Iowa Seal of Biliteracy Graduates @DMPS
The April 25, 2022 Seal of Biliteracy Awards Night photos are now available on the Seal of Biliteracy @DMPS page. Thank you to all who came.
|
|
These students qualify for the Iowa Seal of Biliteracy at graduation this year due to their test scores in English and an additional language. Any student able to listen, speak, read, and write in a language- or languages- in addition to English can show their skills and earn the Seal of Biliteracy at graduation. For more information, visit the Seal of Biliteracy @DMPS page.
Congratulations to all recipients! |
Want to improve your world language skills? TV, movies, and music might be the perfect summer comboMore and more language acquisition research shows the power of multimodal texts. This is not a standard textbook; a multimodal text is something like a movie with both visual and spoken word, a poetry performance where body language and words help clarify an author's intent, a newspaper with coordinating text and photos.
The research is also showing that spending time with content that is of high interest to the learner is one of the best ways to acquire natural speech patterns, intonation, and pronunciation in an additional language. Students ready to "keep up" their world language skills over the summer might benefit from a daily TV show, a weekly movie, and playlists more than explicit language study. While reading is still the number one way to improve writing skills, audio input is necessary for articulate and comprehensible speech. For ideas to experience language learning at home, jump over to the Summer Language Skills page! Language Learning in a DMPS Classroom"I took four year of Spanish in high school and I can't speak Spanish." This is one of the most common reactions from students' caregivers. Also, not learning an additional language is often in the top three of regrets of people in the United States once they reach 30.
The good news: at DMPS, we are basing our courses on brain research, language learning research, and instructional best practices. You will not see extensive vocab lists, who really needs to know how to say formal arm chair, your student will not spend hours studying grammar concepts. We focus on using high-frequency (used often) vocabulary, adding just a little more each day. This is why exposure to comprehensible langauge and class attendance is the best predictor of success in learning a language. Students will experience the target language almost all class period, become experts with class-created stories, and use those skills to successfully understand authentic resources. Students will start with very simple sentences and begin to expand those ideas as they acquire more language. 
|
Resources to why language learning looks, feels, and sounds like it does at DMPS
ACTFL is the national organization for setting standards for language learning programs. This link takes you to the research and each aspect of language learning. These resources are also referenced in the DMPS Scales for assessing high school and middle school student progress.
JiveWorld explanation of language learning research that support their app development style that mimics how students learn in DMPS classrooms.
Dr. Krashen is a leading researcher and theorist in additional language learning. This paper summarizes the importance of creating a space of success and offering compelling input for optimal language acquisition.
Ineffectiveness of grammar instruction as a primary method of growing functional language proficiency. This is why students can anticipate not studying grammar (verb conjugations, fill in the blank prepositions...) extensively as an early language learner.
JiveWorld explanation of language learning research that support their app development style that mimics how students learn in DMPS classrooms.
Dr. Krashen is a leading researcher and theorist in additional language learning. This paper summarizes the importance of creating a space of success and offering compelling input for optimal language acquisition.
Ineffectiveness of grammar instruction as a primary method of growing functional language proficiency. This is why students can anticipate not studying grammar (verb conjugations, fill in the blank prepositions...) extensively as an early language learner.
World Language Mission and Vision
World language courses at DMPS exist to empower all students as global citizens who are both culturally and linguistically prepared to enter the next stages of life.
The world language program at DMPS strives to offer relevant, rigorous, and proficiency-based instruction to build students’ abilities to communicate in an additional language. We acknowledge that all students can develop an additional language with appropriate support and coaching. We believe our world language courses help our students grow both academically and socially as community members. By focusing on what students can accomplish, we seek to build communicative skills and advance literacy development in the student’s primary and additional languages.
Students should exit world language courses with the confidence to communicate effectively with others as their careers and education paths continue beyond their experiences in DMPS.
The world language program at DMPS strives to offer relevant, rigorous, and proficiency-based instruction to build students’ abilities to communicate in an additional language. We acknowledge that all students can develop an additional language with appropriate support and coaching. We believe our world language courses help our students grow both academically and socially as community members. By focusing on what students can accomplish, we seek to build communicative skills and advance literacy development in the student’s primary and additional languages.
Students should exit world language courses with the confidence to communicate effectively with others as their careers and education paths continue beyond their experiences in DMPS.
