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Seventh & Eighth Departmental Meetings

Seventh Departmental Meeting

Looking at the Three Modes of Communication
at the Intermediate-Mid Level
Defining Student Intervention Strategies

Joan: Thank you, Ramon, for drafting the Intermediate-Mid level for our discussions this afternoon. At the conclusion of our last session we agreed to think about strategies we could implement which would help all our students succeed. Let’s begin with ways we already have which help our low-performing students.

Marta: I know most of us are willing to meet with students before and after classes. I am usually in my room at least one hour before school starts. I let my students know that I am available from 7:00 to 8:00 each morning to give them extra help. I always seem to have a few students who come in, especially before a major test.

Roger: During most school years I am assigned one period in the large study hall or in the library. Occasionally I will have students come to me during study hall for extra help on an assignment or to answer a question or two they might have. However, my job, most of the time, is to keep everyone quiet.

Ramon: Several of us have students who have Individualized Educational Plans (IEP’s). These students meet with a tutor each day. Unfortunately, their tutors are not able to give them much help in Spanish. However, the tutors help my IEP students keep up with their assignments. They also give my students encouragement and support.

Carol: The tutors also keep the lines of communication open. Often my IEP students will talk more openly with their tutors about the difficulties they are experiencing in my class. The tutor then comes to me and we work together on ways to help my students improve their grades.

Joan: Have any of you thought about some new ways we could provide extra help to students?

Giselle: I am wondering if we could provide intervention by having a corner of the library which we designate as a resource center for world languages. There are enough of us that we could ask the administration to schedule one or two of us in the resource center for each period of the day. Students could come to the center during their study hall or even during their lunch period to get extra help. We could also encourage our best students to be in the center during their study hall period so that they, too, could be available to help students.

Roger: I would love to be in the language resource center during my duty period instead of just trying to ride herd on a group of kids in a large study hall. Even though I teach French, I do know enough German that I could at least help the Novice-High students with their homework.

Joan: I think having a resource center for world language students is a great idea. With our emphasis on proficiency, I think more students will be motivated to use the center. Since all of us will be teaching to the same standards we will know exactly what all our students will need to do to be proficient. We can also use the center as a place where students come to make-up missed work which is always a challenge to schedule.

Marta: I see multiple uses for a world languages resource center. We can have a wide variety of authentic materials in the center. Students can use the materials to complete their homework assignments, to practice reading, or to sit with a partner and practice speaking. We can have a few computers in the center so students can access the Web to connect with teens who speak Spanish, French, or German.

Ramon: What about summer school? The district already offers several classes during the summer especially in Math, Social Studies, and English. So, why not World Languages? I would be willing to teach students during the summer.

Giselle: I think we could easily staff a summer school program. Students who need just a few extra weeks to be proficient so that they can move on to the next level could definitely take advantage of a summer program. Again, when students know exactly what they need to do to get a credit, they might be more motivated to spend a few extra weeks in the summer making sure they are proficient.

Joan: At this point let’s continue with our presentation of the Intermediate-Mid level. At our last meeting Ramon volunteered to draft the Intermediate-Mid level for discussion. While Ramon is walking us through the draft, use your copy to jot down questions and comments. Also we need to make sure that the descriptors for the Intermediate-Mid level are appropriate. In other words, we need to see a progression in what students can do as they move from level to level.

Ramon: I continued with the format we have been using, so hopefully you will see the continuity as well as the progression of the program.

Joan: Give me a moment to project the information on the smart board.

World Languages Program
Intermediate-Mid

Language Proficiency

Intermediate-Mid speakers initiate and sustain conversations by making statements, asking questions, and giving appropriate responses. They use appropriate time frames when discussing everyday topics.

Intermediate-Mid listeners understand the main ideas and significant details in extended discussions and presentations both live and recorded.

Intermediate-Mid writers compose cohesive paragraphs related to familiar topics and personal experiences. They use appropriate time frames.

Intermediate-Mid readers acquire new knowledge and information from authentic texts including short literary texts.

