Canada is officially a bilingual country. Everyone has to learn French in school. All government services are available in English or French. All our packaging, from clothing to cereal boxes, must be in English and French. Most people, however, can barely put a sentence together in French.

We’re missing one of the key factors in successfully learning a language: motivation. We don’t have to learn French. There are small communities across Canada that speak French, but mostly the French-speaking people are located in one place – the province of Quebec. Most Canadians rarely, if ever, come into contact with a French speaker or need to speak French. English is the dominant language around the world so, unless someone wants to work for the Canadian government or in Quebec, we don’t need to learn French. It’s nice to learn a language, but we don’t really need to.

For most people, it’s another boring subject they have to struggle through to finish school (although students who are highly motivated can go to a ‘French immersion’ school, where every subject is taught in French!). Most Canadians speak a dialect jokingly called “shampoo-bottle French” or “cereal-box French” because for most Canadians those are the only places they see French – on a shampoo bottle in the shower or on a cereal box at breakfast!

Canada has been a bilingual country since its founding. The country was colonized by both the English and the French (it’s a big country, so there’s lots of room for everyone!). French and English settlements grew up side by side. Eventually the French were defeated in a series of wars and the British took control of all of Canada. The French were allowed to keep their language and traditions, however. It even says in our Constitution (from 1867) that English and French are the official languages of the Canadian Parliament and the courts. Later, the Official Languages Act declared French and English the official languages of the entire country.

I read somewhere once that the French spoken in Quebec is very close to the language spoken by the original French explorers and settlers. Being part of country that is predominantly English, however, has led to the French spoken in Quebec being anglicized. To some French people (in France) it’s considered a lesser form of French. When I was studying French in Paris, my teacher said that a TV documentary about Quebec singer Celine Dion and her family had to be subtitled – so people in France could understand what they were saying!

So no, the entire country is not bilingual. It’s nice that we try though!