French is very tough

Homme Fatal   Mon May 03, 2010 2:20 pm GMT
Pardon My French
By MICHAEL KIMMELMAN
Published: April 21, 2010

ÉRIC ZEMMOUR, slight, dark, a live wire, fell over his own words, they were tumbling out so fast. He was fidgeting at the back of a half-empty cafe one recent evening near the offices of Le Figaro, the newspaper where he works, notwithstanding that detractors have lately tried to get him fired for his most recent inflammatory remarks about French blacks and Arabs on a television show. Mr. Zemmour, roughly speaking, is the Bill O’Reilly of French letters. He was describing his latest book, “French Melancholy,” which has shot up the best-seller list here.

“The end of French political power has brought the end of French,” Mr. Zemmour said. “Now even the French elite have given up. They don’t care anymore. They all speak English. And the working class, I’m not talking just about immigrants, they don’t care about preserving the integrity of the language either.”

Mr. Zemmour is a notorious rabble-rouser. In his view France, because of immigration and other outside influences, has lost touch with its heroic ancient Roman roots, its national “gloire,” its historic culture, at the heart of which is the French language. Plenty of people think he’s an extremist, but he’s not alone. The other day Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, sounded a bit like Mr. Zemmour, complaining about the “snobisme” of French diplomats who “are happy to speak English,” rather than French, which is “under siege.”

“Defending our language, defending the values it represents — that is a battle for cultural diversity in the world,” Mr. Sarkozy argued. The occasion for his speech was the 40th anniversary of the International Organization of the Francophonie, which celebrates French around the world. Mr. Sarkozy said the problem is not English itself but “ready-to-wear culture, uniformity, monolingualism,” by which of course he meant English. The larger argument about a decline of traditional values has struck a chord with conservative French voters perennially worried about the loss of French mojo.

The issue is somewhat akin to Americans complaining about the rise of Spanish in classrooms and elsewhere, but more acute here because of France’s special, proprietary, albeit no longer entirely realistic relationship to French. French is now spoken mostly by people who aren’t French. More than 50 percent of them are African. French speakers are more likely to be Haitians and Canadians, Algerians and Senegalese, immigrants from Africa and Southeast Asia and the Caribbean who have settled in France, bringing their native cultures with them.

Which raises the question: So what does French culture signify these days when there are some 200 million French speakers in the world but only 65 million are actually French? Culture in general — and not just French culture — has become increasingly unfixed, unstable, fragmentary and elective. Globalization has hastened the desire of more people, both groups and individuals, to differentiate themselves from one another to claim a distinct place in the world, and language has long been an obvious means to do so. In Canada the Quebecers tried outlawing signs and other public expressions in anything but French. Basque separatists have been murdering Spaniards in the name of political, linguistic and cultural independence, just as Franco imprisoned anyone who spoke Basque or Catalan. In Belgium the split between French and Dutch speakers has divided the country for ages.

And in France some years ago Jacques Toubon, a former culture minister, proposed curbing the use of English words like “weekend,” although nobody paid much attention. The fact is, French isn’t declining. It’s thriving as never before if you ask Abdou Diouf, former president of Senegal, who is the secretary general of the francophone organization. Mr. Diouf’s organization has evolved since 1970 from a postcolonial conglomerate of mostly African states preserving the linguistic vestiges of French imperialism into a global entity whose shibboleth is cultural diversity. With dozens of member states and affiliates, the group reflects a polyglot reality in which French is today concentrated outside France, and to a large extent, flourishes despite it.

“The truth,” Mr. Diouf said the other morning, “is that the future of the French language is now in Africa.” There and elsewhere, from Belgium to Benin, Lebanon to St. Lucia, the Seychelles to Switzerland, Togo to Tunisia, French is just one among several languages, sometimes, as in Cameroon, one among hundreds of them. This means that for writers from these places French is a choice, not necessarily signifying fealty, political, cultural or otherwise, to France. Or as Mr. Diouf put it: “The more we have financial, military and economic globalization, the more we find common cultural references and common values, which include diversity. And diversity, not uniformity, is the real result of globalization.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/25/arts/25abroad.html

(Page 2 of 3)

Didier Billion is a political scientist with an interest in francophone culture. He agreed. “A multipolar world has emerged,” he said when we met in his office recently. “It’s the major trend of our time, which for the first time is allowing every person on the planet to become, in a cultural sense, an actor on the world stage.

“I was in Iran two months ago. Young Iranians are very proud of their own culture, which is rich and profound. But at the same time they want a window onto the world through the Internet, to have some identity outside Iran, and the important point is that for them there is no contradiction between these two positions. I am very proud of being French, but 40 years ago the French language was a way to maintain influence in the former colonies, and now French people are going to have to learn to think about francophone culture differently, because having a common language doesn’t assure you a common political or cultural point of view.”

This may sound perfectly obvious to Americans, but it’s not necessarily so to France’s growing tea party contingent. The populist National Front party won some 20 percent of the vote in the south last month (less nationwide), despite Mr. Sarkozy’s monthslong campaign to seduce right-wing voters by stressing the preservation of French national identity. Part of that campaign has been affirming a policy of cultural exceptionalism.

A phrase born years ago, “l’exception culturelle,” refers to the legal exclusion of French cultural products, like movies, from international free trade agreements, so they won’t be treated as equivalent to Coca-Cola or the Gap. But if you ask French people, the term also implies something more philosophical. In a country where pop radio stations broadcast a percentage of songs in French, and a socialist mayor in the northern, largely Muslim town of Roubaix lately won kudos for protesting that outlets of the fast-food chain Quick turned halal, cultural exceptionalism reflects fears of the multicultural sort that Mr. Zemmour’s book touches on.

