Secondary World Languages
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DSD World Languages - Focus on Proficiency
Quote:
“Language and communication are at the heart of the human experience.” (ACTFL)
Vision:
One day, all Davis School District graduates will demonstrate linguistic competency in at least two languages.
Mission:
The Davis School District World Language Department is a language learning organization dedicated to creating multilingual citizens who are ready to participate in our global society. We strive to promote multilingualism and intercultural interaction and understanding by offering our students proficiency-based world language instruction that encourages target language usage in real world settings.
Goal:
In Davis School District, our goal is for learners to truly use language as a means of communication with the world around us. This means a lot of practice and use of the language by the teacher and the student. The successful acquisition of a second language requires students to follow a long, sequential course of study that focuses on student use of the language, as will be required of them in the "real world".
We currently offer instruction in the following languages: ASL, Chinese, French, German and Spanish. Actual course offerings vary by school.
Proficiency
What is Proficfiency and why does it matter?
Novice
Assessments and Testing
At the end of each unit of study the learners take a summative assessment that requires the learners to use speak, listen, read, and write. In addition to this, there are numerous opportunities for students to demonstrate their proiciency in the four areas.
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The Utah state core proficiency targets are aligned with the Davis School District course proficiency targets based on how much time learners have spent learning a language. These proficiency levels and indicators are described in our DESK standards.
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Language Learners in our schools, professionals of all kinds, and the U.S. military use these performance descriptors and proficiency levels to determine a person's level of proficiency in a language. They are the ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) Performance Descriptors.
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The proficiency outcomes rubric has abbreviated descriptors in each column for each mode. For much more detailed descriptors please refer to the link here: ACTFL Performance Descriptors.
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Davis School District language students can track their progress on tracking forms similar to this one. At the end of each grading period for all courses in grades 7-12, the learners will receive a rating that relates to a level on the rubric.
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This rating describes the level of language the learner is able to sustain consistently at least 80% of the time on skill-based tasks.
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Parents (and students) can track how well their child is doing at each grading period and what level of proficiency they must set as their goal in order to reach the next level and/or attain their desired grade at the end of the course. It is important to note that a beginning level of proficiency for each course is not the desired level for the end of the course.
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Competency Assessment
World Language Credit for Demonstrated competency.
Demonstrated Competency Assessment
More information can be found in the Demonstrated Competency Assessment.
Seal of Biliteracy
Seal of Biliteracy
On December 4, 2015, the Utah State School Board established the Seal of Biliteracy.
Beginning with the graduating class of 2017, The Seal of Biliteracy will be awarded to any Utah student who is proficient in English and one or more World Languages or the Indigenes Languages of Navajo or Ute.
A “Seal of Biliteracy" means a seal placed electronically on a student's high school transcript that indicates a student has achieved in English, and in a world language, a proficiency level of Intermediate Mid as described by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).
Contact your high school counselor for more information, to submit your application, or to schedule a proficiency assessment.
Download the Seal Of Biliteracy Application Form