Ottawa public school board trustees have recommended adopting controversial changes to French immersion and kindergarten programs.

Trustees at the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board made the decision Tuesday while sitting as a committee of the whole, and will take the final vote Feb. 9.

Nearly a dozen parents made presentations against the changes during the four-hour meeting, and another 70 people showed up to watch.

The proposal is to make all kindergarten classes bilingual, and reduce the amount of French instruction in the early French immersion program by switching the language of instruction in math classes to English in Grades 1 to 3. The board has been conducting public consultations since the fall, and has heard from plenty of upset parents, although the latest survey done by the board found those parents who responded were evenly split on the changes.

Trustee Keith Penny, in an interview after the vote, said parents at the meeting represent a “vocal minority,” and most of the people he’s consulted support the changes. “Is it right to have someone who yells the loudest influence you?”

Trustees spent most of the meeting listening to delegations and getting more details from staff, and none of them spoke passionately in favour of the changes, but the majority were convinced. Change is scary, noted trustee Lynn Scott, but “I think this is worth doing.”

Most of the discussion revolved around the proposal to make kindergarten classes bilingual, with concerns raised about how kids with special needs and those just learning English would cope.

Mother Jessica Hetherington told trustees it would be cruel to force her three-year-old son Grey, who has a severe speech disorder, to attend a bilingual kindergarten. Grey can only speak a few words in English, and having to cope with French as well would be too hard for him, Hetherington said.

Concerned parent Jessica Hetherington addresses the issue of French instruction in Kindergarten and Primary Early French Immersion during an Ottawa-Carleton District School Board Tuesday February 02, 2016.

Concerned parent Jessica Hetherington addresses the issue of French instruction in Kindergarten and Primary Early French Immersion during an Ottawa-Carleton District School Board Tuesday February 02, 2016. DARREN BROWN / POSTMEDIA

The motion passed by trustees included a promise that some of the $2 million a year in extra French-language grants the board will receive by making kindergartens bilingual would go to provide more support workers for children in kindergarten.

Peter Giuliani, president of the Ottawa elementary teachers union, warned that kindergarten teachers are already stressed out and dealing with a rise in violence and behaviour problems in full-day kindergarten classes. “Please do not do this.” Most teachers who responded to two board surveys were opposed to bilingual kindergartens.

Staff say one of the goals of bilingual kindergartens is to ensure “equity” for kids with special needs, newcomers who don’t speak English, boys and children from lower-income families, who are under-represented in French immersion, which is generally recognized to benefit students. The idea is that if they attend kindergarten partly in French, they may be more likely to choose French immersion in Grade 1.

The French immersion program is already wildly popular, with nearly 70 per cent of kindergarteners enrolled in it. If even more students enrol, trustee Mark Fisher said the board needs more information about how that would affect English programs.

Other parents spoke passionately against reducing the amount of French in the early French immersion program, saying it was vital their children become bilingual in Ottawa.

Concerned parent Amber Steeves addresses the issue of French instruction in Kindergarten and Primary Early French Immersion during an Ottawa-Carleton District School Board Tuesday February 02, 2016.

Concerned parent Amber Steeves addresses the issue of French instruction in Kindergarten and Primary Early French Immersion during an Ottawa-Carleton District School Board Tuesday February 02, 2016. DARREN BROWN / POSTMEDIA

Several parents told trustees that public consultations were too rushed for such a major change.

Parent Janice Manley said the changes would reduce the amount of French instruction for kids in early French immersion, whose parents want them to study in French, and increase the amount of French for children in kindergarten even for those whose parents want them educated in English. How is that logical? She wondered.

Parents left the meeting dejected. “I’m concerned about my child losing out in French,” said Jessica Shehan in an interview. The arguments in favour of the proposal were weak and lacked substance, she said.

Underlying the debate is the board’s financial situation. The board is facing a $14 million budget shortfall and trustees are looking for places to either cut or earn more revenue. The proposed changes to kindergarten and French immersion would benefit the board’s bottom line by about $2.7 million a year.