It happens that Mr. Zemmour traces his own roots to Sephardic Jews from Spain who became French citizens while living in Algeria in the 19th century, then moved to France before the Algerian war. He belongs to the melting pot, in other words, which for centuries, he said, absorbed immigrants into its republican culture.

“In America or Britain it is O.K. that people live in separate communities, black with black, white with white,” he said, reflecting a certain antique perspective. “But this is not French. France used to be about assimilation. But since the 1970s the French intelligentsia has called this neocolonialism. In fact it is globalization, and globalization in this respect really means Americanization.”

But of course colorblind French Jacobin republicanism has always been a fiction if you were black or Muslim, and what’s really happened lately, it seems, is that different racial and ethnic groups have begun to argue more loudly for their rights and assert their culture. The election of Barack Obama hastened the process, by pointing out how few blacks and Arabs here have gained political authority.

The French language is a small but emblematic indicator of this change. So to a contemporary writer like the Soviet-born Andreï Makine, who found political asylum here in 1987, French promises assimilation and a link to the great literary tradition of Zola and Proust. He recounted the story of how, 20-odd years ago, his first manuscripts, which he wrote in French, were rejected by French publishers because it was presumed that he couldn’t write French well enough as a foreigner.

Then he invented the name of a translator, resubmitted the same works as if they were translations from Russian, and they won awards. He added that when his novel “Dreams of My Russian Summers” became a runaway best seller and received the Prix Goncourt, publishing houses in Germany and Serbia wanted to translate the book from its “original” Russian manuscript, so Mr. Makine spent two “sleepless weeks,” he said, belatedly producing one.

“Why do I write in French?” he repeated the question I had posed. “It is the possibility to belong to a culture that is not mine, not my mother tongue.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/25/arts/25abroad.html?pagewanted=2

(Page 3 of 3)

Nancy Huston, a Canadian-born novelist here, put it another way: “The world has changed.” She moved to Paris during the 1970s. “The French literary establishment, which still thinks of itself as more important than it is, complains about the decline of its prestige but treats francophone literature as second class,” she said, while “laying claim to the likes of Kundera, Beckett and Ionesco, who were all born outside France. That is because, like Makine, they made the necessary declaration of love for France. But if the French bothered actually to read what came out of Martinique or North Africa, they would see that their language is in fact not suffering.

“After the war French writers rejected the idea of narrative because Hitler and Stalin were storytellers, and it seemed naïve to believe in stories. So instead they turned more and more to theory, to the absurd. The French declined even to tell stories about their own history, including the war in Algeria, which like all history can’t really be digested until it is turned into great literature. Francophone literature doesn’t come out of that background. It still tells stories.”

Which may partly account for the popularity of francophone writers like Yasmina Khadra, the best-selling Algerian novelist, whose real name is Mohammed Moulessehoul. We sipped tea one gray day in the offices of the Algerian Cultural Center. A 55-year-old former Algerian Army officer who now lives in Paris heading the center, Mr. Moulessehoul writes novels critical of the Algerian government under his wife’s name, which he first borrowed while in Algeria because the military there had banned his literary work.

“I was born into a poet tribe in the Sahara desert, which ruled for 800 years,” he said, sitting erect and alert, still a soldier at heart. “I read poetry in Arabic. I read kids’ books in Arabic. But at 15, after I read Camus in French, I decided to become a novelist in French partly because I wanted to respond to Camus, who had written about an Algeria in which there were no Arabs. I wanted to write in his language to say, I am here, I exist, and also because I love French, although I remain Arab. Linguistically it is as if I have married a French woman, but my mother is still Arabic.”

He quoted Kateb Yacine, the Algerian writer, who chose to write in French “to tell the French that I am not French.” Yacine called French the treasure left behind in the ruins of colonialism.

“Paris is still fearful of a French writer who becomes known around the world without its blessing,” Mr. Moulessehoul said. “And at the same time in certain Arab-speaking circles I am considered a traitor because I write in French. I am caught between two cultures, two worlds.

“Culture is always about politics in the end. I am a French writer and an Algerian writer. But the larger truth is that I am both.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/25/arts/25abroad.html?pagewanted=3
+Fr+   Tue May 04, 2010 5:08 am GMT
There are lots of loyal followers of French worldwide not swayed by the wrong belief that French is in decline or the so called "Rise of the English language".

The following Eastern European countries have their respective secondary speakers of French. It's secondary because of the schools were they attended have French as the medium of instruction therefore it's equivalent to French Immersion Class.

Albania
Population - 3,200,000
French Speakers - 320,000 (10.0%)

Bulgaria
Population -7,700,000
French Speakers - 924,000 (12.0%)

Czech Republic
Population - 10,200,000
French Speakers - 204,000 (2.0%)

Hungary
Population - 10,100,000
French Speakers - 60,000 (0.6%)

Lithuania
Population - 3,400,000
French Speakers - 25,000 (0.7%)
Partial French Speakers - 42,000 (1,2%)

Macedonia
Population - 2,000,000
French Speakers - 200,000 (10.0%)

Moldavia
Population - 4,200,000
French Speakers - 1,050,000 (25.0%)

Poland
Population - 38,200,000
French Speakers - 1,520,000 (4.0%)

Romania
Populatiom - 21,600,000
French Speakers - 1,728,000 (8.0%)
French Speakers as Foreign Language - 4,320,000 (20.0%)

Slovakia
Population - 5,400,000
French Speakers - 113,400 (2.1%)

