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Bienvenue au Canada!
Welcome to Canada!
Canadians welcome newcomers in both
of our official languages: English and French.
The department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's
Settlement Program can help you learn
one or both of Canada's official languages and help you to get settled in Canada,
in many different ways. For example, it can help
you meet the language requirements for Canadian citizenship.
Improving English or French language skills can also help you find a job
and allow you to connect to people in your community and feel more at home.
Everyone has different needs for language learning.
That's why the Government of Canada provides
different types of language training for adult permanent residents
and protected persons: formal language training,
job-related language training, also called employment-related language training,
and informal language learning opportunities,
such as conversation circles. This language
training is provided at no cost to you
and is delivered by service provider organizations across the country.
It's important to get assessed to make sure
you choose the option that's right
for your language level and learning needs.
Through the Settlement Program, formal
language training is delivered as Language
Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (or LINC) in English
and Cours de langue pour les immigrants au Canada (or CLIC) in French.
It provides a unique combination of language
training with real-life settlement themes
and meaningful tasks such as visiting a doctor,
talking to your child's teacher or preparing your résumé.
This will help you learn the language skills
you need to find work and settle in your community.
Classes are taught by qualified, professional
instructors who provide feedback on your progress.
English classes use the Canadian Language Benchmarks (or CLB),
which provide a common framework
for describing and measuring language skills
of adult immigrants living and working in Canada.
French classes use Les Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (or NCLC).
Classes are designed to be flexible.
You could be learning in a classroom setting,
online, or with a mix of both. It could be near
your work or in your community, or through online learning.
It could be full-time or part-time, during the day,
evenings or weekends. You can choose
the course that works best from what is available
at the service provider organizations near you.
LINC or CLIC courses may be right for you if:
You want to improve your understanding
of life in Canada, and you want to improve
your English or French language skills.
Some courses are more focused on improving
skills newcomers need to help find a job,
or on building their language skills
while they work in addition to addressing settlement needs.
Job-related language training will help you build
communication skills and learn the terminology
you will need at work. Examples include
workplace communication skills, interview practice
and how to interact with people from different
cultures and backgrounds in a professional environment.
In some cases, courses may also be specific
to your occupation. If you need to improve
your interview and job search skills,
you can enroll in job-related language training.
This type of language training may be right for you if:
You need to focus on job-related language
training to be employed; or you already have a job,
and need to improve your workplace communication skills.
Another type of language support is called
informal language learning. By participating
in informal conversation circles, you can improve
your conversation skills and make new friends.
This allows you to learn and practice
your language skills in an informal setting,
instead of structured lessons in a classroom.
There are no formal feedback or assessment requirements.
Through the Settlement Program, you will work
with a volunteer, facilitator or moderator to find
the right informal language learning for you.
These may include conversation circles,
community events, drop-in workshops,
discussion groups or group study, one-on-one learning,
or self-study. At some of these sessions,
you can meet other newcomers and learn
from their experience in Canada while you learn
useful words and phrases that will help you
to get settled in your community.
Informal language learning may be right for you
if: You prefer to learn outside a formal classroom.
You want to learn through cultural experiences,
creative activities, social interaction and personal
interests or hobbies. Or, you want to improve
your listening and speaking skills.
There are a wide variety of language training
types to suit your needs as a newcomer to Canada.
Get started as soon as possible with a language
assessment at a local service provider organization,
so that you can register for the option that is best for you.
Welcome!
Bienvenue!
Welcome to Canada!