Your story in the Jan. 27 issue on parents lining up overnight for places in French Immersion classes got me thinking about this subject. We spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in our educational system on the teaching of French. In my view, this is money poorly spent. Very few students in Western Canada will ever get jobs because they speak French.
What we should be teaching in our schools in B.C. is Mandarin, Cantonese and Japanese. This would fit much better into the present and future needs of people who will be involved in trade and commerce with Pacific Rim nations. The only places that French is really needed is if you live in Quebec or intend to get a job in Ottawa. Otherwise this is still and always will be an English speaking country.
Reed Elley
Chemainus