Linguistic Security Committee of BC

WHERE


British Columbia

WHEN


From September 24th 2024 to June 25th 2025

AGE


15-25 years old

11 participants

Your contact : louise@cjfcb.com

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A NEW TOOL TO STRENGTHEN YOUR LANGUAGE CONFIDENCE !

In spring 2023, it is with great pride that the Linguistic Security Committee unveiled its first visual awareness campaign on linguistic security! • The objective? Help young people strengthen their linguistic confidence in their use of French while promoting bilingualism! • The content: Two posters are to be discovered to reflect on the place of anglicisms in French but also to deconstruct the myth of non-accent • That's not all, to go further, it is also possible to learn more about the language thanks to a fun infographic which highlights 5 linguistic facts to feel more comfortable with your French! Just click here to discover it.


We're talking about it in the press !

William, representative of the 18+ committee, spoke about linguistic insecurity during an interview for Radio Canada. Quickly click on the link to find out more !

William Robertson, the guardian of French at the Youth Council

What is linguistic insecurity?

It’s a fact that many French speakers feel uncomfortable speaking French for fear of being judged based on their accent or their variety of French. But what are the causes of this feeling and above all how to remedy it ?

It is to overcome this problem which is at the heart of young people's daily lives but above all to allow them to express themselves freely on the subject that our committee of experts on linguistic security has been working since 2019.

For this year 2023/2024, 8 young people are committed to the committee: Cloé Robert, Geneviève Poitras, Emily Deering, Katie Pinter, Asia Trudel, Charlotte Moreau, Sarah Derasp and Willa Patterson.

The members of the committee are trained and supervised by Suzanne Robillard – Doctor in sociolinguistics and honorable life member of the Youth Council.

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THEIR MISSION

As ambassadors of linguistic security, the committee's mission is to create spaces for dialogue and reflection with members of the community by offering them personalized workshops on issues related to linguistic (in)security. . In addition, the Committee is required to develop various resources to meet the needs of young people and thus strengthen their linguistic confidence.


Since its creation, the committee has led around fifty workshops with more than 1,200 members of the community. The committee has also developed a whole range of interactive and fun resources. In addition, for a year now the committee has been working in close collaboration with Marie-Ève ​​Bouchard, Assistant Professor of Sociolinguistics at the University of British Columbia on a research project which aims to better equip new teachers.

A fun committee that offers plenty of opportunities to get involved in your community and make a positive impact.


Cloé Robert

Founding member of the linguistic security committee since 2019

I really enjoyed deepening my knowledge about linguistic insecurity and spending time and talking with other individuals who are as passionate about this issue as I am.


Charlotte Moreau

Member of the linguistic security committee since 2022

Being part of the SL committee gave me the opportunity to get closer to other young people who are passionate about linguistic security like me! Raising awareness of linguistic (in)security is particularly important in order to be able to create more inclusive and open spaces where everyone can express themselves in French freely in their own way. I can say that I found this community that accepts me and my French without judgment <3


Katie Pinter

Member of the linguistic security committee since 2022

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BeLinguiste

In order to more easily disseminate resources and information to members of the community, the committee has embarked on the development of several tools including a mini BeLinguiste website that we invite you to discover :

  • The mini website belinguiste.com is a tool for sharing resources with members of the French-speaking community in BC (parents, teachers, etc) on the impact of the bilingual context in our identity development as Franco-Colombians.
  • You will also find the podcast series of the same name which focuses on Anglicisms.

This is enough to deconstruct his representations of language !

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