Putting It All Together: Fostering a Language-Proficient Society
Kathleen M. Marcos and Joy Kreeft Peyton

The articles in this publication highlight the need for everyone in the United States to know a language in addition to English. The articles also summarize current trends and initiatives in the field of foreign language education. The following action plan for parents, teachers, school administrators, policymakers, and business community members outlines specific tasks that can be performed to foster the development of a language-proficient society. Many of the ideas listed are discussed in more detail in Curtain and Pesola (1994) and Rosenbusch (1991).

What Can Parents Do?

	Expose your children to people from varied language and cultural backgrounds.
	Go to local events where language and cultural diversity are celebrated.
	If you speak a language other than English, use it with your children.
	Speak positively to your children about the value of learning another language.
	Provide videos, music, and books in other languages. Public libraries have many of these types of materials.
	Send your children to summer language camps. For older children, consider programs in which they can study languages abroad.
	Explore having an exchange student in your home.
	Investigate opportunities for language study for your children, beginning as early as preschool and extending through their high school years.
	Support your local Sister Cities program1 or begin one if your community does not already have one.
	Reinforce existing language programs by expressing your support for them to local, state, and national representatives.
	If your child is participating in a language program, talk to the teacher about what you can do to reinforce the learning that takes place in the classroom.
	If your child's school does not have a language program, talk with other parents, PTA members, and the principal about the feasibility of getting one started.

What Can Teachers Do?

	Find out which languages are spoken by school staff, by students, and in the community at large. Speak with parents and administrators about options for using community resources to promote language and cultural awareness among students.
	Use resources from school and local libraries and from the Internet to enhance and enliven your foreign language lessons.
	Set up an in-class lending library with books, magazines, and videotapes for students and parents to use.
	Align your curriculum with the national standards for foreign language learning.
	Plan activities that encourage students to develop an awareness and appreciation of the linguistic and cultural diversity represented in your classroom.
	Give your students opportunities to use foreign languages outside your classroom (for example, within your school, at other schools, or at community events or agencies).
	Encourage parents who speak a language other than English to use it with their children.
	Talk to parents about activities and study habits that can improve their children's language learning.
	Invite community members who use foreign languages in their careers to discuss career opportunities with middle and high school students.
	Collaborate with other foreign language, bilingual, and English as a second language (ESL) teachers to share resources and work together toward common goals.
	Pursue professional development activities (for example, attend conferences, read journals and newsletters, and take courses and seminars) to keep up to date on language learning research and on new approaches to language teaching.
	Travel periodically to a foreign country or countries to expand or update your knowledge of the language and culture.
	Keep up with advances in language learning technology and adopt new and stimulating approaches to teaching languages, such as promoting videoconferencing experiences and international Akeypal" (penpal) projects on the Internet.

What Can School Administrators Do?

If a language program does not currently exist in your school or district:

	Develop a rationale for establishing a program by reading professional literature on the importance of second language learning and the cognitive benefits of developing second language proficiency.
	Work with school and district administrators or the school board to establish a steering committee made up of parents, foreign language and other teachers, school and district administrators at all levels, and business and community members to investigate the feasibility of establishing a program in your school or district.
	Learn about the different types of foreign language programs to determine the most appropriate program for your school or district.
	Take inventory of existing resources (staff and materials) to determine the type and size of program your school or district can realistically support.
	Generate community support at PTA meetings and teacher conferences. Hold districtwide planning meetings and invite community leaders, business representatives, language and other teachers, and administrators. Ensure ongoing communication among all groups that have a stake in the establishment and maintenance of language programs through regular meetings and updates.

If your school or district already has a language program:

	Ensure that all students have the opportunity to study foreign languages.
	Hire trained teachers who are skilled in foreign languages.
	Provide resources and professional development opportunities to foreign language teachers.
	Promote and provide opportunities for collaboration among all teachers involved in second language education. For example, establish a committee for second language teachers.
	Purchase foreign language materials for the school library.
	Promote and support the use of new technologies to enhance foreign language learning.
	Advocate for sufficient instructional time for students to achieve adequate proficiency. This instructional time should be a minimum of 75 minutes per week, but it can be as often as three to five classes per week lasting 45 to 60 minutes each. At the middle and high school levels, foreign language classes should meet as frequently as and for as long as other academic classes, such as math and science.
	Promote articulation of classes--the logical sequencing of courses in the curriculum to avoid unnecessary repetition--at the elementary, middle, and high school levels.
	For middle and high schools, hold career days to provide information about jobs that require foreign language skills.
	Use student and community resources to strengthen the program (for example, through tutoring, international fairs, cross-cultural exchanges, and guest speakers).

What Can Policymakers Do?

	Budget adequate financial resources to establish and improve second language programs in your school, district, or state.
	Support and fund professional development programs for second language teachers.
	Support and fund curriculum development projects carried out by second language teachers.
	Establish policies that promote the study of second languages at all levels by all students.
	Support research on the effectiveness of various models and practices for second language programs.
	Support the establishment of standards for and assessment of student and teacher performance at local, state, and national levels.
	Support policies that respect the diversity of students in your community or state.
	Establish Sister Cities and World Affairs Council relationships in the community.

What Can the Business Community Do?

	Make policymakers aware of the need for workers to be proficient in more than one language.
	Send company representatives to school career days to talk to students about the important role that foreign languages play in the workplace.
	Talk with teachers and administrators about how they can help prepare students to work in an increasingly global economy.
	Establish partnerships with schools, businesses, and communities to support activities such as student internships, tutoring, and mentoring.
	Ensure that jobs requiring language skills are filled by applicants who are truly proficient in the language(s) needed.
	Provide employees with opportunities to maintain and improve their language skills.
	Provide appropriate cultural training for employees who work in culturally diverse environments.
	Establish partnerships with school districts to provide financial support for starting or maintaining foreign language programs.

To develop a more globally effective workforce and a more knowledgeable and tolerant society, parents, teachers, school administrators, policymakers, and business leaders should work together to provide opportunities for all students to develop fluency in at least one foreign language.

References

Curtain, H., and C. A. B. Pesola. 1994. Languages and Children: Making the Match. New York: Longman.

Rosenbusch, M. H. September 1991. "Elementary School Foreign Language: The Establishment and Maintenance of Strong Programs." Foreign Language Annals 24 (4): 297-314.

Note

¹ To find out about Sister Cities programs across the country and how to set one up in your community, contact Sister Cities International, 120 South Payne Street, Alexandria, VA 22314; call 703-836-3535; send e-mail to info@sister-cities.org; or visit the Web site at http://www.sister-cities.org.

Kathleen M. Marcos is an information associate at the ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics at the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) in Washington, D.C. She serves as both Acquisitions Coordinator and Information Technology Associate for the clearinghouse and is a frequent contributor to ERIC publications. She is a fluent speaker of Spanish and is also proficient in French. Joy Kreeft Peyton is Director of the ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics at CAL in Washington, D.C. She is also Director of the National Clearinghouse for ESL Literacy Education and Vice President of CAL. She has had many articles published on instructional strategies for language learners and is a former teacher of Spanish. She speaks Spanish fluently.

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