The Inclusion of Students with Special Education Needs in French Immersion Programs in Ontario Schools

From its development in 1965, French Immersion programs have continuously evolved to help meet the needs of the students they serve (Burns, 1986; Guenot & Jaber, 2022). One area, however, that has not received the attention it needs, are programs to support students with special educational needs in French Immersion schools (Mady & Muhling, 2017). In 2015, The Ontario Ministry of Education published the document “Including Students with Special Education Needs in French As A Second Language Programs: A guide for Ontario schools”, to provide insight into supporting students with Special Educational Needs (SEN) in French programs across Ontario. This study will investigate what recent research indicates about the impact of Ontario's 2015 Including Students document on inclusion in special education and the reduction of barriers to access of French Immersion (FI) programs across the province of Ontario for students with special educational needs, through a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) policy analysis. Using the analysis of literature prior to the release of the document and after its release, it was found that although more research literature is aware of the issues facing students with SEN in French Immersion after the release of the document, there are still many barriers facing students with SEN in immersion. Based on the findings from this research, it is pertinent that the Ontario Ministry of Education provide more funding and direction for school boards when it comes to special education programs in French Immersion Environments.