The debate surrounding foreign language teaching is currently a topic of discussion in several cantons. In Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft, too, parliamentary procedural requests have been tabled that focus in particular on the timing of French lessons. The central question is whether French should continue to be taught from Year 3 onwards, or whether it would make more sense to start later.

In north-western Switzerland, the cantons of Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft and Solothurn are implementing the language strategy of the Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education (EDK): French from Year 3, English from Year 5. As part of a joint review, an assessment has now been carried out to determine how effective this model is and where further developments might be possible. French and English teachers, as well as headteachers of primary and secondary schools, were surveyed. In addition, discussions took place with pupils, parents’ representatives and representatives from vocational and professional training and the business sector. 

How early should children start learning French? 

The results paint a similar picture across all three cantons: the quality of teaching is key to the success of foreign language instruction. Varied lessons with a strong focus on everyday life and practical application have a positive effect on pupils’ motivation. Respondents see particular scope for improvement in increasing the amount of speaking and exposure time in foreign languages.

 The question of when French lessons should start shows different results between the cantons. While in the cantons of Basel-Landschaft and Solothurn a narrow majority is in favour of starting later, in the canton of Basel-Stadt 51per cent of those surveyed want to keep French lessons from the third year of primary school. 

For head of compulsory education Urs Bucher, the debate shows that it is not just about pedagogical issues, but also about education policy. »The debate is highly political because it also concerns Switzerland’s self-image as a multilingual country with four national languages,» he said in connection with the review.

The cantons of Basel-Landschaft and Basel-Stadt have been coordinating their compulsory education with one another since the adoption of the HarmoS concordat. Based on the review, implementation options for the further development of the language concept will now be examined and drawn up by summer 2027. 

Text: Tamara Funck