Slovenia
Population - 2,000,000
French Speakers - 80,000 (4.0%)

http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/francophonie/OIF-francophones-est2005.htm
Lombriz   Tue May 04, 2010 5:29 am GMT
Interesting. It still lives on even in this part of the world. Spanish, on the other hand, has made very little impact. And to think, in Romania, French was once even more popular before the start of the Communist era, at which time Russian was made the most important foreign language and forcefully took precedence over French. Now it seems to be making a comeback. Poland also has a lot of speakers, and I know of some families that immigrated to France from there.
Homme Fatal   Tue May 04, 2010 5:42 am GMT
Partial Speakers of French are those who have French as a foreign language and speak it fluently.

http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/francophonie/francophonie.htm

Secondary Speakers on the other hand are not native speakers of a language but use it and more often in formal situation than their native their first or native language. Secondary speakers do not consider their second language as a foreign language.
Visitor   Tue May 04, 2010 7:52 am GMT
All the data above are not really true. I like to add people as French speakers as a children's game. It is very addictive and stupid.

However, I read an article very decissive and I am really aware that French is in free fall. You can read it:


<<Chinese, Hindi, Spanish and Portuguese--possibly also Russian, Malay, Persian and Arabic--have the potential to increase within their vast regions, and perhaps even globally>>



We can see again the most powerful languages. Nicholas Ostler and Forbes are neutral and we can confirm several data:

1. Chinese, Hindi and Spanish will be the languages of the XXI century along with English.

2. Portuguese, Russian, Malay, Persian and Arabic can be also in the top layer depending on several points.

3. French, German and Japanese won't be in the 2 top layers. These languages are the losers of this new World order in languages. It is very interesting to confirm that French is really in free fall.


This data from Nicholas Osler are very similar to other data, like for example the expert in languages, David Graddol.


Bwahahahhahahahahahahaha, What a funny data!
Guest.   Tue May 04, 2010 11:25 am GMT
Shut up this is true. The data that are incorrect are the ones presented by Instituto Cervantes which is full of lies just like your head full of lice.

You're just shitting on wetting on your pants it's because French is in the curricula of the schools in Eastern Europe while Spanish is not.

ALBANIA
Education 1st or 2nd foreign language, according to the curriculum of the student.

Number and percentage of students learning French:
* At the primary level: 11,340 (early French)
* At the secondary level: 115,600 (25%)
* At the university level: 12,000 (in 5 universities)

Many teachers of French as a foreign language: about 600

French presence in the country: about 30% of the population has learned French and speak more or less.

Accession of Albania to the status of associate member of the OIF
National de la Francophonie
Universities (Polytechnic and Tirana) members of the AUPELF-UREF
Municipality of Tirana, a member of the AIMF
Membership of a group of parliamentarians at the APF
Forum Francophone des Affaires

French presence in the media:
* TV5 taken by radio in a dozen cities
* IFC Films subtitled in Albanian national television
* RFI on the FM band in Tirana
* Daily Bulletin in French of the Albanian Telegraphic Agency
* All channels and French satellite

Cultural Institutions:
* 2 Alliances Françaises: Tirana and Korca
* 2 antennas: Shkoder and Elbasan


BULGARIA
1. The teaching of French in Bulgarian schools is organized as follows:

1.1 First degree general education / 8 years of primary school education college + /

1.1.1 primary-school education:
1st - 4-Year French as their first foreign language - early teaching of foreign languages - according to the school from 1993 until the 1999-2000 school year:

3 hours / week in 1st year, 2 hours / week in 2-Year and 3 hours / week in 3rd and 4th years. The teaching of French as a second foreign language beginning in the second school year.

- French as a first foreign language - teaching foreign language early - according to the school from 1994 until the 2001-2002 school year:

3 hours / week in 1st year, 4 hours / week in 2nd year and 5 hours per week in 3rd and 4th years. The teaching of a second foreign language begins at 5th grade.

For all students who are first-year school year 2002/2003 is valid on the school according to which the teaching of a first foreign language must start from the second school year and a second foreign language -- since the fifth grade.

1.1.2 college-education:
5th - 8th year - French as a first foreign language for students who continue their education in terms of early foreign language with 5 hrs / week

in 5th and 6th years and 4 hours / week in 7th and 8th grades.

5th - 8th year - French as a first foreign language for students who begin their studies in foreign language in school in 1992 with 4 hours / week, the French as a second foreign language beginning in the 9th years;

5th - 8th year - French as a second foreign language for students who study a foreign language in terms of early foreign language with 4 hours / week.

1.2 Second level of general education

1.2.1 Secondary schools - education:

1.2.1.1 schools
9th - 12th year - the first French as a foreign language - 2 hours per week until the 10 th and an option for additional hours required in 11th and 12th years.

- French as a second foreign language - 2 hours per week until the 10 th and an option for additional hours required in 11th and 12th years;

High Schools / Secondary Schools and Sections profile in schools with an entrance examination after the 7th school year with intensive courses in French: compulsory education

French as their first foreign language: 8 th - 12 th years

8th year with intensive courses in French - 18 hours / week + 1 hour new technologies in French; 9 th to 12 th year - 4 hours per week.

French as a second foreign language:
Schedule Required: 9 th - 12 th year - 2 hours per week;

Learning profile: 9th - 11th year - at least 3 hours / week; 12th year - at least 4 hours / week.

1.2.1.2 Lycées professionals with an entrance examination after the 7th year with intensive courses in French:

French as their first foreign language - mandatory schedule: 8th year - 13 hours per week; 9-Year - 4 hours per week; 10 th to 12 th - 3 hours / week.

