The George Washington University- GSEHD
Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) & Educational Technology Leadership (ETL)
Doctoral Internship - CPED 8354
Instructor: Dr. Ana Uhl Chamot
Spring 2011

"Nada's Island"

AMERICAN COUNCIL ON THE TEACHING OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES (ACTFL)

SIX CONTENT STANDARDS FOR THE PREPARATION OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHERS (INITIAL LEVEL—Undergraduate & Graduate) (For K-12 and Secondary Certification Programs)
Prepared by the Foreign Language Teacher Standards Writing Team August 1, 2002 Approved By The Specialty Areas Studies Board National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education October 19, 2002

• Standard 1:  Language, Linguistics, Comparisons
Standard 1.a. Demonstrating Language Proficiency. Candidates demonstrate a high level of proficiency in the target language, and they seek opportunities to strengthen their proficiency. (See the following supporting explanation and rubrics for required levels of proficiency.)
Standard 1.b. Understanding Linguistics. Candidates know the linguistic elements of the target language system, recognize the changing nature of language, and accommodate for gaps in their own knowledge of the target language system by learning on their own.
Standard 1.c. Identifying Language Comparisons. Candidates know the similarities and differences between the target language and other languages, identify the key differences in varieties of the target language, and seek opportunities to learn about varieties of the target language on their own.
• Standard 2:  Cultures, Literatures, Cross-Disciplinary Concepts
Standard 2.a. Demonstrating Cultural Understandings. Candidates demonstrate that they understand the connections among the perspectives of a culture and its practices and products, and they integrate the cultural framework for foreign language standards into their instructional practices.
Standard 2.b. Demonstrating Understanding of Literary and Cultural Texts and Traditions. Candidates recognize the value and role of literary and cultural texts and use them to interpret and reflect upon the perspectives of the target cultures over time.
Standard 2.c. Integrating Other Disciplines in Instruction. Candidates integrate knowledge of other disciplines into foreign language instruction and identify distinctive viewpoints accessible only through the target language.
• Standard 3:  Language Acquisition Theories and Instructional Practices
Standard 3.a. Understanding Language Acquisition and Creating a Supportive Classroom. Candidates demonstrate an understanding of language acquisition at various developmental levels and use this knowledge to create a supportive classroom learning environment that includes target language input and opportunities for negotiation of meaning and meaningful interaction.
Standard 3.b. Developing Instructional Practices That Reflect Language Outcomes and Learner Diversity. Candidates develop a variety of instructional practices that reflect language outcomes and articulated program models and address the needs of diverse language learners.
• Standard 4:  Integration of Standards into Curriculum and Instruction
Standard 4.a. Understanding and Integrating Standards in Planning. Candidates demonstrate an understanding of the goal areas and standards of the Standards for Foreign Language Learning and their state standards, and they integrate these frameworks into curricular planning.
Standard 4.b. Integrating Standards in Instruction. Candidates integrate the Standards for Foreign Language Learning and their state standards into language instruction.
Standard 4.c. Selecting and Designing Instructional Materials. Candidates use standards and curricular goals to evaluate, select, design, and adapt instructional resources.
• Standard 5:  Assessment of Languages and Cultures (add??)
Standard 5.a. Knowing assessment models and using them appropriately. Candidates believe that assessment is ongoing, and they demonstrate knowledge of multiple ways of assessment that are age- and level-appropriate by implementing purposeful measures.
Standard 5.b. Reflecting on assessment. Candidates reflect on the results of student assessments, adjust instruction accordingly, analyze the results of assessments, and use success and failure to determine the direction of instruction.
Standard 5.c. Reporting assessment results. Candidates interpret and report the results of student performances to all stakeholders and provide opportunity for discussion.
• Standard 6:  Professionalism
Standard 6.a. Engaging in Professional Development. Candidates engage in professional development opportunities that strengthen their own linguistic and cultural competence and promote reflection on practice.
Standard 6.b. Knowing the Value of Foreign Language Learning. Candidates know the value of foreign language learning to the overall success of all students and understand that they will need to become advocates with students, colleagues, and members of the community to promote the field.

ACTFL Standards Used in our Objectives:

Objective Number 6
6. Develop a standards-based and thematic unit that integrates knowledge of other disciplinesand fosters communicative and academic language development (ACTFL Standards 2.c, 4.a).
Standard 2.c. Integrating Other Disciplines in Instruction. Candidates integrate knowledge of other disciplines into foreign language instruction and identify distinctive viewpoints accessible only through the target language.