Joan: Let’s take a few minutes to compare the expectations between Intermediate-Low and Intermediate-Mid proficiency levels.

Marta: One of the big differences I see is that students in the Intermediate-Mid level are expected to initiate and sustain a conversation, whereas in the Intermediate-Low level they participate in simple conversations, but not necessarily expected to sustain a conversation. My students often struggle to sustain a conversation. They are more comfortable waiting for me to keep the conversation going.

Roger: I agree with Marta. My students have difficulty sustaining a conversation which means that I need to work on teaching my students how to engage in a conversation. If you were to observe my classroom, I think you would hear me trying to keep a conversation going rather than letting my students take the responsibility to sustain the conversation.

Carol: I see this is the first time that students will be required to use the appropriate time frames when speaking and writing. I think we should indicate the specific time frames. For example students will use present, past, and future when speaking and writing.

Ramon: I agree with Carol. I think it is important to have clear expectations for our students. I think we all realize that students will continue to struggle with the verb tenses and they will make mistakes, but I think students in the Intermediate-Mid level need to begin to have a grasp of at least the past and future tenses. Students in the Intermediate-Low level can be introduced to the past tense so that when they move to the Intermediate-Mid level they have at least a few verbs which they can use to express actions in the past.

Giselle: I also notice that Intermediate-Mid writers are expected to write using discrete sentences loosely strung together. I definitely see a progression here when students at Intermediate-Low write using a few simple sentences to Intermediate-Mid where they write using sentences and strings of sentences.

Roger: I, too, definitely see a progressive in what students can do in all the skill areas as they move from Intermediate-Low to Intermediate-Mid. For example, at the Intermediate-Mid level students are expected to acquire new information and knowledge from authentic texts. I know we have already discussed the use of authentic materials so I am happy to see that the Intermediate-Mid continues to emphasize a wide selection of authentic reading materials.

Joan: Let’s go ahead now with the modes of communication.

Standard 1.1: Interpersonal Communication (Speaking, Listening/Viewing, Reading, and Writing)

Learners interact and negotiate meaning in spoken, signed, or written conversations to share information, reactions, feelings, and opinions. Learners negotiate meaning across languages and cultures to ensure that their messages are understood and that they can understand others.

To meet this standard, learners at the Intermediate-Mid Level will:

  • Initiate, sustain, and close a conversation on a variety of topics.
  • Exchange information, both orally and in writing, about past, current, and future events that are significant in the target culture(s), or are being studied in another subject.
  • Respond, orally and in writing, to a variety of situations by creatively combining and recombining vocabulary and structures to supply facts and opinions.
  • Discuss the relationship between the products, practices, and perspectives in the target culture(s) and compare these with their own.
  • Discuss their preferences for a variety of activities with peers in the target culture(s).

Giselle: I see a strong correlation with the descriptors for Intermediate-Mid and the requirements stated in the interpersonal communication mode. For example, learners in the Intermediate-Mid level are expected to initiate conversations as well as participate in a conversation. In addition, students are expected to talk and write using the present, past, and future tenses.

Roger: I particularly like how the culture and comparison standards are integrated in the interpersonal mode. I have always said that we who teach a world language are really content-free. By that I mean that we can choose which products, practices, and perspectives we want our students to talk and write about. The choices give us a lot of freedom to create exciting and interesting activities from a broad array of topics and at the same time to teach to the standard.

Marta: Students in the Intermediate-Mid are learning to respond orally and in writing to a variety of topics. For example I can give my students an article to read and then have them sit with another student or perhaps in triads to discuss what they have read. They have practice exchanging information with each other. In this way, the interpersonal mode objectives don’t just stand on their own but become interwoven. I really like that.

Joan: I am already seeing so many interesting ways we can have students achieve the standards by combining and recombining the objectives.

Ramon: Let’s continue with the interpretive mode of communication.

Standard 1.2: Interpretive Communication (Reading, Listening/Viewing)

Learners understand, interpret, and analyze what is heard, read, or viewed on a variety of topics.

