‘Ottawa’ Trustees Respond as Parents Plea for neighbourhood Schools, English-language Instruction
Parents made their case to public school trustees Tuesday to save English-language programs at their neighbourhood schools, even when those programs have been dwarfed by the popularity of French immersion.
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board is debating a plan that would guide the organization of elementary schools. The document has alarmed some parents who fear it could mean the consolidation of some English programs into specialized schools.
Several parents made impassioned pleas on behalf of maintaining “dual-track” neighbourhood schools that offer both French immersion and English programs.
“We teach our children inclusiveness, and single-track schools do not represent the ideals of diversity and accessible education for all, ” said Susan Dallin O’Grady, who has a daughter in French immersion and a son in the English program at Hopewell Avenue Public School.