Cloverdale - The Editor, Re: "French immersion pour la bourgeoise," the Now, Jan 15.
Adrian MacNair is worried that parents in Surrey are signing up their kids for French immersion for the wrong reasons. His suggestion that learning Manderin or Punjabi might be more useful further indicates he can't see the forest for the trees.As a transplanted European, I am often astonished at the reluctance of North Americans to become multi-lingual. It would surprise MacNair that it is possible (and desirable) to learn more than two languages. The greater appreciation of other cultures gives a person a much greater appreciation of the world at large. As my grandmother used to say, "everyone from the village speaks three languages, except the village idiot. He only speaks two."Clive RobertsCloverdale