STANDARD COURSE OF STUDY
STANDARD COURSE OF STUDYPHILOSOPHY
General Principles
The Second Language Standard Course of Study for modern foreign languages is based upon a set of principles governing language education. These tenets are anchored in language education research and supported by practice. They are as follows:
- All students can learn and experience success in a second language.
- Students learn in different ways.
- Language acquisition is a lifelong process. For optimum results, students should have the opportunity to engage in a long sequence of study.
- Students acquire proficiency at different rates.
- Students develop the needed skills to be citizens of a global society by learning a second language.
- Students develop some insights into other cultures as well as their own when learning a second language.
- Students are involved in interdisciplinary connections when learning a second language.
- Learning is assessed and reflects the students' ability to interpret and/or communicate in the target language.
Languages for All
Since 1985 and the inception of the Basic Education Program (BEP) and now reinforced by the 2002 federal No Child Left Behind legislation, second language educators in the state have held the belief that a second language is part of a basic education for each child in the state. Given the opportunity, all children can benefit from learning another language and all children are capable of doing so. This belief is reflected in the national standards document which states that "all children can be successful language and culture learners"(Standards for Foreign Language Learning, p. 7).
Additionally, reports from Louisiana, Milwaukee, and Cincinnati have pointed to the benefits of language instruction for all children but especially for disadvantaged children and children with average or below average intelligence. In one study, Foreign Language in the Elementary School (FLES) students of average and below average intelligence performed as well as their peers with above average intelligence on oral production and interpersonal communication skills (Rosenbusch, 1995).
Brain Research And Learning
During the last decade, many theories and models on learning styles, often incorporating brain research, have emerged. Some of the theories follow.
Howard Gardner points to seven multiple intelligences (an eighth intelligence has been added to the original seven) which are present in some capacity in all of us and which have the potential to be further developed given the appropriate experiences.
Genesee (2000) states that "Instructional approaches that advocate teaching parts and not wholes or wholes and not parts are misguided, because the brain naturally links local neural activity to circuits that are related to different experiential domains."He continues; "Student's vocabulary acquisition can be enhanced when it is embedded in real-world complex contexts that are familiar to them."
Zull (2003) proposes that there are four pillars of human learning based on four distinct functions that are housed in different areas of the brain: gathering (sensory cortex), analyzing (back integrative cortex), creating (front integrative cortex) and acting (motor cortex). Utilizing the four pillar theory also addresses individual learning styles. The study of foreign languages naturally provides opportunities for students to use these four functions and in essence have the chance to use their whole brain.
These theories and others have great implications for foreign language learning. They attest to the importance of teaching to the students' different learning styles, of reaching all students, and of providing the opportunity for deeper and more thorough learning.
Language Acquisition
According to the research on second language acquisition, students develop communicative competence in a second language in much the same way as in their first language, although the rate of acquisition will vary.
For most learners, language development occurs in a predictable pattern according to a series of stages. For example, students acquire language when the language is meaningful and interesting and when they are in a non-threatening environment.
They first acquire the language through "comprehensible input"(Krashen) which is focused on developing listening comprehension by building on receptive vocabulary. For this reason, learners usually can understand more than they are able to say. Thus, language acquisition begins long before speech production occurs.
As the students' interaction with the language intensifies, they are able to speak using one or two words or short phrases. They are encouraged to produce the vocabulary they already understand. Speaking results from acquisition and speech emerges naturally, gradually, on its own and in stages. Reading and writing are introduced as extensions and support what students can already understand and say.
At the next stage of language development, students move ahead by using longer phrases and strings of sentences. They recombine the language in different ways and they begin to create with the language. As language development proceeds, students become increasingly able to use the language in a variety of contexts, for a variety of audiences, and for a variety of purposes.
Proficiency
The main goal for modern foreign language education is to help students develop the ability to communicate with speakers of another language. To achieve this goal, students need to use the language in a variety of real-life, meaningful, and culturally accurate situations designed to promote relevant communication.
As stated above, language acquisition and development occur in a series of stages. The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL) has organized these stages (novice, intermediate, advanced, and superior) in the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines and more recently in the ACTFL Performance Guidelines which are used to describe the expectations for students at each level of language development. A full description of the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines is located in the Appendix.
Figure 1. Levels of Proficiency
Explanation of Figure 1
The level of language proficiency, which can be attained, is directly related to the amount of time spent in the target language. It is easier to move up at the beginning levels of proficiency than at the more advanced levels. The beginning levels are dealing with vocabulary expansion, limited language structures, and limited ability to communicate. The leap from novice to intermediate involves vocabulary expansion and use of some basic grammatical structures and can be achieved in shorter amount of time. At the upper levels, the language is more sophisticated and the vocabulary becomes broader and more complex. Speakers at this level have the ability to function as a native or near native speaker. The Superior level can be attained only through extensive living in the target culture.
