STANDARD COURSE OF STUDY

PREFACE

Intent

The Spanish for Native Speakers Standard Course of Study establishes competency goals and objectives directing the teaching and learning of Spanish as a heritage language in North Carolina. This document sets high expectations for heritage language speakers. It takes into account the national standards for foreign language learning and the North Carolina Second Language Standard Course of Study.

Because it describes the overarching concepts governing heritage language education in the state, it should be used as a guide by school districts as they make decisions concerning their heritage language programs. The overview presented in this document will need to be expanded in local curriculum documents to reflect the beliefs, policies, and philosophy of the local school districts in ways that best meet the needs of their specific student population (Second Language Standard Course of Study, 2004). Optional documents will offer suggestions for methodology and materials to implement the curriculum.

Spanish for Native Speakers and English as a Second Language

The two Spanish for Native Speakers courses (levels I and II) are not designed to replace English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction, but, instead, to enhance the heritage language of the students. While many of the skills, processes, and strategies will transfer to English, the course content will be delivered in Spanish. Students who have been identified as limited-English proficient (LEP) will still need to receive assistance in learning English and in mastering content of other disciplines delivered in English.

Curriculum Development

This document was developed as a part of a federal Foreign Language Assistance Program (FLAP) Grant. The grant called for the participation of 20 foreign language teachers throughout the state who would be willing to (1) receive training on appropriate methodology for teaching heritage speakers, (2) develop a Spanish for native speakers curriculum for high school levels I and II, and (3) pilot the curriculum during the following school year. Teachers and supervisors convened in Raleigh in June 2002 for a one-week extensive institute and developed the Spanish for Native Speakers Curriculum, levels I and II. They piloted the draft document during the 2002-2003 school year and, during that year, additional amendments to the draft were made based on teachers' recommendations.

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