Supporting Explanation

Candidates use their proficiency in the target language to access information on disciplines and interdisciplinary perspectives that represent the target culture. Virtually every document, oral or written, that has been created in the target language provides insights, conveys ideas, or represents creative expression from the culture. The foreign language field has always been heavily interdisciplinary, and candidates derive much of their knowledge of the culture from content in fields such as, history, geography, art history, theater, and philosophy, as well as political and natural sciences. Candidates are expected to expand their academic knowledge by reading texts or listening to or watching tapes, film, video, or the Internet from a variety of disciplinary sources.

Candidates demonstrate knowledge in the target language of a variety of disciplines and their applications to the interpretation of cultures, understand how to integrate content from other subject areas into the foreign language curriculum, locate content area sources
that are appropriate for the level of instruction, age of students, program goals, and interests of students. Candidates reinforce subject area content in the foreign language in a comprehensible and meaningful manner and provide their students with strategies for learning the content of other subject areas through the foreign language.

Candidates believe that other subject areas can be enhanced through foreign language study and recognize that subject area content motivates learners and connects the foreign language with other disciplines in the curriculum. They are curious about and seek opportunities to collaborate with colleagues from other disciplines to find appropriate areas of connection between foreign language and other subjects in the curriculum. Recognizing the value of using authentic texts, such as those found on the Internet, to provide students with distinctive viewpoints, they are willing to work collaboratively with students to learn new subject area content.

Candidates believe that they can acquire new information and distinctive viewpoints that are accessible only through the target language. Therefore, candidates provide opportunities for their students to explore specialized topics or areas of interest through foreign language texts and materials. Since candidates may not be familiar with all areas of interest of their students, they are willing to work collaboratively with students to learn new subject content. Their classrooms, therefore, become communities of learners in which both the teacher and learner explore and learn new content together.

Objectives Numbers 1, 2, 3, & 8
1. Identify and discuss theoretical principles and research in foreign language (FL) learning and teaching. (ACTFL Standard 3.b???).
2. Analyze and apply current issues in language instruction as they apply to ESL and foreign language students, including: standards-based instruction, proficiency; communicative competence; skills integration; content-based instruction; focus on form; and learning strategies instruction (ACTFL Standards 3.b???, 4.a, 4.b, 4.c).
3. Identify the characteristics and needs of diverse foreign language learners (ACTFL Standard 3.b).
8. Model, present, and critique an instructional method that has had a significant influence on the field of language teaching and learning (ACTFL Standard 3.b).
Standard 3.b. Developing Instructional Practices That Reflect Language Outcomes and Learner Diversity. Candidates develop a variety of instructional practices that reflect language outcomes and articulated program models and address the needs of diverse language learners.

Supporting Explanation
Candidates demonstrate an understanding of the physical, cognitive, emotional, and social development of K-12 students at all levels of instruction. They understand the important effects of language acquisition theories and learner development on instructional planning and practice. They understand the relationship of foreign language program models and language outcomes. As schools develop longer sequences, candidates recognize the benefits of well-articulated sequences of instruction. They provide a range of learning opportunities for learners of various ages, developmental and linguistic levels, language backgrounds, and learning styles. They demonstrate the ability to adapt language instruction to address students’ multiple ways of learning and to meet their special needs. They are willing to seek out information about their students’ needs in order to adapt instruction accordingly.

Candidates use a variety of instructional strategies to engage students in critical thinking and problem solving. They value the role of inquiry and collaboration in the language classroom. They maximize learning and interaction through the use of pair, small group, and large group activities. Candidates use questioning strategies and task-based instruction as appropriate given the goals of instruction in the language classroom.

Objectives Numbers 2 & 6 (add obj. # 5)
2. Analyze and apply current issues in language instruction as they apply to ESL and foreign language students, including: standards-based instruction, proficiency; communicative competence; skills integration; content-based instruction; focus on form; and learning strategies instruction (ACTFL Standards 3.b, 4.a, 4.b, 4.c).
5. Practice planning and microteaching demonstration language lessons (ACTFL Standard 4.b).
6. Develop a standards-based and thematic unit that integrates knowledge of other disciplines and fosters communicative and academic language development (ACTFL Standards 2.c, 4.a).
Standard 4.a. Understanding and Integrating Standards in Planning. Candidates demonstrate an understanding of the goal areas and standards of the Standards for Foreign Language Learning and their state standards, and they integrate these frameworks into curricular planning.

