1

Discover Languages:Discover Languages:Make Languages MatterMake Languages Matter

in Your Communityin Your Community

Justin GerlachMishicot High SchoolWAFLT Public Relations Chair

Paul SandrockWisconsin Department of Public InstructionACTFL President

2

Global literacy starts with Global literacy starts with curiositycuriosity

3

Add experiences to build Add experiences to build curiositycuriosity

4

Create desire to Create desire to communicatecommunicate

5

Provide tools for Provide tools for communicationcommunication

6

Instill confidence to Instill confidence to communicate across communicate across bordersborders

7

What are “global What are “global literacies?”literacies?”

• Communication skills

• Global perspectives

• Knowledge of people, places, and practices

• Skills to function comfortably in other cultures

8

What skills are in What skills are in demand?demand? According to top executives in a USA Today poll, the skills most lacking in employees are:

• Foreign Language

• Interpersonal

• Administrative

• Technical

• Management

9

What skills are in What skills are in demand?demand? According to Michael Eskew, CEO of UPS: • Trade literacy• Sensitive to foreign cultures (cultural awareness, sensitivity and diplomacy)• Conversant in different languages• Technology savvy• Capable of managing complexity (being creative)• Ethical behavior – core values

10

Languages add value to Languages add value to our economyour economy

11

Where does the U.S. send Where does the U.S. send its products?its products?Total U.S. Exports (2005)

$904,379,818,000

Top Ten Destinations: Canada, Mexico, Japan, China, United Kingdom, Germany, South Korea, Netherlands, France, Taiwan

State-by-state export data available

(http://tse.export.gov)

12

Committee for Economic Committee for Economic DevelopmentDevelopment

Education for Global Leadership: The Importance of International

Studies and Foreign Language Education for U.S. Economic and National Security

(http://www.ced.org)

13

Committee for Economic Committee for Economic DevelopmentDevelopment

Education for Global Leadership:

“America’s continued global leadership will depend on our students’ abilities to interact with the world community both inside and outside our borders.”

(http://www.ced.org)

14

Languages add value to Languages add value to our diplomacyour diplomacy

15

A Call to Action for National A Call to Action for National Foreign Language Capabilities:Foreign Language Capabilities:• build language and cultural understanding

capability;• develop language and cultural competency;• develop language skills in a wide range of

critical languages• strengthen programs and tools in foreign

languages and cultures; and• integrate language training into career fields

and increase the number of language professionals

www.nlconference.org

16

US Defense Department: US Defense Department: Defense Language Defense Language Transformation RoadmapTransformation Roadmap

• for officers and for enlisted ranks• identify language assets• recognize need for understanding of

other cultures

www.languagepolicy.org/dodlangroadmap.pdf

17

National Security Language National Security Language InitiativeInitiative

18

National Security Language National Security Language InitiativeInitiative• Incentives to teach critical need languages K-12

• Scholarships for 3000 high school students to study abroad by 2009

• 300 native speakers to teach in US universities by 2006-07

• National Language Service Corps of Americans proficient in critical languages to serve as volunteers and teachers, K-12

• Teacher-to-teacher seminars

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2006/58733.htm

19

Association of American Association of American UniversitiesUniversities

National Defense Education and Innovation Initiative: Meeting America’s Economic and

Security Challenges in the 21st Century

www.aau.edu

20

Association of American Association of American UniversitiesUniversities

• Shorten time to degree & improve completion rates for doctoral programs

• Accelerate teacher certification and retraining programs

www.aau.edu

National Defense Education and Innovation Initiative:

Cultivate American talent to enhance the nation’s expertise in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and foreign languages

21

Languages add value for heritage cultures

22

US 2000 Census:US 2000 Census:Heritage Language SpeakersHeritage Language Speakers

17.9% of US residents speak alanguage other than English at home

(47 million people out of UStotal of 262 million people, over age 5)

http://www.mla.org/census_main

23

US 2000 Census:US 2000 Census:Heritage Language SpeakersHeritage Language Speakers

• an increase of 47.4% between 1990 and 2000 of US residents who speak languages other than English at home

• total population increased by 13.9%

http://www.mla.org/census_main

24

Our Heritage LanguagesOur Heritage Languages• Spanish or Spanish Creole - 28,101,052

• Chinese- 2,022,143

• French (incl. Patois, Cajun) - 1,643,838

• German - 1,383,442

• Tagalog - 1,224,241

• Vietnamese - 1,009,627

• Italian - 1,008,370

• Korean, Russian, Polish, Arabic, Portuguese, Japanese (500,000 – 900,000)

25

Languages add value through Languages add value through their impact on academic their impact on academic achievementachievement

26http://nnell.org/nnellresourcesadvocacypkt.htmhttp://nnell.org/nnellresourcesadvocacypkt.htm

Students studying languages outperformed those who did not study languages:

• Outperformed on language arts and math, regardless of race , gender, or academic level

• Four or more years of language study raised SAT scores more than study in any other subject area

Languages impact academic achievement:

27http://nnell.org/nnellresourcesadvocacypkt.htmhttp://nnell.org/nnellresourcesadvocacypkt.htm

Students studying languages outperformed those who did not study languages:

• Lower socioeconomic students performed just as well

• Outperformed non-language students on every subtest of state assessment

Languages impact academic achievement:

28

Languages add value Languages add value to our communityto our community

29

Languages add value Languages add value by adding perspectivesby adding perspectives

30

Discover the WorldDiscover the Worldwww.actfl.orgwww.actfl.org

31

Make Languages Visible Make Languages Visible in Your Communityin Your Community• Sponsor an activity or event • Download the free poster from the website

and display it in your school and community• Use “Discover Languages” products to

publicize your event or heighten awareness among students, parents, and administrators

• Create articles about your local “Discover Languages” campaign

32

Make Languages the Talk Make Languages the Talk

of Your Communityof Your Community• Sponsor a language “ambush” • Sponsor a “Discover Languages” booth at a

summer community event; soon, Discover Languages kits will be available from ACTFL

• Send in a picture of your “Discover Languages” event for posting on the ACTFL website

• Visit www.discoverlanguages.org for more ideas!

33

Make Languages Matter Make Languages Matter in Your Community in Your Community • Student interpreter program• Grandparent/grandchild language

learning experiences• International business mentorships• Implementation of Linguafolio

• Documentaries showcasing languages in use in your community

34

International Education International Education RecommendationsRecommendations

35

• Global Literacies for All Students

• World Languages for All Students

• Global Training for All Teachers

• Intercultural Experiences for All Citizens

• International Linkages for Wisconsin Businesses and Government

International Education International Education Recommendations: 5 Key Recommendations: 5 Key GoalsGoals

36

1. Keep informed of issues

2. Identify specific issues to address

3. Identify specific points in decision-making process

4. Inform other teachers, administrators, and parents

5. Contact the media

6. Build coalitions

7. Clarify and strengthen your department’s budget

8. Organize and maintain network lists

Foreign Language AdvocacyForeign Language Advocacy

37

• Be pro-active – don’t wait until your program is in peril

• Learn

• Plan

• Network

• Inform

• Get out your message

• Stay optimistic – look for “opportunities”

Programs in PerilPrograms in Peril

38

When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion.Ethiopian proverb

39

Discover LanguagesDiscover Languages Discover the World Discover the World

40

Thank you Thank you