
Farsi dar BC Campaign
Farsi dar BC is a grassroots campaign aimed at bringing Farsi as a second language option in schools across British Columbia. Our goal is to have Farsi, like dozens of other languages, available as a second language option for students, taught under a standardized curriculum during regular school hours, with credits reflected on students' transcripts.
Our work began in 2018 in collaboration with families, community activists, and Farsi language experts from Iranian and Afghan communities in British Columbia. The initiative continued with the development of a Farsi language curriculum based on the British Columbia government’s standards. The initiative was initially approved in 2020 by the Burnaby School District for implementation as a BAA course in Grade 11 at Byrne Creek Secondary School. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, its launch was delayed. Despite this setback, our efforts led to drafting the comprehensive Farsi 5-12 curriculum, from elementary to high school levels. The curriculum was approaved by the Coquitlam School Board in May 2022, and later added to BC’s Educational Program Guide by the BC Ministry of Education. That means Farsi is now a language course in BC, like other language course, and can be offered in any Public School in BC.
With this achievement, West Vancouver Secondary School became the first to offer Farsi 11 in 2023. Our efforts to introduce this course in other high schools are ongoing.
Despite our significant progress, a major gap remains in providing Farsi education at the elementary school level. To address this, in 2024, we launched the “Farsi After School Program" in collaboration with teachers and Farsi language experts. This program, based on the BC Farsi language curriculum, is currently offered as an after-school course in elementary schools.
Farsi dar BC has come a long way. However, the campaign will only achieve ultimate success if families and the the community show their support for the cause of language inclusion and diversity. We need to show our public education system that there is sufficient demand to offer a sustainable course. At this stage, our focus is on supporting existing Farsi classes in schools, expanding the elementary program, and fostering interest while demonstrating the public demand for Farsi education.


Contact

Address
303-12 Athletes way, Vancouver, BC, V5Y 0B5, Canada

Phone
(778) 929-7014


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