French Immersion Program Update
One-third of Lakeland Catholic Schools students are enrolled in the division’s French Immersion program.
According to French Language Coordinator, Jacqueline Dargis-Boucher, that is worth celebrating.
“There are approximately 640 students who are currently studying in French Immersion. That is such a large percentage of our families that have chosen French Immersion for their children.”
Lakeland Catholic currently offers French Immersion in seven of its eight schools.
In addition to providing highlights on how her role supports staff, Dargis-Boucher also outlined how her efforts are directly connected to the provincial-based education goal of Student Growth and Achievement, and division-based goals of Catholic-Christian Identity, Equity and Inclusion, and Student Success.
According to the Schollie Survey, 80 per cent of teachers are satisfied with the instructional support provided at the school-level in French curriculum, while 80 per cent of teachers are also satisfied with the school-level resources and assistance offered for instructional support in French Immersion.
Students enrolled in the French Immersion program in Grade 7-12 were also surveyed, with 75 per cent satisfied with the program. Parents of that same age group were close to 80 per cent satisfied.
“We should be proud of our French Immersion program. There are some truly talented teachers,” Dargis-Boucher expressed.
Over the course of the school year, Dargis-Boucher has provided coaching and mentoring, as well as professional development to teachers, PAT sessions with Grade 6 teachers, Empowering Writers Workshop for Kindergarten to Grade 4 teachers at Light of Christ, supported with DELF exams, and DELF training, among others.
Dargis-Boucher noted, moving forward, French Immersion teachers would benefit from additional professional development, the implementation of new curriculum for FILAL Grades 4 to 6, and support teachers and administrators in all curricular areas.
English as an Additional Language Learners Update
Graeson Rogers, English as an Additional Language Learners (EALL) Coordinator, shared the successes the program has seen this school year.
There are 300 EALL students enrolled across the division, making up about 11 per cent of the student population.
Rogers noted, 19 countries and languages are represented, with the majority of these students coming from Philippines, India, and Ukraine.
Students in Grades 3 through 12 were surveyed about their satisfaction of the program. These results have remained consistent from last year, with growth experienced in the overall satisfaction for teachers and support staff.
In the 2023-24 school year, professional development was provided regarding vocabulary development, language acquisition, Universal Design for EALL students in the classroom, and the upcoming implementation of Benchmarks 2.0.
These benchmarks, Rogers said, assess initial and ongoing language proficiency, inform instruction and programming, and monitor and report language proficiency growth.
The division’s partnership with Action for Healthy Communities has continued this year, and includes offering programs to EALL students inside and outside of the school setting.
In order to expand their community, the division organized a bowling trip for Grade 10 to 12 EALL students from NDHS and AJSH. This was in conjunction with Lakeland Catholic’s Mental Health Matters Campaign, emphasizing the importance of being active, trying new sports, and socializing and the impact it has on mental wellness.
Lakeland Catholic could build on professional development, support teachers as they prepare for the implementation of Benchmark 2.0, and improve instruction to continue to meet the needs of all learners., noted Rogers.
Mental Health Project
Lakeland Catholic is offering mental health supports to students and their families through the Mental Wellness in Schools program.
The Mental Health Project, working with community partners, offers supports and learning opportunities to students, schools, and families.
The project is aligned with six key conditions in supporting mental health in schools. This includes reducing stigma, shared understanding around common language, evidence-informed collaborative approaches, collaboration between community partners and the school division, improving upon current system mental health processes and procedures, and creating more access to mental health wellness programs, among others.
“We partnered with FCSS in Bonnyville, Cold Lake, and Lac La Biche, and with the Dragonfly Centre... With our pilot project, we had each FCSS hire a Wellness Facilitator, who create lessons on topics that are then delivered to the classes in the schools,” Rainey explained.
The division also hired their own Mental Health Navigators for Bonnyville, Cold Lake, and Lac La Biche. These navigators work with the school community to develop programming and sessions that are offered in collaboration with community partners to ensure targeted, universal, and individualized programming that aligns to the specific needs in each school and community.
“Every school is unique, they all have their own unique dynamic,” Rainey said, adding this is why it is so important to focus on the needs of each school individually.
Some of the universal topics include healthy friendships, healthy relationships, healthy bodies, healthy boundaries, online safety, personal safety, resilience, emotional coping skills, and identifying where individuals can turn for help.
The division has also offered Parent Sessions, but there has been limited participation, Rainey noted.
Topics have varied and include Kids Have Stress Too, Parent Strategies, Positive Discipline, and Co-Parenting.
The Dragonfly Centre provides targeted support through early intervention and assist school staff with the identification of students with high needs. The organization also offers individualized supports including counselling at each school one day of the week.
“That has been unbelievably helpful,” Rainey stated. “Kids love them, schools love them.”
Through the pilot project, the division is also trying to enroll students in the Community Helpers Program, which offers youth training to help reduce stigma and provide immediate and appropriate responses to individuals experiencing a mental health crisis with the goal of supporting access to and connection with community partners and resources.
All of this information and more will be submitted to Alberta Education in June, Rainey said. So far, the provincial government has been impressed with the number of sessions the division has already been able to provide in schools.