To meet this standard, learners at the Intermediate-Mid Level will:

  • Understand the main ideas and significant details of live and recorded discussions, narratives, and presentations.
  • Understand the main ideas and significant details in authentic written materials such as web-based information, personal letters, pamphlets, newspaper and magazine articles, advertisements, and age-appropriate literary texts.
  • Derive new information and knowledge from authentic texts in both reading and listening.
  • Identify the principal characters and comprehend the main ideas and themes in selected literary texts.
  • Acquire information from a variety of sources written in the target language about a topic being studied in other school subjects.

Carol: These interpretive mode objectives provide a definite progression as students move from Novice-High to Intermediate-Low and on to Intermediate-Mid because now students are required to understand both the main ideas and significant details in what they hear and read. I like that these objectives also stress the use of authentic materials. By the time our students reach the Intermediate-Mid level of proficiency they should be very use to hearing and reading materials that are specifically produced for native speakers of the language.

Joan: Remember last year when we all attended a session at our state conference on reading strategies and we all groaned when the presenter told us how important it is for us to use authentic materials with our students. Of course she knew that most of our students find it very difficult to understand material which is written for native speakers. Our students complain, and then we think we are doing them a favor when we rely on readings in our textbooks which are easier for our students but which are not authentic. The standards have our students reading and understanding authentic materials from the first day, so by the time they are in Intermediate-Mid the complaining should have pretty much stopped.

Roger: I find that when I use authentic materials with my students they are more interested and really more motivated to try and understand the content. I have been using some of the strategies we learned at the conference to help my students become proficient readers and listeners when using authentic materials. One strategy that really works is to have the students read the article just to get the gist. When students know that they don’t need to understand every word in an article, they are more motivated to do the reading.

Joan: Let’s continue, Ramon, with the presentational mode of communication.

Standard 1.3: Presentational Communication (Speaking and Writing)

Learners present information, concepts, and ideas to inform, explain, persuade, and narrate on a variety of topics using appropriate media and adapting to various audiences of listeners, readers, or viewers.

To meet this standard, learners at the Intermediate-Mid Level will:

  • Present an oral or written summary of the plot and characters in selected pieces of age-appropriate literature.
  • Present skits based on themes, ideas, and perspectives from the target culture(s).
  • Write a letter or an article about a current issue for a student publication.
  • Present an analysis of the connection between a specific cultural perspective and socially- approved behavior.
  • Communicate in writing with members of the target language culture regarding topics of personal interest, or of community or world concern.

Giselle: I continue to see the connections among the three modes of communication. Even though the presentational mode assumes an audience with little or no interaction between the speaker and the listeners, the students are continually using the target language to communicate their thoughts and ideas.

Marta: The objectives also connect to the Culture Standard by having students create and present skits based on perspectives of the target culture. I also see a connection with the Communities Standard when students write articles to be published in a student publication. Our local newspaper frequently publishes articles related to educational issues which could also serve as a forum for our students’ letters and articles.

Joan: The Communities Standard is often overlooked as we tend to concentrate on the Communication and Culture Standards. However, I think the Communities standard really emphasizes for our students the many ways they can use their language skills beyond the classroom. The Communities Standard provides our students the opportunities to interact with the larger community which I think is really important.

Carol: I would like to volunteer to draft the Intermediate-High level for our next meeting. I have been discussing our curriculum work with several of my colleagues who teach World Languages at the university. We have been discussing their expectations for what students should know and be able to do when they enter their classes at the university. I can tell you they are very encouraged with our commitment to creating a program based on standards and proficiency. As I draft the Intermediate-High level, I will keep in mind the recommendations of my university colleagues. Our students who are proficient at Intermediate-High will also be prepared to do college-level work.

Eighth Departmental Meeting

Looking at the Three Modes of Communication at the Intermediate-High Level

Joan: Thank you, Carol, for drafting the Intermediate-High level for our discussion. Let’s begin by looking at what students can do at this level of proficiency.

