As real estate agents who know a whole lot about schools, our clients ask us about French Immersion programs in Hamilton quite frequently. Our clients feel that French Immersion schools provide “better education”, and this is based on EQAO stats through recent years. This is not without merit. In Oakville and York Region, where you can directly regionally-compare the EQAO pass-rates of French Immersion students vs. English-track students, we found a 17% difference in performance in 2014. Does that mean that FI students perform 17% better than English-track students? Not necessarily, as the program does indeed attract students from (generally) more-concerned parents. But the numbers are certainly intriguing.

Should you put your own child into French Immersion? Perhaps this article and this article and also this article can help you with your decision.

Here is information about the French Immersion programs at public schools in Hamilton…

• In Hamilton, in Grade 1, they spend 68-85% of their school day learning in French, and the rest in English. From grades 2 to 6, the percentages drop slightly to 65-80%, and in grades 7 and 8, it drops to 50-60%. The program is then continued at select secondary schools.
• Getting into the French Immersion program at the Grade One level in Hamilton is as easy as applying to do so, although if there isn’t space left at your home school, they will offer the program at a neighbouring school for a year or two (until space opens up again) – there will not be transportation offered to the out-of-catchment school, however, so it’s best to apply early.
• The registration period is usually early-December to mid-January.
• A list and ranking of the schools in Hamilton that offer French Immersion programs is at the bottom of this page. (They have been ranked by 7-year EQAO scores only, as opposed to our regular rankings where Potency and Consistency also affect the rankings.)

RELATED: The Catholic French Immersion program in Hamilton

Why such a demand for French Immersion? Perhaps a comment from “Willy999” on the cbc.ca forums puts it best… He wrote:
“Some of the demand for French Immersion comes from parents who view the program as a better learning environment for their children as opposed to a program that stresses French. The program is viewed as a “private school” within the public system. The demand for French Immersion could be reduced by offering these parents an alternative English based program.”

It is true that schools with French Immersion programs generally do better in the EQAO tests than schools without. Is this indicative of the level of education given, or is it just that they attract a “smarter” student? We believe it is more of the latter. However, we still recommend these French Immersion schools to our clients as most parents would prefer to have their children be influenced by peers who do well in school.

THERE IS SO MUCH TO KNOW about French Immersion in Hamilton, including the crazy boundaries that may change from year to year! Be very careful when moving to Hamilton that you know exactly where your child is going to be attending.

Here are the rankings for the Top Five public elementary schools in Hamilton that currently offer the French Immersion program:

BEST FRENCH IMMERSION SCHOOLS IN HAMILTON 2023

There are 7 other public elementary schools in Hamilton that offer the French Immersion program.

Here is a list of the public middle schools in Hamilton that currently offer the French Immersion program:
Dalewood
Kanetskare
Flamborough Centre
W.H. Ballard

Here is a list of the public High Schools in Hamilton that currently offer the French Immersion program:
Sherwood SS
Westdale SS