World Languages Curriculum

Mission Statement

The mission of the world language program is to develop students' ability to understand, communicate in and appreciate other languages and cultures as life-long learners. This is accomplished by engaging students in a variety of meaningful linguistic and cultural experiences.

The World Language Program provides a sequence of study for students to:

acquire listening, speaking, reading, writing and thinking skills in French and Spanish
gain an appreciation of the countries, their people, literature, and fine arts
learn to study languages independently
feel enabled to continue advanced world language study in college and/or work in an international environment

Belief Statements

We believe that:

All children should have the opportunity to learn a world language.
All students who study world language should have opportunities to be challenged and to be successful.
An early and long sequence of world language instruction is important for the development of language proficiency.
World language education will help students to participate more fully in the global community and marketplace as responsible world citizens.
World language education helps students to develop insight into their own language and culture and others.
The world language program should provide rich cultural experiences that encompass the five C's of world language education: Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities.
World language learning at all levels should provide meaningful experiences using the language for communication.
Varied activities allow for students with different learning styles to progress.
Contact with target countries for the purpose of communication and cultural experiences is valuable.
World language education should emphasize meaningful activities using authentic materials and resources from the target cultures.
Integration of other curricular areas into world language instruction is valuable.
All skill areas, including reading, writing, listening, speaking, and culture, should be practiced and assessed at each level.

Curriculum Standards for Spanish

Curriculum Standards for French

ACTFL Performance Descriptors for Language Learners

The ACTFL Performance Descriptors for Language Learners are designed to describe language performance that is the result of explicit instruction in an instructional setting. These new Performance Descriptors reflect how language learners perform whether learning in classrooms, online, through independent project-based learning, or in blended environments.

Language learners benefit by understanding the ranges of performance, which describe a pathway for learners to keep track of progress made, to identify domains needing additional practice, and to gain a clear understanding of how to move into the next higher range of performance.

The ACTFL Performance Descriptors for Language Learners:

describe the language performance of language learners in Standards-based, performance-oriented learning environments
provide descriptive performance outcomes adaptable to fit differences in languages and learners
are organized according to three Ranges of Performance (Novice Range, Intermediate Range, Advanced Range) and three Modes of Communication (Interpersonal, Interpretive, Presentational)

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