Who Attends Ontarios French-Language Schools?
Section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms defines the right of Canadian citizens of the English-speaking or French-speaking minority of a province to educate their children in that minority language, wherever numbers warrant. In Ontario, the following have the right to have their children educated in French at the elementary and secondary school levels in Ontario: • Canadian citizens residing in Ontario whose first language learned and still understood is French • Canadian citizens residing in Ontario who received their elementary-level education in French, here or elsewhere in Canada • Canadian citizens who have a child who received, or who is receiving, his or her education in French at the elementary or secondary level, here or elsewhere in Canada Under the Education Act of Ontario, it is also possible for children whose parents do not meet the criteria of Section 23 of the Charter to be admitted to a French-language school if they receive permission from the school’
