The benefits of a bilingual education

TFS is the only full-continuum International Baccalaureate world school For French and English in Canada. The school teaches the curriculums of France and Ontario.IMAGE COURTESY OF TFS
Having a strong proficiency in two languages has shown to improve cognitive flexibility and executive functioning skills
In an increasingly interconnected world, more parents are looking at private schools that offer an international mindset in which young people are taught to think globally and develop skills to excel across different cultures.
Toronto French School (TFS) – Canada’s International School is the only full-continuum International Baccalaureate world school for French and English in Canada. Its students receive a globally recognized curriculum, and go on to experience diverse cultural environments post-graduation.
Having a strong proficiency in two languages gives students a leg up in life. The National Library of Medicine in the U.S. analyzed studies on the “bilingual advantage theory,” diving into whether bilingual individuals have better executive functioning skills. Some studies conclude that it does, particularly when it comes to cognitive flexibility. A 2023 article in the Developmental Review journal referenced numerous studies that supported the hypothesis that bilingual children outperformed monolingual children on tests of executive functions.
Ann François, principal of La p’tite école (pre-kindergarten to Grade 1) at TFS, is firmly in the camp of those who see the benefits of bilingual education. “It is the foundation of intercultural intelligence,” she says. “But becoming bilingual also has an immense impact on students’ brain development. Their brains learn to ignore irrelevant information because they need to turn off one language when using another. Brain plasticity increases.
“Learning French increases their capacity to learn English as the students develop a metalinguistic awareness of language that they can then apply to English. And our students don’t just learn French, they learn in French, so it is the instructional language for many subjects and courses, and that continues until graduation.”
TFS opened in 1962, and has two campuses serving 1,500 students, from age two to university entrance – a campus in Toronto for age two to Grade 12, and one in Mississauga for pre-kindergarten to Grade 7. The TFS Alumni Association is comprised of more than 3,100 alumni currently living in 31 countries around the globe.
The school teaches the curriculums of France and Ontario within the framework of all three International Baccalaureate programs, which has an international perspective infused at all ages and stages. Educators are international, many coming from Francophone countries, as are the students’ families, in total speaking more than 40 different languages.
“Seeing beyond our city, province and country is a necessity in our world, which is becoming even more tightly bound together,” Francois says. “How do we understand each other and collaborate? This is where intercultural intelligence comes into play.”
A well-rounded education is critical. By participating in a broad and diverse range of activities in class and through co-curricular activities, students learn to push through challenges, find their passions and interests, and collaborate with others in many different situations. Those are essential skills in the age we all live in.
“Trips, journeys and so on start at a very young age. Every March, a group of Grade 1 students go to Paris for a week,” François adds.
“Whether they are local, regional or international, our students are immersed in other places, cultures, experiences and ways of being. We want them to be in the world, not just within our walls, studying. Our alumni routinely tell us how well-prepared they are when starting their university studies.”
Advertising feature produced by Globe Content Studio. The Globe’s editorial department was not involved.
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