Departmental Goals

The goal of the Montgomery Blair High School World Languages Program is to expose students to language and culture in order to make them knowledgeable and active members of a global society. Students will learn to use world languages for meaningful communication in both spoken and written form. The World Languages Program emphasizes language as it is used in various real-life situations that students are most likely to encounter. Through the study of world languages, students develop sensitivity to the cultural and linguistic heritage of other groups and their influence on our own, and are prepared to participate in a society characterized by linguistic and cultural diversity.

 

Overarching Enduring Understandings:

 

• As the world moves towards a global community, it is increasingly important to be able to communicate in languages other than English.
• It is important to understand the perspectives of a culture that generate its patterns of behavior, ways of life, world views, and contributions.
• Proficiency in a world language is a vehicle to gaining knowledge that can only be acquired through that language and its culture.
• The study of modern world languages enables students to develop insights into the nature of language and culture.
• Learning a world language enables an individual to participate in multilingual communities.

 

The study of a language system involves learning vocabulary and structures in the context of the meaning one wishes to convey. It also involves nonverbal communication, knowledge of status and discourse style, and at times, the learning of a whole new alphabet. Communication strategies must be taught to enable students to use circumlocution, and to derive meaning from context. Direct instruction in language learning strategies is part of the experience. Through the study of language, students make comparisons and connections to other cultures and other disciplines.

 

Frequent on-going assessment of students’ progress in the world language is essential. Teachers pre-assess knowledge of vocabulary, structures, and reading content before actual instruction begins. Formative assessments occur at regular intervals during the instructional stage to check for understanding and mastery of the material taught. Summative assessments evaluate all the goals in the standards and mirror the activities used to teach the topics.

 

Maryland Seal of Biliteracy

High school graduates who can function in two or more languages are equipped with the knowledge and skills to participate successfully in college, careers, and a diverse 21st century society. The Maryland Seal of Biliteracy is a diploma endorsement, authorized by Maryland law, that recognizes a student's high-level of proficiency in listening, speaking, reading, and writing in one or more languages other than English. To receive the Maryland Seal of Biliteracy, a student must pass the Maryland High School Assessment in English, and demonstrate Intermediate high proficiency in listening, speaking, reading, and writing in a language other than English, as measured by assessments that are aligned to ACTFL (The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) proficiency guidelines.

 

Courses

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE (ASL)

American Sign Language (ASL) 1, 2, & 3

(1 credit) In Level 1, students use American Sign Language to communicate about daily life with basic vocabulary and simple grammatical structures. They explore the cultural and linguistic heritage of the Deaf community and its influence. The vocabulary that students learn is directly related to the purposes and situations identified with each topic. Teachers will also select vocabulary to reflect the students’ needs and interests in each thematic topic. Thematic units include: greetings and introductions, clothing, family, food, school, community, leisure time, and storytelling.

 

FRENCH

French 1, 2, & 3

(1 credit each; Level 3 is an Honors level course) In Levels 1 – 3, the vocabulary that the students learn is directly related to the purposes and situations identified with each topic. Teachers will also select vocabulary to reflect the students’ needs and interests in each thematic topic. Vocabulary instruction is heavily emphasized over linguistic competence at these levels, although a greater emphasis on structural accuracy to enhance communication occurs in each year of successive language study.

French 4 & 5

(1 credit each; Honors level) The instruction is based on a broad array of interdisciplinary context and themes with increasing emphasis on refining language use appropriate to various sociocultural contexts. At each level of instruction, students learn to communicate using themes areas or content. Students at this level, work with an increasing number of authentic listening materials selected by the teacher. Students continue to expand and refine their ability to communicate in both oral and written form, to understand as well as produce language, and to do it in ways that reflect an understanding and appreciation of the target culture. Increasingly, literature may serve as a vehicle of attaining course objectives.

French 6 & A.P. French Language and Culture

(1 credit each; Honors level) The goal of the upper level French program is to make students more knowledgeable and active members of a global society. These courses place high emphasis on the mastery of linguistic competencies at a very high level of proficiency. Students use French for meaningful communication with increasing accuracy in both spoken and written forms. The upper level French language program transitions the students from the use of language as it is used in everyday real-life situations to using the language more in depth in order to expand their knowledge of the francophone cultures in the many French-speaking communities and countries. Both French 6 and A.P. French prepare students for the Advanced Placement French Language and Culture examination. Students enrolled in these courses are eager to challenge themselves with a rigorous curriculum. The courses are conducted entirely in French and provide opportunities for students to develop their proficiency in interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational communication from the Intermediate to Pre-Advanced range of competency.