World Languages Program
Intermediate-High

Language Proficiency

Intermediate-High speakers communicate using coherent paragraphs. They can initiate, sustain, and bring to closure a wide variety of communicative tasks using appropriate time frames.

Intermediate-High listeners acquire knowledge and information by listening to native speakers’ normal conversation on familiar topics. They comprehend main ideas and significant details of more formal discourse, such as lectures on semi-familiar topics or topics of great interest.
Intermediate-High writers create coherent paragraphs using appropriate time frames. They exhibit control in sentence structure, paragraph coherence, and text organization.

Intermediate-High readers acquire knowledge and information from comprehensive, authentic texts.

Carol: You many recall at our last meeting that I mentioned meeting with several of my colleagues who teach World Languages at the university. When I shared with them what I had drafted for the Intermediate-High level of proficiency, they assured me our students who demonstrate this level of proficiency will be well prepared to continue with language study at the university level.

Ramon: Please tell us, with a bit more specifics, exactly what your colleagues at the university said our students should be able to do to be successful in their college classes.

Carol: They expect our students to be able to participate in conversations in which they talk about themselves and their activities in the present, past, and future. They expect them to create with language and to communicate in paragraph-length discourse. They expect students to understand language from a variety of media such as television, radio, film, lectures, video, and the Internet.

Joan: I think what Carol has drafted for the Intermediate-High level definitely corresponds with the expectations at the college level. Those of us who have taught the Advanced Placement classes will also see a correlation between the Intermediate-High and the AP requirements.

Carol: Let’s continue with the modes of communication.

Standard 1.1 Interpersonal Communication (Speaking, Listening/Viewing, Reading, and Writing)

Learners interact and negotiate meaning in spoken, signed, or written conversations to share information, reactions, feeling, and opinions. Learners negotiate meaning across languages and cultures to ensure that their messages are understood and that they can understand others.

To meet this standard, learners at the Intermediate-High Level will:

  • Initiate and sustain discussions and interviews on a wide variety of topics.
  • Substantiate their opinions and persuade others, both orally and in writing.
  • Exchange opinions and individual perspectives on a variety of topics dealing with contemporary and historical issues from the target culture(s).
  • Identify and discuss various beliefs typical of people of the target culture(s).
  • Exchange, support, and discuss their opinions and individual perspectives with peers and/or other speakers of the target language on a variety of topics dealing with contemporary and historical issues.
  • Experience, discuss, and analyze expressive products of the culture, including selections from various literary genres and the fine arts.

Marta: As I look at what students are able to do at the Intermediate-High level I can hardly wait to create lessons which will get my students speaking with each other. For example, I already have several topics which deal with contemporary issues, immigration for one, which I think will be very engaging for my students.

Giselle: I like that the objectives continue to include the Culture Standard by having students discuss products of the target culture. At the Intermediate-High level our students will definitely be reading a variety of literary genres which will get them talking with each other about plot, character development, and literary style.

Roger: At the Intermediate-High level our students are also going to be required to substantiate their opinions and persuade others. My students are already doing this in their English classes so this requirement integrates the content areas. At this point our students need to be making connections between the content in the World Language class and topics they are learning in their other classes.

Carol: Let’s continue with the interpretive mode.

Standard 1.2 Interpretive Communication (Reading, Listening/Viewing)

Learners understand, interpret, and analyze what is heard, read, or viewed on a variety of topics.

To meet this standard, learners at the Intermediate-High Level will:

  • Comprehend the main ideas and significant details in a variety of authentic texts.
  • Comprehend the main ideas and significant details in live and recorded discussions, lectures, and presentations.
  • Demonstrate understanding of the main plot, subplot, characters, their descriptions, roles, and significance in authentic literary texts.
  • Use a variety of sources intended for same-age speakers of the target language to prepare reports on topics of personal interest.

