Reymond Kouame, owner of a French tutoring service: “English was the biggest challenge. We knew we could explain things in our language.”

Originally from the Ivory Coast, Reymond Kouame lived in Gatineau, Quebec, then Sudbury before he moved to London in 2015 with his wife and their three young daughters.
He had arrived in Canada equipped with a bachelor’s degree in agriculture and a master’s degree in environmental science, then went on to complete a bachelor’s in education at Laurentian University in Sudbury.
A year later, he came to London for two co-op placements – getting experience as a student teacher before he started teaching at a French-language school in the area. His wife and daughters joined him and since then, Reymond has been teaching in French elementary schools.
And now, after seeing a need in London, he has ventured out as an entrepreneur.
“Parents are always asking if we can find a tutor in French for them,” he said. “It is difficult to find a French tutor for the parents.
This year, he and his two partners started a French tutoring service called FrancoEduc (www.francoeduc.ca).  So far FrancoEduc, which is based out of an office on Leathorne Street, has 10 students, but the vision is to grow as large as Kumon Math & Reading or Oxford Learning Tutoring Services.
Reymond says the business would offer a good source of employment to French-speaking immigrants with a teaching background. “We want to give opportunities to newcomers, so they can have their first Canadian work experience,” he says. “Some people come here, they like London and they don’t speak English. They cannot find work because they don’t have the Canadian experience. We want to give them that.”
Reymond knows how big of a barrier language can be. When his family arrived to London, “English was the biggest challenge,” he says. “We knew we could explain things in our language.” 
He still recalls the French-speaking people who helped his family “make connections,” and even make appointments, in those early days.
Reymond accessed workshops by agencies such as le Carrefour Communautaire Francophone de London (CCFL).
He says London’s French-language community contributed to his family’s integration and development.
More importantly, the community helped his family feel at home.
To other newcomers, his advice is to find people willing to help and work to overcome the language barrier.
“Go outside. Go into the community to talk to people and find people who can help you,” he says. “Don’t be afraid to return to school to learn English. It will be helpful.”

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