French as a second foreign language - mandatory schedule: 10th and 11th - 2 hours / week.

1.2.1.3 Professional Schools and colleges with a review after 8 - grade school:
French as a first / second language - mandatory schedule: 9th and 10th grades - 2 hours / week.

The number of students who studied French in Bulgaria during the school year 2001/2002 is approximately 104 000.

1st - 4th year - 4887 students
5th - 8th school year - 45 939 students
9 th - 12 th year - 28 000 students

11 149 students studying in 54 special schools and schools with bilingual classes Franco-Bulgarian.

25 000 students studying French in professional schools, 32 have an entrance examination after the 7th grade and intensive courses in French.

The total number of French teachers in Bulgaria is 1365.

2. In Bulgaria there are 6 channels in French schools:

including one at the University of Chemical Technology and steel, one with the Technical University, another at the Academy of Medicine, a fourth at the University of Sofia. Since 1997 there is a French chain with the Higher Institute of the food industry to the city of Plovdiv and since 1999 - French branch of political science at New Bulgarian University in Sofia.

Since 1996 in Sofia was established Francophone Institute of Directors and management - a high school for French regional importance with students from Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova and Macedonia.


REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA
According to the regulations of the Ministry of Education of Georgia, foreign language teaching in secondary schools takes place in classes V-XI at a rate of 19 hours per week.

Special schools (with teaching of French, English and other languages) start learning foreign languages from the second class and, at a rate of 42 hours per week.

The Ministry of Education has developed educational programs and has published manuals for French schoolchildren and books for teachers.

In Georgia, the French are taught in 354 schools and of these 30 schools are specialized. 55,076 students study French.

Along with state schools, private schools (Collège Saint-Exupéry, Ecole Franco-Georgian Noe Jordania, College Marie Brosset) work since the 90s.
Republic of Hungary

HUNGARY
In general, French is the third foreign language (fourth) taught in Hungary, preceded by German and English.

However, the French under an approval, may be taught as a second language as young as 6 years. In this case, French retains its status as a second language in secondary education where it is normally optional fourth language.

There are a number of primary and secondary schools specialized in teaching French as a second language and some courses are taught in French.

There are also 4 lycées completely bilingual French-Hungarian.

LITHUANIA
In general, French is the second or third (with German) foreign language taught in Lithuania, preceded by English.

In some parts of Lithuania, French is taught in secondary schools and universities as a foreign language major.

MACEDONIA
For historical and cultural reasons, the Francophonie in Macedonia is quite alive and well represented.

This goes back to the 19th century when France, for Macedonia under occupation, was the land of the free and safe for the children of rich families Macedonian who went to schools to study in Paris, Strasbourg and elsewhere.

On the other hand, until the Second World War in Macedonia there were French schools and colleges which were run by nuns.

As to the immediate past, it should be noted that France played a leading role regarding the recognition of the new Macedonian state by international institutions.

According to the statistics of 1994 in primary schools, French is represented with 35% (compared with 57% going to the English, 5% - in Russian and 2% - in German).

In secondary education, as the first language, French returning 30% (English: 55% Russian: 9%; German: 6%). As a second language in secondary schools, French is represented with 42% (English: 42%; German: 8% and 8% Russian).

The number of teachers of French 314 (English: 344; Russian: 70; German: 15).

French is taught in schools mainly primary campaign.

The introduction of a compulsory second language for foreign students last year (the fourth) of the primary level, under the new curriculum should be for the benefit of the French language.

In 1997, bilingual sections have been introduced in secondary schools.

At the moment such sections exist in secondary schools in Kumanovo, Tetovo, Skopje, Prilep, Bitola and Negotino, with a total of 13 classes and 360 students.

These are sections where certain subjects are taught in French in four years. Each section has a firm linguistic features a library, a VCR, a television with satellite dish and a computer.

As for higher education, language and French literature is very present.

In French philology near the University "Saints Cyril and Methodius" in Skopje, in first grade are about 50 students.

The Council of the Faculty of literature has adopted the principles of teaching French for beginners, which should increase the number of pupils learning French.

The Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Macedonia, following the recommendations of the Council of Europe is determined to continue the policy - learn two foreign languages. This determination will be in favor of teaching the French language and prevent the trend of decline of French in the schools where he held the position of first language, in direct competition with English.

It should be noted that the French Cultural Center in Skopje (established in 1974) contributes to the promotion of ties between the Republic of Macedonia and France, and thus those with the Francophonie.

MOLDOVA
The Republic of Moldova is a country of Latin civilization, the only republics of the former USSR in which the official language is a language of Latin origin.

Most Moldovans are francophone.

The Moldovan government remains very committed to the French tradition and support all efforts to keep the French at the forefront of foreign languages taught in Moldova

Currently, the Republic of Moldova, French is taught by about 2,000 teachers, approximately 700,000 students - or 67% of the total number of students - in 1124 secondary schools. In these institutions known as "general culture", the French language is studied as a foreign language at the rate of 2 to 3 hours per week (from second to twelfth).

There are also specialized schools, further education in one or several subjects, including French. The schools are specialized in French to the number of 115.

In these institutions, the French language is taught from second to twelfth at 4 to 5 hours per week. In addition to elements of general linguistics, are studied in French, a number of subjects, including literature, geography, or more specific disciplines and techniques.

In higher education, State University of Moldova, Chisinau Pedagogical University, Pedagogical University in Baltimore and the Free University of Moldova international offer their courses in French and are in total in the French language, almost 750 students per year. The Technical University has been 4 years with a channel for lessons in French. It forms each year, more than 80 construction engineers, radio, clothing, electrical engineering.

