The Parti Quebecois says French-language schools will no longer be obliged to offer intensive English in the sixth grade.

The government will also review whether children should continue to take English lessons at all in the first and second grade.

"Most of the schools don't have it (an intensive English program). They have regular courses in English and they speak English probably not so bad," says the minister for primary and secondary education.

Individual schools will now to decide whether or not they want to offer an intensive English program. The Liberals had hoped to make the program mandatory in 2015.

Right now, only 12 percent of French schools have the program.

At the same time Malavoy's asking the public administration school ENAP to re-examine the merits of intensive English.

"We don't always have the proper resources. We don't know what to do with children with learning difficulties, so we have to answer those questions," says Malavoy.

English in first and second grade

On top of this, the minister wants ENAP to study whether English should be cut out entirely from the first and second grade curriculum.

"I'm asking them to see what's going on with that approach. Is it good? What are the problems? Should we maintain it?"

She says children need to master their mother tongue, first of all.