Classroom Implications of the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines

1. Classroom Implications of the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines Ray T. Clifford ALTA 23 March 2006

2. Seven Major “Implications” • Complexity of Language • Relative Language Difficulty • Time on Task • Student Characteristics • Curriculum Content • Types of Instruction • Assessment Tools

3. Seven Major “Implications” • Complexity of Language • Relative Language Difficulty • Time on Task • Student Characteristics • Curriculum Content • Types of Instruction • Assessment Tools

4. 1. Language is the most complex of human behaviors.

5. Read aloud and explain the“St.” Rule: ST. PAUL ST.

6. Read aloud and explain the“St.” Rule, Part 2: ST. COLLEGE ST.

7. Test of Reading Comprehension;a Newspaper Headline IRAQI HEAD SEEKS ARMS

8. Test of Reading Comprehension;a Newspaper Headline DRUNK GETS NINE MONTHS IN VIOLIN CASE

9. Test of Reading Comprehension;a Newspaper Headline MSU HONORS STUDENT ACCUSED OF BEATING HOUSEMATE WITH BAT From: Alma Michigan MORNING SUN

11. Seven Major “Implications” • Complexity of Language • Relative Language Difficulty • Time on Task • Student Characteristics • Curriculum Content • Types of Instruction • Assessment Tools

12. 2. Relative Language Difficulty

13. Determining Relative Difficulty • The relative difficulty of learning a second language can be estimated by considering the “distance” and the “direction” between the language of the learner and language to be learned.

14. Determining Difficulty (Cont.) • Distance can be estimated by noting the amount of contrast between L1 and L2 in: • Grammatical structures • Lexicon • Cultural references • Orthography • Pronunciation • Even a rating scale of “similar = 1,” “somewhat different = 2,” and “very different = 3” can be used. • The total score = relative “difference.”

15. Determining Difficulty (Cont.) • Direction is determined by whether the features found in the L2 are more complex or simpler than the same concepts in the L1. • Moving from a language with reduced grammatical forms to a language with more complex forms is going “uphill.” • Moving from a language with complex grammatical forms to a language with reduced forms is going “downhill.” • It is easier to go “downhill” than “uphill.”

16. English and Other Languages • Word order • English: • subject / verb / object • Korean: • subject / object / verb • Your language?

17. English and Other Languages • Gender and plurals • English: • Gender for animate and some inanimate objects • Plurals for most nouns • Korean: • No gender • No plurals • Your language?

18. English and Other Languages • Implied subjects • English: • Generally only found in commands. • Korean: • Subject must be identified from the context. • Context is often established in a separate topic sentence. • Honorifics often identify the intended subject. • Your language?

19. English and Other Languages • Morphology • English: • Distributive grammar. • Simple, redundant grammatical forms. • Korean: • Complex grammatical forms, for instance: • Subjects marked by 2 different particles • Each subject marker has 2 phonetic variants • Objects are also marked. • The object marker also has two phonetic variants. • Your language?

20. English and Other Languages • Tenses • English: • Past, present, and future verb forms. • Korean: • Past and present tenses. • A tentative state or condition rather than a future tense. • Your language?

21. Determining Difficulty (Cont.) • For L1 speakers of English • The impact of language distance and direction has been quantified using “average time-to-proficiency” results at the Defense Language Institute (DLI). • At DLI, students of Korean take approximately three times as long to acquire Level 2 proficiency as do students of Spanish.

22. Implications for Academe • Typical government program. • Proficiency of graduates is measured. • Graduates are expected to attain the same levels of proficiency regardless of language difficulty. • The length of each language program is determined by the relative difficulty of the language for English speakers. • Typical college program. • Student proficiency results are not measured. • The course requirements for a language major are about the same – regardless of the language.

23. Seven Major “Implications” • Complexity of Language • Relative Language Difficulty • Time on Task • Student Characteristics • Curriculum Content • Types of Instruction • Assessment Tools

24. 3. Time on Task

25. “Some considered projections” from 1961 THE NATIONAL INTEREST AND FOREIGN LANGUAGES Eight- and ten-year sequences of foreign language study will become common in the public schools. The better colleges and universities will require demonstrated proficiency (not high school “units”) in a foreign language for entrance, and demonstrated proficiency in a second foreign language (often non-Western) for graduation. WILLIAM RILEY PARKER for THE U.S. NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR UNESCO, DEPARTMENT OF STATE, 1961.

26. After four decades, why are Parker’s projections not yet a reality? • Lasting improvements are only sustainable when they result from a recognition of need. • Norm-referenced grading gave little evidence of real-world ability gaps. • With accreditation focused on process rather than on outcomes, there was no incentive to change. • Administrators didn’t read the research results showing that no improvements in teaching methods or curricula can compensate for the current lack of “time-on-task” in our educational system.

27. International Research on Learning English • G. Bonnet, et al. The Assessment of Pupils’ skills in English in Eight European Countries: 2002. European Network of Policy makers for the Evaluation of Education Systems, 2004. • Students from those nations where there is more contact with (and more time spent using) English have higher levels of competence in English. • In a language-rich environment, time spent using the language is more important than the teaching methods used in the classroom.

28. International Research on Learning French • John B. Carroll, The Teaching of French in Eight Countries (International Studies in Evaluation V) John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1975. • “… the primary factor in the attainment of proficiency in French (and presumably, any foreign language) is the amount of instructional time provided.” [Page 276]

29. Consider Bloom’s Taxonomy • Evaluation and persuasion through refined use of professional, literary, and rhetorical skills. • Synthesis of known concepts to produce and comprehend new, abstract, and hypothetical ideas. • Analysis and definition of factual relationships through extended, detailed explanations. • Application of mental and linguistic skills to create and understand new communications. • Comprehension and use of words and phrases. • Memorization of names, labels, facts.

