For immediate release :  April 23, 2025

Canadian Parents for French Releases French as a Second Language Enrollment Statistics 2018-2019 to 2022-2023 for French Immersion Day 2025

April 23, 2025 – On French Immersion Day, April 23, CPF is releasing the latest French as a Second Language Enrolment Statistics (2018-2019 to 2022-2023). These findings underscore both the progress and challenges facing FSL education in New Brunswick and across Canada.

French Immersion is a success story, with 66% of individuals who participated for one or more years continuing to speak French into adulthood, highlighting the program’s lasting impact on bilingualism and potential to strengthen Canada’s linguistic diversity.

Despite its success, the statistics reveal that enrolment rates in Canada have stagnated, with French Immersion participation holding steady at approximately 11% for over five years. This stagnation raises urgent concerns about advancing bilingualism and limits the potential of students who are unable to access these opportunities.

56% of eligible students in Canada are not enrolled in any French Second Language program, underscoring a significant gap in accessibility and participation.

Between 2022-2023 in New Brunswick, 85.7% of students are placed in FSL programs with a total of 62,633 students: 33.5% in French Immersion with a total of 24,471 students, 52.2% in Core French with a total of 38,162 students. The eligible number of students enrolled in English-language school boards who might qualify for FSL programs in NB is 73,068.

Canada, including each province and territory, needs to create ambitious targets to ensure more youth have access to FSL programs including French Immersion—being bilingual in Canada’s official languages is central to Canadian identity. Ask the question: How do we achieve 20% enrolment in French Immersion in the next 10 years?’

Please find the full statistics here.

Read the full press release here.

Lisez le communiqué de presse complet en français.

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Canadian Parents for French is the national network of volunteers which values French as an integral part of Canada and which is dedicated to the promotion and creation of French-second-language learning opportunities for young Canadians. There are currently more than 25,000 members across Canada.

 

For more information, please contact:

Mira Rose Savran, Communications Coordinator (Atlantic Region),

Email: communications@ns.cpf.ca