APS World Language

ACTFL Standards

1.1 Interpersonal communication
1.2 Interpretive communication
1.3 Presentational communication
2.1 Cultural practices and perspectives
2.2 Cultural products and perspectives
3.1 Connections with other disciplines
3.2 Acquire new knowledge available only in target language
4.1 Compare target language and own
4.2 Compare target culture and own
5.1 Communities beyond school
5.2 Communications and life-long learning

Five Cs Viewing Library

The Annenberg Foundation provides an entire library of classroom videos to support teacher learning. A variety of languages and grade levels is represented four each of the standards and 5 Cs. Click the link and check out the Annenberg video library!

Introduction to the National Standards

The Annenberg Foundation provides a great intorduction to the national standards for world language. the intorduction includes video and guiding support. Whether you are a new or a veteran world language teacher, this site is well worth checking out.

This video is an introduction to the National Standards for Foreign Language Learning. The standards define what students should know and be able to do in foreign language education. Through classroom examples and interviews with teachers, students, and experts in the field, this video program begins to show how a range of teachers are using the standards to advance their students' worl language skills and engage them in lifelong learning.

The video is organized according to the five goal areas of the National Standards -- Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities -- called the Five Cs. For the Communication goal area, teachers see how students use language in culturally appropriate ways and talk about, read about, write about, and learn about topics of interest or importance to them. The video then shows how teachers incorporate Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities goal areas into their lessons. In addition, the video illustrates teachers taking a thematic approach to designing lessons and units.

Ways To Use the Video
You can use this video for the following purposes:

• to learn about or refresh your understanding of the standards,
• to launch a professional development workshop, or
• to facilitate a discussion about standards-based foreign language education.

Click here to access the Annenberg site!

Introduction to the World Language Standards

According to the Georgia Department of Education, the Georgia Performance Standards for Modern Languages (GPS) are based on Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century and the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL) Performance Guidelines for K-12 Learners. The GPS are organized in outline form, integrating the national standards and the three modes of communication: interpersonal (IP), interpretive (INT), and presentational (P), as well as Cultural Perspectives, Practices and Products (CU), and Connections, Comparisons, and Communities (CCC). Also included are assessment recommendations and a list of suggested skills and topics for each level.

The goals of the modern language standards are:

To equip students with realistic lifelong skills that will enable them to function competently in a language other than their own and communicate and compete effectively in the global community and marketplace; To instill a greater awareness of their own culture and the culture(s) of others; To enrich students' lives by increasing their appreciation for language and culture

The modern language curriculum will develop students’ skills in the skill areas of listening, speaking, reading, writing and cultural competence. In addition, the curriculum will provide them with the ability to view, absorb, and evaluate material from non-print sources.

Organization of the Standards

The Georgia Performance Standards for Modern Languages (GPS) are based on Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21^st Century and the ACTFL Performance Guidelines for K-12 Learners (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language). The GPS are organized in outline form, integrating the national standards and the three modes of communication: interpersonal (IP), interpretive (INT), and presentational (P), as well as Cultural Perspectives, Practices and Products (CU) and Connections, Comparisons, and Communities (CCC).

Also included are assessment recommendations and a list of suggested skills and topics for each level.

The elements are labeled as follows:

MLI.IP1         ML=Modern Language   I= Level I   IP=Interpretive   1= first element

The Georgia Performance Standards for Modern Languages specify the Standards and Elements that guide all instruction in every middle or high school modern language course. The GPS will continue to grow and improve over time.

Language-specific Thematic Units will provide Performance-Based Summative Student Assessments, as well as Interdisciplinary Instructional Tasks. Samples of Student Work and accompanying Teacher Commentary will be collected and added to the Thematic Units over time. Go to the post for the respective languages for the links to the thematic units.

The GPS for Modern Languages do not set an upper limit of what can be accomplished by the students; rather, they establish the minimum that students should be able to do by the end of each level.

 

Introduction to the Latin Standards

According to the Georgia Department of Education, the purpose of the study of Latin is to read and understand Latin. Therefore, the focus is comprehension rather than oral and written competence.

Organization

A committee of current and former Georgia Latin teachers developed the Georgia Performance Standards (GPS) for Latin. The guiding principle of this committee was to ensure achievable competencies for each level of Latin. As a resource, the committee consulted Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century, a collaborative effort involving all of the modern and classical language associations. These standards guided the development of the Georgia Performance Standards for Latin, which contain the following components:

State standards for each level
A framework for each level which provides the instructional areas and concepts which should be taught
Assessment tools for each standard
A “Can Do” list of achievement expectations for each level

Teachers, parents, and administrators should find these components especially helpful in understanding the Latin curriculum for all levels. The standards, framework, assessment tools, and “Can Do” lists are interdependent and require the reader to consider them as a whole.

During the sequence of Latin courses, the students will accomplish the following:

Communication (CO): Read, comprehend, and pronounce Latin.

Culture (CU):  Develop a cultural awareness of the ancient Roman world.

Connections and Comparisons (CC):  Recognize the influences of Roman civilization on the modern world and of the Latin language on English and the Romance languages.

Latin Proficiencies

The Latin proficiencies of reading, writing, listening, and speaking may be defined as follows:

Reading

Since Latin is a non-conversational language, the greatest emphasis is placed on the student's ability to comprehend the written word. As students progress from beginning to advanced study, they must consistently increase their ability to read Latin texts. Most reading texts in the first and second levels are adapted or edited passages, but sententiae, mottoes, phrases, inscriptions, graffiti, light verse, and epigraphy may still be introduced.

Writing

Writing proficiently helps students develop their reading skills. In the early stages of learning Latin, writing simple sentences increases comprehension of a highly inflected language and thus hones skills in processing these „signals‟ for reading and understanding Latin passages. As students progress through the study of Latin, the emphasis on writing in Latin decreases. However, in advanced Latin studies, students analyze and evaluate writing styles of the authors they study and write extensively in English about Latin literature.

Listening

Listening is an important skill because Latin literature was written to be read aloud. Some teachers find simple conversational Latin to be a helpful tool in developing listening and pronunciation skills. Students should be able to comprehend simple utterances in Latin and respond appropriately.

Speaking

Students should be able to read aloud, answer simple questions, respond to visual stimuli, and read in meter (at advanced levels).

Cultural Understanding

An understanding of Roman culture and history increases student insights into Latin reading selections. Students also gain the ability to evaluate the Roman influence on other civilizations.

English Language Skills

The acquisition of linguistic forms and vocabulary is a progressive development through which students perceive Latin's influence upon the English language structure and vocabulary. Through the acquisition of Latin vocabulary, students are introduced to word development, derivatives, and word study in English. Through the acquisition of Latin reading skills, students develop the skills of critical thinking and analytical reading for English.

Click here to access this information in pdf format from the GaDOE site.