Instruction in the Minority Official Language – 2021 Census promotional material

Quick facts

• The 2021 Census of Population provides new data on the children eligible for instruction in the minority official language at the primary and secondary levels, based on the three criteria established by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
• In 2021, 897,000 children were eligible for instruction in the minority official language at the primary and secondary levels, namely in English in Quebec (304,000) and in French in Canada outside Quebec (593,000).
• Among the provinces and territories in Canada outside Quebec, Ontario (350,000), Alberta (67,000), British Columbia (56,000), New Brunswick (49,000) and Manitoba (30,000) had the highest population of children eligible for instruction in French.
• Among the provinces and territories, New Brunswick (36.0%), Quebec (18.1%), Yukon (14.1%) and Ontario (12.6%) had the largest proportions of children eligible for instruction in the minority official language. About 1 in 10 children (10.5%) were eligible for instruction in French in Canada outside Quebec.
• Across Canada, over 90% of eligible children were living within 15 kilometres of a minority official language school.
• In Canada outside Quebec, 292,000 school-aged children attended a regular French program at a primary or secondary French-language school in Canada, representing 64.7% of eligible children aged 5 to 17. This proportion was higher in New Brunswick (80.6%) and Yukon (71.0%), but lower in British Columbia (55.7%), Newfoundland and Labrador (54.2%) and Alberta (49.6%). In Quebec, 175,000 school-aged children attended an English primary or secondary school in Canada, representing 76.2% of eligible children aged 5 to 17 in this province.
• The new data on language of instruction show that, among persons in Canada outside Quebec aged 5 years and older, almost 1.2 million studied in a regular French program in a French-language school, 1.6 million in a French immersion program, and 137,000 in both types of programs.
• Nearly 1 million people aged 5 and older living in Quebec at the time of the 2021 Census studied at an English primary or secondary school in Canada.

Resources

• The Daily- 897,000 children are eligible for instruction in the minority official language in Canada)

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