Since 1998 educational institutions and libraries of Moldova have received a donation of 80,000 pounds of the Alliance Française.

Emissions of a French language schools are broadcast on national radio, 'Dis-moi tout' and television, 'The French space.


POLAND

Based on the 2005-2006 school year, to 3.3% of pupils in primary and secondary schools, French is a compulsory language, but 65.0% of students studying English, 33.6% -- German, 6.1% - Russian.

Furthermore, as additional language, 1% of pupils in primary and secondary schools study French, 14.1% - English and 10.7% - German. English, German, Russian and French are the languages most commonly taught in school, but there are schools where we study other languages such as Spanish or Italian.

In elementary school (grades 1 - 6), for 0.5% of students, French is a compulsory language, to 48.4% - English to 15.0% - German and 2, 1% - Russian. Furthermore, as additional language, 0.7% of students studying French, 24.6% - English and 7.8% - German.

In college (grades 7 - 8), for 1.5% of students, English is a compulsory language, to 73.8% - English to 27.9% - German and 2.6% -- Russian. Furthermore, as additional language, 2.5% of students studying French, 12.0% - English and 26.7% - German.

In grammar school (grades 10 - 12) where two languages are required, French as a compulsory language is studied by 13.2% of students, English - 97.4%, German - 71, 0% and Russian - 11.4%. Furthermore, as additional language, 0.3% of students studying French, English - 0.3% and German - 0.4%.



ROMANIA
In Romania, the general education extends over 8 years, it includes primary and secondary education (classes I to IV and, respectively, V-VIII).

Starting from the third grade, students can choose between several languages, namely English, French, German, Russian, Spanish, Italian and even Japanese.

The study of a second modern language begins in secondary school, in fifth. The study of the figures shows that the number of students learning foreign languages is increasing year by year, and among these, the French occupies a privileged place.

For example:

* for the academic year 1994/1995, in the 562,212 primary school pupils studying French and 250,693 pupils in English and in secondary education, 706,097 have studied French as their first language and modern 210,755 as a second language, while 296,820 students learned English as their first language and 328,923 as a second language;

*For the academic year 1995/1996, in the 593,979 primary school pupils studying French and 271,868 pupils in English and in secondary education, 698,258 have studied French as their first language and modern 214,965 as a second language, while 318,165 students learned English as their first language and 322,513 as a second language;

* For the academic year 1996/1997, in the 609,877 primary school pupils studying French and 293,589 pupils in English and in secondary education, 692,325 have studied French as their first language and modern 217,882 as a second language, while 907,780 students learned English as their first language and 991,896 as a second language.

According to Article 32 of the Constitution and the provisions of the Education Act No. 84/1995, education in Romania can also be provided in a language of international communication.

Law No. 84/1995 stipulates that the Ministry of Education to approve the organization of units and institutions for this purpose.

In these schools, language and Romanian literature, history of Romanians and Geography of Romania are taught only in Romanian.

Under these provisions, the Ministry of Education adopted a regulation on the organization and functioning of bilingual classes and intensive.

The intensive study of a language of international communication is the form of education in which the first modern language is taught in an increased number of hours of study.

This program is introduced in primary schools from the 3rd class and in the secondary from the 5th grade. The bilingual program is the form of organized education at high schools (grades IX and XII), in which education is taught in Romanian language and language of international communication for some discipline of study.

This program applies only to the teaching of the first foreign language. Now (1998-1999), in Romania there are 60 sections in schools with bilingual French students in 5199.

CZECH REPUBLIC

Language teaching is not usually in the program mandatory Czech schools. In such cases, the figure among the French languages.

There is, however, the Czech Republic in 1500 qualified teachers in learning the language.

French is the third foreign language taught in the Czech Republic, after English and German. It is taught to 6% of pupils in primary schools. In secondary schools follows the course of 14% of French students.

Czech Republic 4 schools are bilingual Franco-Czech.

In Prague there is a school system or the enseingement is provided in French, started kindergarten to secondary schools.

In some other Czech cities are also institutions that provide instruction in French, but it remains relatively rare.

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Translated from http://apf.pcf.be/ROOT/apf/enseignement_francais.html

However, I read an article very many reliable websites that the Spanish-speaking world is shrinking and fragmenting and I am really aware that Spanish is in disintegrating. You can read it:

We can see again the most powerful languages. Nicholas Ostler and Forbes are neutral and we can confirm several data:

1. English, French, and Russian will be the languages of the XXI century.

2. Portuguese, Arabic, Bahasa, and Swahili can be also in the top layer depending on several points.

3. Hindi, Chinese, and Spanish won't be in the 2 top layers. These languages are the losers of this new World order in languages. It is very interesting to confirm that Spanish is really receding.

Most of the links have very similar data to each other, like for example which languages are most studied and have the highest non-native speakers.

Jajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajaja, What a hilarious data!

English and French are the only working languages of the UN.

English and French are the only working languages of the International Court of Justice

English, French, and German are the only working languages of the EU.

French is the language of The European Court of Justice

English, Russian, French, German, and Japanese are the dominant languages on science while Spanish is slipping from the list.