30. How much time is required (in one’s first language) to learn to…? • Evaluate and persuade through refined use of professional, literary, and rhetorical skills. • Synthesize known concepts to produce and comprehend new, abstract, and hypothetical ideas. • Analyze and define factual relationships through extended, detailed explanations. • Apply mental and linguistic skills to create and understand new communications. • Comprehend and use words and phrases. • Memorize names, labels, facts.

31. ILR Proficiency Level Summary LEVEL FUNCTION/TASKS CONTEXT/TOPICS ACCURACY All expected of an educated NS Accepted as an educated NS All subjects 5 Tailor language, counsel, motivate, persuade, negotiate Wide range of professional needs Extensive, precise, and appropriate 4 Errors never interfere with communication & rarely disturb Support opinions, hypothesize, explain, deal with unfamiliar topics Practical, abstract, special interests 3 Concrete, real-world, factual Intelligible even if not used to dealing with non-NS Narrate, describe, give directions 2 Ask and answer questions, create with the language Intelligible with effort or practice 1 Everydaysurvival 0 Memorized Random Unintelligible

32. Language Proficiency and Cognition • 4/5 (Distinguished): Evaluation and persuasion through refined use of professional, literary, and rhetorical skills. • 3 (Superior): Synthesis of concepts needed to produce and understand abstract ideas, complex arguments, and hypothetical discussions. • 2 (Advanced): Analysis and explanation of real-world relationships using paragraph-length communications. • 1 (Intermediate): Application of language skills to routine interpersonal communication scenarios. • 0 (Novice): Memorization / Comprehension of disjointed words and phrases.

33. How much time is required (in one’s second language) to learn to…? • Evaluate and persuade through refined use of professional, literary, and rhetorical skills. • Synthesize known concepts to produce and comprehend new, abstract, and hypothetical ideas. • Analyze and define factual relationships through extended, detailed explanations. • Apply mental and linguistic skills to create and understand new communications. • Comprehend and use words and phrases. • Memorize names, labels, facts.

34. Average Instructional Timefor 80 percent of DLI Students to Reach Level 2 • Category I (Romance and Scandinavian languages) • 25 weeks • 750 classroom hours • Category II (Germanic and Asian languages) • 32 weeks • 960 classroom hours

35. Average Instructional Timefor 80 percent of DLI Students to Reach Level 2 • Category III (Slavic and some Asian languages.) • 47 weeks • 1,410 classroom hours • Category IV (Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean) • 75 weeks (Current length is 63 weeks) • 2,250 classroom hours (Currently 1,890 hours)

36. How Proficient are Today’s Foreign Language Majors? • Results of Oral Proficiency Testing • Official ACTFL OPI’s administered to foreign language majors • Tests were conducted face-to-face and telephonically • Double rated and certified results through the ACTFL Testing Office

37. About the ACTFL Study • 501 Undergraduates • Five Liberal Arts Colleges • Juniors and Seniors • Foreign language majors • Data gathered over five years • 1998-2002 • Six languages • Spanish, French, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Russian

38. A Look at FL Majors’ Oral Proficiency

39. Percentage of FL Majors Who Would Qualify for the Following Positions

40. Seven Major “Implications” • Complexity of Language • Relative Language Difficulty • Time on Task • Student Characteristics • Curriculum Content • Types of Instruction • Assessment Tools

41. 4. Student Characteristics

42. Two Major Student Variables • Aptitude: The amount of time needed to learn a language. • Motivation: The amount of time a learner is willing to spend learning the language.

43. Impact of Aptitude and Motivation on Student Learning

44. Seven Major “Implications” • Complexity of Language • Relative Language Difficulty • Time on Task • Student Characteristics • Curriculum Content • Types of Instruction • Assessment Tools

45. 5. Curriculum Content • The adequacy of a curriculum must be judged against some external criteria. • For a curriculum with a proficiency orientation, one would consider the … • Communication tasks included. • Topical domains “covered.” • “Text types” of the language samples.

46. Proficiency Levels with Text Types LEVEL FUNCTION/TASKS CONTEXT/TOPICS TEXT TYPES All expected of an educated NS Books All subjects 5 Tailor language, counsel, motivate, persuade, negotiate Wide range of professional needs Chapters 4 Support opinions, hypothesize, explain, deal with unfamiliar topics Practical, abstract, special interests Pages 3 Concrete, real-world, factual Narrate, describe, give directions 2 Paragraphs 1 Q & A, create with the language Everydaysurvival Sentences 0 Random Words/phrases Memorized, rehearsed language

47. Tasks, content, and text length increase as one moves up the proficiency scale. 5 4 3 2 1

48. How can proficiency scales be used to design a language curriculum? • Historically there have been two Options: • Option 1: Interpret the proficiency scale as a proscriptive set of stages in the students development. • Option 2: Identify the proficiency level the instructional sequence should lead to and build a curriculum that leads to that goal.

49. Option 1 • Build a one-dimensional curriculum that • Begins with the lowest level in the scale • Progresses vertically through each level in sequence. • Therefore, the first objective is to be sure the student • shows little real autonomy of expression, flexibility, or spontaneity. • Is difficult to understand. • Has more errors than correct forms.

50. Option 2 • Recognize that progress in a proficiency-based curriculum will have three components: • Communication tasks. • Topical domains. • Accuracy of communication.