Supporting Explanation
The Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century (1999) have defined what our students should know and be able to do as a result of their experiences in foreign language classrooms across the nation. If our national vision for foreign language study in grades K-12 is to be realized, candidates must have a thorough understanding of the five goal areas (Communication, Cultures, Comparisons, Connections, Communities) and eleven content standards. They can identify the five goal areas and describe the eleven standards. They design unit and daily lesson plan objectives that address the goal areas and standards. They can identify the goal areas and standards addressed in instructional and classroom activities, and they design activities that address specific goal areas and standards. They are willing to integrate standards in some way even if their instructional materials do not. In addition, candidates are familiar with their state standards for foreign language learning and recognize the connection between the state and national standards.

Objectives Numbers 2 & 5
2. Analyze and apply current issues in language instruction as they apply to ESL and foreign language students, including: standards-based instruction, proficiency; communicative competence; skills integration; content-based instruction; focus on form; and learning strategies instruction (ACTFL Standards 3.b, 4.a, 4.b, 4.c).
5. Practice planning and microteaching demonstration language lessons (ACTFL Standard 4.b).
Standard 4.b. Integrating Standards in Instruction. Candidates integrate the Standards for Foreign Language Learning and their state standards into language instruction.

Supporting Explanation
Candidates use their knowledge of the Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century and of their state standards to make instructional decisions. They find ways to conduct classroom activities that address specific goal areas and standards. When necessary, they adapt instructional materials in order to align them with the standards and thus bring about communication that mirrors more closely communication that occurs outside of the classroom. They have a good understanding of the interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational modes of communication, and they manage communication in their classrooms by integrating these three modes in instruction. Accordingly, their activities and tasks lead students from one mode to the next, reflecting communication as it naturally occurs. Candidates understand culture from an anthropological view and engage their students in exploring cultural systems in terms of their interrelated products, practices, and perspectives. Candidates find ways to integrate content from other subject areas into their language teaching, enabling their students to learn content and language simultaneously. Integrating connections with other disciplines often requires collaboration with teachers of other subject areas in the school or school district. Candidates provide opportunities for their students to connect with target-language communities through a variety of means, including technology. Candidates view the connection with communities as an important way of helping their students to use the language beyond the classroom and to begin to be life-long language learners. Candidates design standards-based activities, even if their instructional materials are not standards-based, and they are willing to acquire whatever knowledge and skills that are necessary to do so.

Objectives Numbers 2, 4, & 9
2. Analyze and apply current issues in language instruction as they apply to ESL and foreign language students, including: standards-based instruction, proficiency; communicative competence; skills integration; content-based instruction; focus on form; and learning strategies instruction (ACTFL Standards 3.b, 4.a, 4.b, 4.c).
4. Identify and critique instructional materials designed for foreign language students (ACTFL Standard 4.c).
9. Develop skills in using technology in language learning and teaching (ACTFL Standard 4.c).
Standard 4.c. Selecting and Designing Instructional Materials. Candidates use standards and curricular goals to evaluate, select, design, and adapt instructional resources.

Supporting Explanation
The Standards for Foreign Language Learning have served as a catalyst for change, not only in the areas of planning and classroom instruction, but also in the selection, adaptation, and design of instructional materials. Candidates use the organizing principles of the standards as they evaluate, select, and create instructional materials. Where in the past the textbook was the primary resource, candidates now use the textbook as one of many resources. These resources include visuals, realia, authentic printed and oral texts, and other authentic materials obtained through technology (e.g., Internet). Candidates locate and use authentic materials in their teaching, since the value of authentic materials
is that they reflect real-world language as it is used by native speakers in target cultures. Candidates adapt the textbook and other materials to align them with standards-based goals. They devote the effort necessary to locate effective materials, to adapt them, and to design their own.

Objective Number 7
7. Keep a reflective journal of the field experience that relates classroom observations to theoretical principles, school practices, program organization, and student profiles (FL Standard 6.a).
Standard 6.a. Engaging in Professional Development. Candidates engage in professional development opportunities that strengthen their own linguistic and cultural competence and promote reflection on practice.

Supporting Explanation
Candidates understand the importance and benefits of belonging to a professional community. They are aware that there are different communities that support them in different ways at various points in their careers. More importantly, they understand that professional development is a life-long endeavor and an indispensable asset to becoming a contributing member of the profession. Professional development may include such activities as participating in conferences and workshops, reading professional journals, and linking theory and practice by systematically reflecting on teaching, learning and assessment. Candidates believe that it is their responsibility to seek counsel from mentors as to which organizations might be most appropriate for their specific needs. Candidates develop the ability to reflect on the outcomes of their involvement in these professional
communities and on how their continued participation will strengthen their own linguistic and cultural competence and refine their pedagogical practices. They understand the importance of seeking professional growth.

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