Zurich votes to abolish learning French in primary schools

The cantonal parliament in Zurich has voted to abolish French lessons in primary schools. The majority are in favour of children learning French in secondary school instead.

Zurich votes to end French lessons in primary schools

In the German-speaking cantons of Switzerland, a debate has ensued about when school children should start learning French. Yesterday, the Zurich Cantonal Council voted to abolish French lessons in primary schools, favouring instead that children start learning French in secondary or grammar schools.

The motion passed the cantonal parliament by 108 to 64 votes. As a result, “the cantonal council instructed the Zurich government to create the necessary legal basis within two years to ensure that French is only taught from upper secondary school onwards – and not from Year five, as is currently the case. The cantonal government had rejected the motion,” reports Blue News.

French lessons divide German-speaking cantons

French is spoken by 22,8 percent of the Swiss population, according to the Swiss government’s website. While German/Swiss German is the language spoken by most of the population (61,8 percent), people who support French being taught from an early age argue that it is important for national cohesion and solidarity. 

“Linguistic diversity in our country is very important. You can't just emphasise on August 1 that we are a nation of will and want to understand one another – and then not think about how to do it," says the Federal Councillor and former Director of Education in the canton of Jura.

SRF reports those in favour of postponing French lessons “believe that secondary school students could learn the grammatically complex language more quickly and efficiently”, and that adding too much to the earlier curriculum could negatively impact how well children learn other subjects.

The canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden saw a similar motion pass through the cantonal parliament earlier this year. Other German-speaking cantons like Thurgau, St. Gallen, Basel-Country, and Bern are also debating at which age French should be taught in schools.