English and French are the only 2 global languages.
Guest.   Tue May 04, 2010 11:32 am GMT
The popularity of French second language instruction, the rebirth of bilingual education, and efforts to establish links with French industry locating in Eastern Europe offer an example to France. It is clear that Eastern Europe views bilingualism as a means of revitalizing the region's role in the European community. (MSE)

http://www.antimoon.com/forum/f2.htm
Guest.   Tue May 04, 2010 11:33 am GMT
The popularity of French second language instruction, the rebirth of bilingual education, and efforts to establish links with French industry locating in Eastern Europe offer an example to France. It is clear that Eastern Europe views bilingualism as a means of revitalizing the region's role in the European community. (MSE)

http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ427194&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ427194
Guest.   Tue May 04, 2010 11:44 am GMT
HISPANICS ARE ALWAYS LYING AND NEVER STOP FROM INVENTING DATA. HERE'S A REPORT BY INSTITUTO CERVANTES THAT SPANISH IS THE 2ND MOST IN DEMAND LANGUAGE IN EASTERN EUROPE

Spanish on the Rise as a Foreign Language in Eastern Europe

According to a recent report by the Instituto Cervantes, the interest in Spanish language and culture is on the rise in many countries in Eastern Europe. Spanish music, literature, movies, football, as well as tourism and the massive emigration from Eastern Europe to Spain are factors that have influenced the number of people that choose to study Spanish as a foreign language. In countries such as Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, and Bulgaria, people have become much more interested in the Spanish reality and want to learn more about the culture and its people.

Teaching Spanish in high schools and universities in Eastern Europe has become a massive phenomenon, while the interest for other Western languages, such as German, French and Italian is lower than in the past. The post-communist countries have opened the doors of many Institute Cervantes centers where people gather to celebrate various cultural events. The movies of Pedro Almodóvar are well-known among the Eastern European audience and popular Spanish songs are often tuned on Radio Prague and Radio Bulgaria.

Spanish has been taught as a foreign language in this region since the 70s and since then the numbers have risen significantly. However, in the past decade, the rise has been surprisingly big. Between 1997 y 2000 the demand for Spanish has risen 158,2% en Romania, 86,4% in Poland, 69,6% in Hungary, 49,5% in Slovakia and 27,2% in Czech Republic. In Bulgaria it is the language with the highest demand after English and the number of students who start Spanish is quite significant. The reason for the high demand is the interest in the Spanish culture in those countries, but another important factor is professional. Spanish is becoming more and more used in the business world, in the international relations, as well as the political, economic and scientific area.

This process of popularization of the Spanish language in Eastern Europe has just begun and the prediction is that the interest will continue growing in the future. According to the Instituto Cervantes, the typical student is a female between the age of 17 and 25 most often choosing Spanish for personal reasons such as interest in tourism or the Spanish culture as a whole.
Instituto Hemingway is a great way to explore Spain for anyone who is passionate for the Spanish culture. The variety of places and programs you can choose from make it easier to focus on what one is really interested in. Enjoy discovering the Spanish culture with us!

http://www.schoolsandcourses.com/noticias_ver.asp?idNoticia=279

AND HERE'S A REPORT MADE BY AN ANGLO-SAXON STATING THAT GERMAN, FRENCH, AND RUSSIAN COMES AFTE ENGLISH IN POPULARITY.

English Is Becoming Eastern Europe's 2Nd Language -- German, French, Russian Trailing In Popularity

By John Daniszewski

TORUN, Poland - Sixty U.S. volunteers have come to this city of Copernicus to teach the Polish people the English they crave.

Elsewhere in Eastern Europe, too, the English language is spreading rapidly as Soviet power and the obligatory Russian-language classes disappear.

Despite efforts by France and Germany to promote the use of their languages in the region, English appears well in the lead as the second tongue of choice.

Enrollment in English classes is up sharply in Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia.

Besides asking English-speaking countries to send teachers, Europe's new democracies are running crash training programs at home and broadcasting British and U.S. radio and television programs in the original language.

The thirst for English has contributed to explosive growth in private language schools and is spilling over to the world of commerce.

At the Education Ministry, Lucyna Tarasiewicz looked puzzled when a reporter asked why the ministry emphasized the teaching of English over, for instance, German or Russian.

``Isn't your question somewhat rhetorical?'' she asked. ``Without a doubt, the majority of young people in our schools want to learn this language. Especially recently, most contacts on this continent are held in English.''

Grazyna Siedlecka-Orzel, a veteran educator helping to train English teachers, said: ``For so many years, English was suppressed. Now nobody wants to learn Russian because English is the language of the world.''

Although study of Russian was required in the communist years and classes in other languages were scarce, few students learned Russian well because ``the motivation was extremely low,'' Tarasiewicz said.

Now that Russian is treated as just another language, parents and students are flocking to English as the ticket to a better future. German and French are a distant second.

Barbara Kurianiuk, who has taught for six years at Bialystok in northeast Poland, is certified in Russian but recently became her high school's only teacher of English. She has six classes of 30 students each.

How many of the school's 500 or so students want to attend those classes?

``I think everyone,'' she said.

Kurianiuk said the problems were enormous. The school has no English textbooks, and even newspapers and magazines are hard to come by.

Peace Corps volunteers are taking cram courses in survival Polish at Torun's university before fanning out to cities throughout the country. Most will teach high-school students, but the more experienced will train other teachers.

In a foretaste of what is in store, more than 1,700 Poles applied for 300 places in practice classes, where the volunteers will rehearse teaching techniques.

``It is going to be a lot of work for us, but that's why we're here,'' said teacher Mike Kennedy of Meriden, Conn.

William Lovelace, head of the Peace Corps in Poland, said English instruction topped the country's list when the United States offered last year to send its first volunteers to Eastern Europe.

Sixty Peace Corps teachers each arrived in Poland and Hungary in June and 22 are due in Czechoslovakia this fall, for a total of 142, and the same number will be added next year, Lovelace said.

