World Languages

Our middle school years provide an opportunity for our students to explore various experiences so
that they can make informed choices in high school based on these experiences. With that in mind,
we recently reviewed our world languages programming at this level. We made some adjustments to
better maximize opportunities for all of our students using best practices, feedback from counselors and teachers, and the Department of Education for language development.

 

Language and Cultural Studies I and Language and Cultural Studies II, the 6th and 7th grade exploratory classes, help set the stage for students to meet the rigor of the Delaware World Readiness Standards for Learning Languages. These new World-Readiness Standards move away from a knowledge-based understanding of cultures and communities and focus more on such skills as interaction, reflection, and collaboration—the intersection of language and culture. The phrase “cultural competence” that is found in the standards emphasizes the ability to work within different cultural contexts. When Brandywine students have the opportunity to enter the Level I World Language classroom, they will be prepared to engage fully with the true depth of the World- Readiness standards.

 

In 8th grade, students may enter either Spanish I or French I for a full year, high school credit-bearing
course. This curriculum is aligned with the Advanced Placement (AP) themes. This framework’s goal
is that, with the rigorous expectations of AP in mind, students’ language proficiency will increase in
meaningful and relevant ways that will ensure greater success on AP language exams or any other
language proficiency assessment. The Brandywine School District world language curriculum is based on this framework, with units that provide both interest and balance across the six AP themes.