Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Members of Parliament, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the entire Franco-Saskatchewanian school community, allow me to convey our best wishes.
I sincerely thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak on behalf of the Conseil des écoles fransaskoises, known in brief as the CEFSK.
Our presence here is motivated by a strong desire to see the Official Languages Act modernized, especially with respect to early childhood education in a minority situation. We have a brief, and it has already been translated into both official languages. The title is “Help! The Franco-Saskatchewanian community is at the mercy of assimilative policies of the Government of Saskatchewan and Parliament is missing the call”.
Therefore, the CEFSK would like to take this opportunity to share with you the pressing challenges that it is currently facing in early childhood education. These challenges must be tackled.
The first part of the brief that we are presenting today deals with the legislative framework for early childhood education in Saskatchewan. The second part covers the challenges that the CEFSK is faced with in early childhood education. Lastly, the third part of our brief contains a proposal for amending the Official Languages Act.
In short, it is critically important that federal funding for the Franco-Saskatchewanian community be used effectively to fill the gaps created by the legislative structure adopted by the Province of Saskatchewan. It is with this in mind that we are today emphasizing the paramount importance of modernizing the Official Languages Act.