The British Voluntary Service Organization, Harvard's World Teach and the Canadian government are offering trainers in English, and France and West Germany are sending teachers of their languages.

English is becoming ubiquitous in Eastern Europe. Polish television broadcasts CNN Headline News each morning and Warsaw's Radio Solidarity carries the BBC World News.

In Hungary, the new station Radio Bridge beams all-English programming largely supplied by the Voice of America's Europe Network.

Czechoslovak television's third channel, which used to carry Soviet programs, has become a potpourri of Western fare, with English-language programs leading the way.

Some grasp of English even appears necessary for Eastern Europeans to follow the dramatic economic changes being charted for them.

Vaclav Klaus, the Czechoslovak finance minister, peppers television speeches with terms like ``standby loans'' and ``options.'' Nearly everyone in Poland understands the term ``joint ventures'' by now.

On the streets, English names add a certain cachet. Warsaw fast-food stands advertise ``hot dogs,'' but usually offer only an approximation of pizza or rolls stuffed with stewed mushrooms.

In Budapest, one can visit the Top Shop or Mix Shop and sip something refreshing at the Drink Bar.

English is a common second language in Europe, so when a Pole or Czech talks business with an Italian or Greek, English often is the language used.

Polish schools have only 1,200 English teachers, compared with 20,000 teachers of Russian.

Copyright (c) 1990 Seattle Times Company, All Rights Reserved.

http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19900806&slug=1086465

THE TRUTH INSTITUTO CERVANTES IS MUSHROOMING ALL OVER EUROPE AND OFFERS NOT JUST SPANISH BUT ALSO ENGLISH, FRENCH, GERMAN, AND RUSSIAN BECAUSE IT IF IT OFFERS JUST SPANISH IT WOULD CLOSE DOWN BECAUSE NO ONE IS INTERESTED TO STUDY SPANISH. OF COURSE SPANISH IS BEHIND ENGLISH BUT BASED ONLY ON THE ENROLLMENT TO STUDY ENGLISH, FRENCH, GERMAN, RUSSIAN, AND SPANISH IN INSTITUTO CERVANTES

Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!
Visitor   Tue May 04, 2010 11:48 am GMT
Well, I am not really tough, I am exactly stupid because everybody tells me that French is "finito", "acabado", "kaputt", "dead", "mort", and I always dream that all people in the World speak French.

All the data above are not really true. I like to add people as French speakers as a children's game. It is very addictive and stupid.

However, I read an article very decissive and I am really aware that French is in free fall. You can read it:


<<Chinese, Hindi, Spanish and Portuguese--possibly also Russian, Malay, Persian and Arabic--have the potential to increase within their vast regions, and perhaps even globally>>



We can see again the most powerful languages. Nicholas Ostler and Forbes are neutral and we can confirm several data:

1. Chinese, Hindi and Spanish will be the languages of the XXI century along with English.

2. Portuguese, Russian, Malay, Persian and Arabic can be also in the top layer depending on several points.

3. French, German and Japanese won't be in the 2 top layers. These languages are the losers of this new World order in languages. It is very interesting to confirm that French is really in free fall.


This data from Nicholas Osler are very similar to other data, like for example the expert in languages, David Graddol.


Bwahahahhahahahahahahaha, What a funny data! What a tough and stupid am I!
Visitor   Tue May 04, 2010 12:14 pm GMT
LET'S MAKE SOME COMPARISON:

French is studied as a foreign language by some 200 million people (making it the second most learnt language in the world - after English.)

http://www.stgeorges.co.uk/foreign-languages/french-courses/

According to Spain's 20 Minutos, there are now more than 14 million people studying Spanish in 90 countries in which Spanish is not an official language. According to the Director of the Instituto Cervantes -- the Spanish organization that looks to promote the language all over the world -- one of the main reasons that people are choosing to study Spanish is because they believe that it willprofessionally benefit them in today's global economy. He also pointed to Brazil's decision to make Spanish an mandatory subject in schools as an example of the growing importance of Spanish in the world. There are currently one million Spanish speakers in Brazil butMolina estimates that in 10 years there will be more than 30 million Spanish-speaking Brazilians, adding to the already 500 million Spanish speakers in America and Spain, making it the fourth most spoken language in the world, after Chinese, English and Hindi. Brazil's new Spanish initiative will call for 210,000 Spanish teachers to teach the language. Molina, speaking at a language school conference in Coruña, Spain, also said that the United States -- currently with (according to his estimate) 36 million Spanish speakers -- is the frontier that must be conquered, calling it "a decisive platform for Spanish to reaffirm its role as the second language of international communication."

2007/04/27

http://vivirlatino.com/2007/04/27/spanish-second-most-studied-language-worldwide.php

200 million who learn French - 14 million who learn Spanish = 186 million million more French learner than Spanish.

200 million divided by 1 million = 14.28571428571429 times more students of French than Spanish.

THERE YOU HAVE IT GUYS, THE HISPANIC CAN NO LONGER CHEAT BECAUSE ACCORDING TO INSTITUTO CERVANTES, SPANISH IS STUDIED NY JUST 14 MILLION WHILE ACCORDING TO UK BASED ST. GEORGE INTERNATIONAL FRENCH IS LEARNED BY 200 MILLION PEOPLE.

SO, THE HISPANICS HAVE NO REASON TO SAY THAT THE DATA IS BIASED BECAUSE THE SGI OF UK MADE THE RESEARCH.

SO HOW COME SPANISH ALONG WITH CHINESE AND HINDI CAN BECOME THE LANGUAGE OF THE XXI CENTURY IF THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO LEARN IT IS NOT EVEN 1/4 OF THE NUMBER WHO LEARN FRENCH?