The level of proficiency students can attain is closely related to the program goals, to the quality of instruction, and to the amount of time and practice they have with the language. A long sequence of language instruction is likely to produce students who develop higher levels of proficiency than those in a program which starts late and/or which is not sequenced.
Another factor that affects language acquisition is the age of the learner. Children, according to Krashen, "acquire"language in that they are given time to sort out the language they hear and understand before using it. Adult learners on the other hand "learn"a language through vocabulary and grammar structures that they then apply when communicating.
Also, in a proficiency-based program, students have different rates of individual learning. One learner may take two years to move from one proficiency level to another, while another may take three or four years.
Furthermore, according to the Research Committee of the Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR), it is also important to note that students may attain different levels of proficiency according to the language they learn.
The School of Language Studies of the Foreign Service Institute has determined that the closer the modern language is to English, the more quickly an adult learner can achieve proficiency; therefore, the languages have been grouped in different categories. More contact hours will be needed for the languages in Category II and III to achieve the same level of proficiency than for languages in Category I.
Category I: Languages closely cognate with English: French, Italian, Spanish (German falls between I and II) Category II: Languages with significant linguistic and/or cultural differences from English: Greek, Polish, Russian Category III: Languages which are exceptionally difficult for native English Speakers: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic |
Figure 2. Language Categories According to Proficiency Attainment
Cultural Appreciation
By learning another language, students gain access to the different culture(s) associated with that language. They learn to appreciate the different ways of life and accomplishments of each culture. In doing so, they become more reflective about their own culture and they are able to generalize about the components of culture.
When we learn one language we open doors to new ways of thinking and doing, believing and communicating, and through the process we learn more about ourselves (The Massachusetts World Languages Curriculum Framework, January 1996).
Students' openness for other cultures seems to be at an optimum prior to the age of ten. Lambert and Klineberg (1967) note that younger students seem to be more receptive to people who are different from themselves than their older peers.
Citizens in a Global World
With the ever-increasing interdependence of nations, the study of a foreign language has become essential to the effectiveness of the United States in a global world. Students can be prepared to function in that global world by acquiring needed communication skills and by developing cultural understanding.
To study another language and culture is to gain an especially rich preparation for the future. It is difficult to imagine a job, a profession, a career, or a leisure activity in the twenty -first century, which will not be enhanced by the ability to communicate efficiently and sensitively with others. While it is impossible to foresee which foreign language will be useful at a later point in life, those who have experienced the process of acquiring a second language have gained language learning skills that make learning another language easier. Possession of the linguistic and cultural insights, which come with foreign language study, will be a requisite for life as a citizen in the worldwide neighborhood (SFFLL, p. 12).
Connections
Connecting the foreign language curriculum to other disciplines gives added relevancy to the study of languages and brings new insights into the rest of the curriculum. Connections can emanate in the foreign language classroom but can also originate in other disciplines.
To study another language and culture increases enormously one's ability to see connections. Since the content of a foreign language course deals with history, geography, social studies, science, math, and the fine arts, it is easy for students to develop an interdisciplinary perspective at the same time they are gaining intercultural understandings (SFFLL, p. 12).
Assessment
As new standards for student achievement in foreign languages are developed, it is essential to devise assessments which can diagnose, monitor learning, and provide useful feedback about the attainment of the identified goals and learning objectives. All aspects of the curriculum ranging from the ability to function in the three communication modes to the ability to make connections and comparisons, need to be assessed.
Once teachers have identified whether the focus of an objective is on content, skill development, performance, or application, they can decide whether the objective lends itself to one or more assessment measures. There are many kinds of assessments available to teachers. These range from the more traditional pen and pencil tests to authentic and alternative assessments including portfolios, journals, logs, performance assessments, self assessments, and peer assessments.
However, no one single assessment can give us all the answers we need about student learning, program effectiveness, and accountability. For this reason, teachers need to give careful attention to the purpose of the assessment as well as to the selection of the tool, which is best suited for that purpose.
Assessments can help teachers make decisions about individual students, groups of students, instruction, and program. At any rate, assessment should be an integral and on-going part of the learning process. (For additional information on assessment, refer to the Teacher Companion Document and to the Assessment, Articulation, and Accountability Document available from the NC Department of Public Instruction.)
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