 

JAPANESE

Japanese 1, 2, 3, & 4

(1 credit each; Levels 3, 4 are Honors courses) Japanese Levels 1 through 4 are organized into four overarching themes in each level with a variety of related topics within each theme. Within a given theme area, the performance indicators of the communication goal are the primary focus and the performance indicators in the goal areas of culture, comparisons, connections, and communities provide broader connections in which to learn the language. The vocabulary that the students learn is directly related to the purposes and situations identified with each topic. Teachers will also select vocabulary to reflect the students’ needs and interests in each thematic topic. Vocabulary acquisition is heavily emphasized over linguistic competence at these levels, although a greater emphasis on structural accuracy to enhance communication occurs in each year of successive language study. When communicating in the foreign language, both in writing and in conversation, the quality of communication of purpose and message are stressed over grammatical accuracy. Grammar skills are important as they aid in effective communication. Standards for grammatical accuracy increase as the students’ language study progresses.

A.P. Japanese Language and Culture

The Advanced Placement (A.P.) course places high emphasis on the mastery of linguistic competencies at a very high level of proficiency. The goal of the AP Japanese course is to make students more knowledgeable and active members of a global society. Students use Japanese for meaningful communication with increasing accuracy in both spoken and written forms. The program transitions the students from the use of language as it is used in everyday real-life situations to using the language more in depth in order to expand their knowledge of Japanese communities.

The course prepares students for the A.P. Japanese Language and Culture examination. The exam is approximately three hours in length. It assesses interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational communication skills in Japanese along with knowledge of Japanese culture. The exam is computer-based. Each student works at an individual computer, which processes everything read, heard, written, or spoken by the student. That is, the student reads on the screen, listens through headphones, types using the keyboard, and speaks into a microphone. There is no paper component; although the student may use paper to take notes during the exam, the proctor will collect the notes at the end of the exam, and they will not be scored.

 

SPANISH

Spanish 1, 2, & 3

(1 credit each; level 3 is an Honors level course) In Levels 1 – 3, the vocabulary that the students learn is directly related to the purposes and situations identified with each topic. Teachers will also select vocabulary to reflect the students’ needs and interests in each thematic topic. Vocabulary instruction is heavily emphasized over linguistic competence at these levels, although a greater emphasis on structural accuracy to enhance communication occurs in each year of successive language study.

Spanish 4 & 5

(1 credit each; Honors level) The instruction is based on a broad array of interdisciplinary context and themes with increasing emphasis on refining language use appropriate to various sociocultural contexts. At each level of instruction, students learn to communicate using themes areas or content. Students at this level, work with an increasing number of authentic listening materials selected by the teacher. Students continue to expand and refine their ability to communicate in both oral and written form, to understand as well as produce language, and to do it in ways that reflect an understanding and appreciation of the target culture. Increasingly, literature may serve as a vehicle of attaining course objectives.

Spanish for Spanish Speakers 1, 2, & 3

(1 credit each; level 3 is an Honors level course) Spanish for Spanish speakers provides continuing language instruction for students who have a developed proficiency in Spanish. This course utilizes a language arts approach comparable to that of English courses offered to English-speaking students. Student must be directed to take the placement test by their WL teacher, WL RT or counselor.

A.P. Spanish Language and Culture & A.P. Spanish Literature

(1 credit each; Honors level) The Advanced Placement (A.P.) courses place high emphasis on the mastery of linguistic competencies at a very high level of proficiency. The goal of the A.P. Spanish courses is to make students more knowledgeable and active members of a global society. Students use Spanish for meaningful communication with increasing accuracy in both spoken and written forms. The program transitions the students from the use of language as it is used in everyday real-life situations to using the language more in depth in order to expand their knowledge of the many Spanish-speaking communities and countries of the world. The courses prepare students for the A.P. Spanish Language and Culture / A.P. Spanish Literature examinations.

 

Useful Links

General

• http://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/lang/programs/high_school.shtm
• http://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/lang/curriculum/vocabulary_lists.shtm
• https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/office/seal-of-biliteracy

French

• http://www.fll.vt.edu/french/whyfrench.html
• http://www.cs.cmu.edu/Unofficial/Canadiana/README.html
• http://www.info-france.org/
• http://www.urich.edu/~jpaulsen/civfrw3.html
• http://www.edu.leeds.ac.uk/~jjsh/web-fr.htm
• http://perso.wanadoo.fr/rene.oster/indexnoel.htm

TV/Radio/Communication

• http://www.lemonde.fr/
• http://www.liberation.com/
• http://www.lefigaro.fr/
• http://www.parismatch.com/

African Unit

• http:/users.skynet.be/african/

Japanese

• https://learn-japanese-at-blair.netlify.app

Spanish

Dictionaries

• http://tradu.scig.uniovi.es/conjuga.html
• http://www.rae.es
• http://www.diccionarios.com

TV/Radio/Communication

• http://www.elpais.es
• http://www.abc.es
• http://www.mega.com
• http://www.telemundo.com
• http://www.univision.co