happened to him? Sue? Am I any less of a man than the Prime Minister.or the French man you and your students support? Now Computer WCIE should search the Blogs Chucky. Live by the sword. Die by the sword so to speak EH? Veritas Vincit David Raymond Amos http://www1.gnb.ca/legis/ etc etc etc | |
No comments:
Post a Comment