2023-08-23 13:57:00
The latest figures sent to La Libre by the administration are scathing. They show that, in French-speaking schools last year, Dutch was again chosen by fewer pupils than usual as their first modern language. And this is valid for ordinary education as well as for immersion (whose success, incidentally, continues to grow, which can still be interpreted as an interest in bilingualism).
Reminder of the rules
Above all, a reminder of the rules is essential. In Brussels, the learning of the first modern language begins in 3rd primary and it is compulsory Dutch. This is also the case in the Walloon municipalities on the linguistic border (Comines-Warneton, Mouscron, Flobecq and Enghien).
Elsewhere in Wallonia, this course appeared until now in 5th primary (it will begin in 3rd at the start of the school year, of which it is one of the novelties), and it concerns Dutch, English or German, at the choice of students and schools. There are five exceptions: in the municipalities of Malmedy, Waimes, Baelen, Plombières and Welkenraedt, the first modern language must be German or Dutch.
It should be noted that in Flanders, all pupils first learn French, from the 5th primary (from the 3rd, as an option, and even in the 1st primary in Brussels).
About 121,000 in Dutch, 131,000 in English
In ordinary secondary education, the schools located in Brussels therefore do not offer a choice. It’s Dutch for everyone, which represented 63,020 pupils in 2022-2023. In Wallonia, on the other hand, the majority of schools and pupils have no obligation. Result: 58,280 young people took Dutch lessons last year (3,564 less than a year earlier). This gives a total of 121,300 choices of Dutch in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, for 130,740 pupils who have opted for English (3,364 more) and 3,531 for German.
A year ago, it was noted, for the first time, that English exceeded Dutch for all mainstream French-language education. The trend is growing. While Dutch as a first modern language already concerned only 48.5% of secondary school pupils in 2021-2022, it has fallen further by one percent in one year (47.5%). At the same time, the good health of English was confirmed, with 51.1% of the vote last year, against 50% a year earlier.
Immersion boom, especially in English
The latest statistics tell us that the observation also applies to immersion, but to a lesser extent.
Between 2020-2021 and 2022-2023, the number of Dutch immersion students has gradually decreased from 10,679 heads to 10,144. At the same time, English attracted 9,289 young people last year, so that they were only 8286, two years earlier. If Dutch therefore remains in the majority, the gap between the two tends to narrow.
It should also be noted that the figures confirm the success of immersion. The bar of 20,000 students was even crossed for the first time, last year in secondary school, with 20,290 registered. That’s about 400 more than a year ago. It is even more spectacular, if we look further back, with almost 6,000 more secondary school students than four years earlier!
Dutch, the first choice? ©La Libre
A national language soon to be imposed?
All this data inspires two reflections. Should a national language be imposed as the first modern language? We remember that the Minister of Education, Caroline Désir, announced this change for the start of the 2027 school year, a year ago. His note was endorsed by the government. It remains to be seen to what extent the intention could be called into question by the next majority and/or the difficulty in finding teachers.
This is the second point of attention: the advance of the first modern language from the 3rd primary in Walloon schools, next week, will give indications on the feasibility of the policies envisaged in terms of language teaching.
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