Costs: French Language Instructional Units. An In-Depth Study of Selected School Boards

This report summarizes the results of a research project on the cost of providing instruction in French to students enrolled in French language instructional units in Ontario. Case studies were carried out in seven Ontario school boards consisting of four secondary and seven elementary panels chosen to present a range of geographical environments, population ratios, and enrollment sizes. The case studies considered Francophone educational needs in each locality, the level of services offered, and the associated costs. Estimates of per pupil expenditure for different types of service in all of the schools studied (slightly less than 300) were obtained. Three major outcomes of the study are presented. First, the researchers have defined a general theoretical framework for costing educational services for a linguistic minority. Second, the differential costs of instruction for different types of schools are analyzed both within and between school boards at the elementary and secondary level. Third, major areas are outlined in which, despite existing provincial subsidies, Franco-Ontarians have unmet educational needs and potentially suffer from a position of inequality in comparison with English-speaking persons. (Author/IRT)