DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
P.O.
SUPTS. MEMO NO. 186
August 31, 2007
INFORMATIONAL
|
TO: |
Division
Superintendents |
|
FROM: |
Billy K.
Cannaday, Jr. Superintendent
of Public Instruction |
|
SUBJECT: |
Revised Foreign Language Standards of Learning |
The
Department of Education is pleased to announce the adoption of revised Foreign Language Standards of Learning. The Board of Education adopted the standards
on February 28, 2007, and printed copies will be mailed to school divisions in early
fall. The standards will also be posted
on the Department of Education Web page at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/Superintendent/Sols/home.shtml.
The
revised Foreign Language Standards of
Learning include separate standards for levels
I-IV of French, German, Latin, and Spanish, as well as generic standards for
Modern Foreign Languages that may be adapted to other languages. The standards for French, German, Spanish,
and Modern Foreign Languages are organized around the seven strands of Person-to-Person
Communication; Listening and Reading for Understanding; Oral and Written
Presentation; Cultural Perspectives, Practices, and Products; Making
Connections through Language; Cultural and Linguistic Comparisons; and Communication
across Communities. The six strands for
Latin are similar and consist of Reading for Understanding; Using
Oral and Written Language for Understanding; Cultural Perspectives, Practices, and
Products; Making Connections through Language; Cultural and Linguistic
Comparisons; and Communication across Communities.
Information
about the newly revised standards and implications for local curricula will be presented
at a variety of conferences, including the annual conference of the Foreign
Language Association of Virginia (FLAVA) in October, and others to be
determined. For information about the
FLAVA conference, please visit the website at http://www.flavaweb.org/flava_conferences.php.
For
further information about the Foreign
Language Standards of Learning, please contact Helen Small, specialist for
foreign languages, by e-mail at Helen.Small@doe.virginia.gov,
or by telephone at 804-225-3666.
BKCJr/HS/ce