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Guest.   Tue May 04, 2010 12:31 pm GMT
Well, I am not really tough, I am exactly stupid because everybody tells me that Spanish is "finito", "passé", "kaputt", "dead", "mort", and I always dream that all people in the World speak Spanish.

All the data about Spanish which I posted in this forum are false. I like to add people as Spanish speakers as a animal's game. It is very addictive and idiotic.

However, I read an article very reliable and with supporting references made by hispanics and I am really aware that Spanish is fragmenting and its world is shrinking. You can read it:

<<English and French are the only working languages of the UN.

English and French are the only working languages of the International Court of Justice

English, French, and German are the only working languages of the EU.

French is the language of The European Court of Justice

English, Russian, French, German, and Japanese are the dominant languages on science while Spanish is slipping from the list.

In the Economic and Social Council, as of 2007, there are three three are working languages (English, French, and Russian).

The working languages of NATO/OTAN are French and English

English and French are the only 2 global languages. >>

We can see again the most powerful languages. The most powerful international institutions have them as working languages and it's a confirmation that they're the most useful language of the XXI century. as

1.French, Russian, and German will be the working languages of international institutions languages of the XXI century along with English.

2. Portuguese, Italian, and Japanese can be also in the top layer depending on several points.

3. Hindi, Chinese, and Spanish won't be in the 2 top layers. These languages are the losers of this new World order in languages. It is very interesting to confirm that Spanish is really in disintegration and its world is shrinking.

This data from Nicholas Osler are very similar to other data, like for example the expert in languages, David Graddo which are based on the number of native speakers alone and mere opinions.


Bwahahahhahahahahahahaha, What a funny data! What a tough and dull I am!
Visitor   Tue May 04, 2010 1:08 pm GMT
The Fanatic Frogs like me are arrogants, Fanatics, stupids, liers and dreamers. We know that French is in free fall, but it doesn't matter. I close my eyes and I dream that all people in the World speak French.

I know that I am stupid and French is out of the top ten languages and even it is less spoken than Tamil, but I am a stupid dreamer and I can't do anything.

Even I know that in NATO all people speak English and nobody French, but I close my eyes and open my bottom and I think that the opposite meanwhile my Arabic boy friend breaks my ass.


<<Chinese, Hindi, Spanish and Portuguese--possibly also Russian, Malay, Persian and Arabic--have the potential to increase within their vast regions, and perhaps even globally>>



We can see again the most powerful languages. Nicholas Ostler and Forbes are neutral and we can confirm several data:

1. Chinese, Hindi and Spanish will be the languages of the XXI century along with English.

2. Portuguese, Russian, Malay, Persian and Arabic can be also in the top layer depending on several points.

3. French, German and Japanese won't be in the 2 top layers. These languages are the losers of this new World order in languages. It is very interesting to confirm that French is really in free fall.


This data from Nicholas Osler are very similar to other data, like for example the expert in languages, David Graddol.




In Short, French language is in free fall. What funny data!

All people shouting together: French language is in free fall!

All people laughing together: bwahahahahahahhahahahahaha!
Invitado   Tue May 04, 2010 1:10 pm GMT
La Francophonie made an error that:

The number of people studying French or learning the language has also increased, it from 90 million in 2002 118 million.

When actually there are 200 million people who learn French as a foreign language (making it the second most learnt language in the world - after English.) according to the report of UK based Saint George International.

Russian statistics state that 20 million foreigners studying Russian, and this, in 90 countries.

http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/francophonie/francophonie.htm

According to Spain's 20 Minutos, there are now more than 14 million people studying Spanish in 90 countries in which Spanish is not an official language. According to the Director of the Instituto Cervantes.....

http://vivirlatino.com/2007/04/27/spanish-second-most-studied-language-worldwide.php

SHICH MEANS RUSSIAN IS MORE STUDIED, LEARNED AND TAUGHRT WORLDWIDE THAN SPANISH.

SO, THERE YOU HAVE IT FOLKS. SPANISH IS NOT THE 2ND, 3RD AND 4TH MOST STUDIED, TAUGHT AND LEARNED LANGUAGE IN THE WORLD BUT IT'S FRENCH, GERMAN http://mydifl.com/languages.htm AND RUSSIAN IN THAT ORDER.

Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!
Invitado   Tue May 04, 2010 1:17 pm GMT
La Francophonie made an error that:

The number of people studying French or learning the language has also increased, it from 90 million in 2002 to 118 million as of the moment.

When actually there are 200 million people who learn French as a foreign language (making it the second most learnt language in the world - after English.) according to the report of UK based Saint George International.

Russian statistics state that 20 million foreigners studying Russian, and this, in 90 countries.

http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/francophonie/francophonie.htm

According to Spain's 20 Minutos, there are now more than 14 million people studying Spanish in 90 countries in which Spanish is not an official language. According to the Director of the Instituto Cervantes.....

http://vivirlatino.com/2007/04/27/spanish-second-most-studied-language-worldwide.php

WHICH MEANS RUSSIAN IS MORE STUDIED, LEARNED AND TAUGRT WORLDWIDE THAN SPANISH.

SO, THERE YOU HAVE IT FOLKS. SPANISH IS NOT THE 2ND, 3RD AND 4TH MOST STUDIED, TAUGHT AND LEARNED LANGUAGE IN THE WORLD BUT IT'S FRENCH, GERMAN http://mydifl.com/languages.htm AND RUSSIAN IN THAT ORDER.

Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!