Plan Twenty Thirteen (2013): Strategies for a National Approach in Second Language Education (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Plan Twenty Thirteen (2013): Strategies for a National Approach in Second Language Education Sharon Lapkin Rehorick, S. (Principal Consultant) . (2004). Plan Twenty Thirteen (2013): Strategies for a National Approach in Second Language Education. Ottawa: Official Languages Support Programs, Department of Canadian Heritage. Pp. 100. Available at <http://www.pch.gc.ca/progs/lo-ol/pubs/plan-2013/plan_2013_e.pdf>. This report follows up on the federal government's The Next Act: New Momentum for Canada's Linguistic Duality (2003), which identified its chief goal as doubling the proportion of graduates from Canadian high schools with a functional knowledge of their second official language by 2013. The purpose of the report is to outline concrete steps that would make this ambitious goal attainable. Sally Rehorick coordinated an 'expert consultative team' that included Gérard Bissonnette, Helen Coltrinari, Susan Forward, Alina MacFarlane, and Miles Turnbull, who brought classroom and research expertise to the team. Rehorick explains in the introductory section that her challenge was to 'find a way to do things "differently" in second language education' (p. 2). She articulates two questions to guide the inquiry: (1) What would it take to reach the 2013 goal? and (2) What would we do if we did everything right? The study spanned only four months, from January through April 2004. The method was principally document analysis and interviews, and the study was informed by the considerable expertise of the six-person consultative team. Driven by the main goals of improving achievement and increasing enrolment (reducing attrition), the team identified five priority areas outlined in The Next Act: • Improve core French and core English programs • Increase the number of qualified teachers • Give new life to French immersion • Promote research in second language education • Offer bilingual graduates the opportunity to put their bilingual skills to use and improve bursary and monitor programs [End Page 587] The report is presented in five sections. Part A serves as an executive summary of the report; Part B describes the study; Part C offers recommendations under six headings called 'strategy focuses' (1) a priori/overarching; (2) program improvement and support/making French real; (3) program improvement and support/core English; (4) program improvement and support/post-secondary, teacher development; (5) program improvement and support/new information and communication technologies; (6) research). Part D summarizes the recommendations, and Part E lists the technical reports consulted. For each recommendation, an approximate timeline is specified. Space does not permit a detailed account of the 54 well-rationalized recommendations of the report. Concrete and feasible suggestions for implementation accompany each one. To provide the flavour of these, I have selected several examples. Priority 2 in the overarching category reads: 'Define "functional knowledge" and determine if this is a "reasonable goal" for FSL programs' (p. 22). This need has been evident ever since core French was introduced in schools; yet until a recent small-scale but important study in Alberta (Evaluation Plus, 2005), it has not been attempted in any systematic way. The Rehorick report's suggested implementation strategy calls for testing a stratified random sample of graduates of FSL programs using the Public Service Commission of Canada's proficiency tests to identify 'which programs currently result in graduates with a "working knowledge" of their second language' (p. 22). It would also provide a baseline for assessing progress toward the 2013 goal at various points. Recommendation 8 in the same section promotes the development of a marketing strategy 'to create a "buzz" to demonstrate that bilingualism is necessary and fun' (p. 31). Included are television spots and a Web site with links for every type of stakeholder (parents, educators, provincial departments of education) on the theme 'be a Canadian, be bilingual.' As a researcher, I was pleased to see recommendation 51, to establish an arm's-length Second Official Language Research Agency of Canada (SOLRAC) to oversee and support the research that necessarily accompanies all the initiatives funded by Plan 2013. The agency would identify key areas of research, act as a clearinghouse for information, and set parameters for research funding, along with several other functions. Core English finds a place in the report too: Recommendation 28 proposes to 'develop a standardized ESL...