Ramon: Maybe this is the appropriate time to reinforce our previous discussion about the use of the target language in the classroom. The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) has recently published a position statement which calls for teachers and students to use the target language 90% of the time. I think most teachers agree that speaking in the target language 90% of the time is very doable with our Intermediate-High students. However I have heard teachers express serious doubts about the 90% time requirement with students at Novice-High or even with students in the Intermediate-Low to Intermediate-Mid range of language proficiency.

Roger: It’s my feeling that if we all agree to use the target language 90% of the time even with our Novice level students then we need to keep the language comprehensible with lots of visuals and gestures. We can also explain to our students that it is not necessary for them to understand 100% of what is being said. Rather, the important thing is for them to listen. We can explain to them that over time their ability to understand will increase. We need to let them know it is to their advantage to hear the language as much as possible.

Joan: I know we have already talked about our need for on-going professional development as we continue to develop this curriculum. I see our professional development becoming much more job-embedded. For example, if we are serious about 90% usage of the target language, then we need to learn from each other how to increase the amount of time we use the target language with our students. Also, we could take turns video-taping each other to see how much of the time we and our students are actually using the target language. The tapes would also help us develop a bank of strategies which we could use for on-going professional development.

Giselle: I think my students would really like to see one of you come in and video tape me in action. I am always videotaping them, so they will think “turn around” is fair play. It would be interesting to see myself as my students see me. It is a little scary, but I would be willing to try it. I think I am speaking French at least 90% of the time, but the video would definitely substantiate my belief.

Carol: I’ll go ahead now with the presentational mode.

Standard 1.3 Presentational Communication (Speaking and Writing)

Learners present information, concepts, and ideas to inform, explain, persuade, and narrate on a variety of topics using appropriate media and adapting to various audiences of listeners, readers, or viewers.

To meet this standard, learners at the Intermediate-High Level will:

  • Present a written or oral summary of a short story, newspaper, or magazine article.
  • Write a letter or an article for a student publication describing and analyzing an issue of importance to them.
  • Present a report on a topic of personal interest to an audience of listeners.
  • Present a research-based analysis or a current event from the perspective of both the United States and the target culture(s).
  • Write and illustrate stories to present to others.

Joan: Thank you, Carol, for drafting the Intermediate-High level of proficiency. Based on our work so far, I think we all see the progress our students can make in their ability to communicate in the target language as they move from Novice-Mid to Intermediate-High. For the first time in my career, we could have a curriculum which would flow smoothly from one level to the next because the student expectations for each level are clearly stated.

Roger: The beauty of this program for me is that all of us will have the same expectations for what our students need to know and be able to do at each proficiency level. We can stop pitting one language against another because the expectations for student performance will be the same for all the languages we teach.

Giselle: Continuing with Roger’s comment, I like to visualize this curriculum as a hologram. If a holographic image is cut into pieces, each individual piece contains the whole image. In other words, even though we are individual teachers with our own students and our own unique teaching styles, we have the same expectations for our students as they move through the proficiency levels. The emphasis is placed on the performances of our students no matter which language they are learning. For example, if we are teaching a class of Intermediate-Mid students, we also have in mind exactly what those students were able to perform at the Novice-High and Intermediate-Low levels as well as what they need to do to reach the Intermediate-High level. Like a hologram, each piece of the curriculum contains the whole picture.

Marta: I can see how a hologram makes an interesting analogy because each piece of the program contains the total picture of our curriculum. Now I think our next series of discussions should focus on how we determine when students have reached a certain proficiency level. What criteria do we use to judge the performances of our students? For example, how do we decide if a student is performing at a Novice-High level?

Joan: To answer Marta’s question, we will need to agree on the criteria we will use to assess the performances of our students. I propose we use our professional development sessions during the next three months to focus on how we will assess our students for proficiency. I know we each have our individual methods for assessing our students. Some of us use rubrics. Some of us use a combination of rubrics and more traditional methods such as short answers, fill-ins, and translations. Ramon, I know you use rubrics to assess speaking and writing. Would you be willing to share your rubrics and lead our next discussion?

Ramon: Yes. I look forward to having a lively discussion about student assess-ments with you at our next meeting.