Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I'd like to begin by thanking you for having invited the Association des enseignantes et des enseignants franco-ontariens to take part in this study.

I am here today as the president of the AEFO, a francophone union that has approximately 12,000 members and that represents Ontario elementary and high school teachers in both Catholic and public high schools, in addition to professional and support staff at various francophone workplaces.

The AEFO is interested in French-language post-secondary education in Ontario from two different standpoints.

Firstly, as a stakeholder in francophone Ontario, the AEFO strongly believes that francophone post-secondary educational institutions are essential to provide an education continuum that will enable our students to be educated entirely in French right up until they enter the labour market.

In addition to promoting equitable program offerings in French, the French-language minority post-secondary environment would do well to operate on the principle of management by and for francophones. This would make them the linchpins of governance for their educational institutions. It's essential not only to make sure that these educational institutions are accessible, but also that they support the creation of knowledge within minority language communities by focusing on research.

Then, as a key player in the Franco-Ontarian school system, the AEFO wants sound post-secondary education programs for the training of a skilled workforce, particularly among its members. Undergraduate programs provide students for faculties of education and enable future teachers of mathematics, science, history, French, and other subjects to acquire the required core knowledge. If programs like these are abandoned, there will eventually be serious repercussions on our schools.

The AEFO and the school board associations worked together in the fall of 2020 to develop an overview of qualified teacher shortages in our French-language schools and to find solutions to the problem. One thing is clear, and that is that the shortages stem in large part from decisions on the structure of programs, and the number of places available, in faculties of education. French-language schools in Ontario need approximately 940 new teachers per year, whereas the faculties of education are graduating an average of only 480, because of the limited funding they are receiving.

French-language faculties of education that do not receive special funding to offset the smaller numbers and the resulting higher costs, have had to stop offering certain programs, leading to school boards no longer having access to qualified teachers in certain fields.

Based on the analyses produced by the group in connection with its work last fall, the estimates show that if no action is taken, more than 2,500 unqualified people will be assigned teaching tasks in Franco-Ontarian schools by 2025, and will account for nearly one-quarter of total staff. When that happens, it will no longer be possible to speak about equivalent program availability in the minority language, as guaranteed by section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

In February 2021, the working group I just mentioned presented a report to the Minister of Education that contained 37 recommendations, some of which were directly relevant to program funding.

Among other things, it recommended funding for the measures required to ensure the annual availability of an additional 520 certified teachers. This could involve adding places in faculties of education with teacher education programs in French.

It further recommends targeted funding for faculties of education for a teacher education program in French so that they can develop programs in several sections for all levels, as well as technology training, and that these programs be available virtually in all parts of the province, with due regard to the realities of the Franco-Ontarian education context.

It also recommends targeted funding to ensure course offerings in all intermediate and senior level methodology subjects, in technology education, and for small class courses.

The final recommendation is for funding to provide incentives for people who need to, or who are willing to, complete their teacher training in remote areas.

The working group partners are still impatiently waiting for a response to the report from the Ontario government. We hope that the proposals will be acted upon and the necessary funding provided.

To conclude, French-language education, from early childhood to post-secondary, is essential to the survival of francophone minority communities because it contributes to their preservation and development.

Thank you very much for your time.

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