Good morning, Mr. Chair.

Thanks to the members of the committee for having me here.

My name is Heidi Yetman and I am the president of the Canadian Teachers' Federation, which represents almost 370,000 teachers in the public sector all across Canada. I am also a graduate of a French first language school in Saint-Boniface, in Winnipeg. I am therefore an example of someone who has benefited from the francophone minority education system in Canada. From 2019 to 2023, I was also the president of the Association provinciale des enseignantes et des enseignants du Québec, which represents the teaching personnel in the anglophone minority community's public schools.

At the Federation, we have a Francophonie program, an advisory committee on French first language, and a network of francophone liaison officers. Of course, all of the Federation's programs incorporate Francophonie components and all services and events are offered in both official languages.

At present, the priorities of our Francophonie program are focused on combatting the teacher shortage. This is a major problem for the future of our schools. Another of our priorities is providing support and professional integration for teachers who are recent immigrants.

In the spring of 2024, our francophone network reported that the main challenge was the shortage of qualified francophone teachers everywhere in Canada. This serious shortage is jeopardizing services to students, damaging their learning conditions and threatening the survival of some francophone schools, mainly in rural areas.

Enrolment in French-language schools continues to rise, which is good news. However, the significant increase in the number of students also comes with major challenges and a glaring shortage of resources. In rural areas, it is very difficult to retain students in the francophone network since the anglophone schools offer more options and more services.

The provinces and territories introduce new programs with very few pedagogical resources or supporting materials in French. In my experience, I can tell you that there is also a shortage of pedagogical materials in English in Quebec. Plainly, the resources allocated to French schools, to provide an education of equivalent quality withinin the systems, are insufficient by far.

In November, I participated in the Conférence des associations francophones d'éducation. After that event ended, a statement was published regarding the shortage of teaching personnel that concluded as follows:

[Translation] This situation is no longer merely a challenge; it is an emergency for both the future of our educational systems and the flourishing of French and its cultures. We cannot remain indifferent to this crisis, which has a direct impact on the future of our children and our communities.

The Fédération nationale des conseils scolaires francophones, which is represented here today at this meeting, is a partner in education. It has identified a number of priorities for strengthening its network, including increasing financial support from the federal government, building schools and modernizing existing ones, developing the education continuum from early childhood to postsecondary, and combating the teacher shortage. The actions arising from those priorities will add to the impact and sustainability of francophone identity all across Canada and ensure equitable access to a high quality education for all learners.

The budget envelopes allocated by the federal government under the official languages in education program have remained substantially the same since 2009, while the number of students has grown steadily and the needs are increasingly urgent.

We not only need more investments in teaching the minority languages; we also need more transparency as to how this money is spent. That is why it is essential that stakeholders be consulted.

Today, I am proud to convey the heartfelt plea of francophone teachers and I urge you to hear their appeal.

I hope I have stayed within my allotted five minutes.