Definitely, the work that many of the elementary schools are doing around early learning and across the elementary grades in language learning has been great. Notably, at Rossignol Elementary Community School in Sakitawak—Île-à-la-Crosse—they are doing phenomenal work. I had the opportunity to visit their pre-K kindergarten classroom, and it was just wonderful to see the teachers, who were also speakers, talking to these children completely in the language. Even though the children were not able to respond, they understood exactly what they were being asked to do.
While these are all really great steps, the issues come in when the language isn't being supported in the home and in the communities. We're getting a lot of great things happening within schools, but we have to do more so that the children are immersed in this language, not just in schools but in their homes, so that there are.... I believe Ms. Alphonse was talking about the language nest initiatives that have been very successful with the Maori. That is about supporting language in the home and in the community as well. It gives opportunities for more than just the students in terms of reconciliation with the greater population if other people have access to these language opportunities.