Across the United States, students face increasingly high expectations of what they should know and be able to do upon completing high school. However, too few state policies take into consideration how the pathway to graduation may look different for English Learners (ELs), particularly adolescent newcomers who have limited formal education. Many…

Forty-six states and the District of Columbia have committed to fully implement the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) by the fall of 2013, and members of the two CCSS-aligned assessment consortia have committed to roll out an aligned assessment the following year. With less than a year until the CCSS must be in place in all classrooms, most…

As expectations for students to meet high academic standards have risen over the past two decades, so have the expectations for students to complete, and excel in, more rigorous mathematics courses. Once a course reserved only for the college-bound, algebra is now a graduation requirement for all California students as well as an early…

This article presents the state education finance and governance profile of Tennessee. The 17th largest state, Tennessee is home to 2.01% of the nation's inhabitants. Funding of K-12 education in Tennessee is accomplished via a formula known as the Basic Educational Program (BEP). This plan primarily utilizes school district enrollment numbers to…

Given the raised graduation requirement of the proficiency Enhancement Program (PEP) to attain proficiency levels of "2+," "2+," and "2," the importance of target language use has been highly emphasized across language schools at Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center (DLIFLC). This article discusses some of the challenges associated…

Describes modifications to the four original requirements of the foreign language program at the International School of the Americas, an experimental school located 150 miles from the Mexican border. (SR)

This guide to Alberta's French 30 standardized test describes the testing program and administration, the test parts, and test scoring for both teachers and students anticipating taking the test. Dates and times of test administration and scoring dates in 1990 are charted. The two parts of the test are described in some detail, including their…

Summarizes information on learning disabilities and foreign language learning and details the University of Pennsylvania's policy on exempting learning disabled students from foreign language requirements. The policy for exemption involves the review of students' case histories, evidence of effort made, and satisfactory performance in other…

In the past, students with learning disabilities who wished to attend university were unable to meet the entry requirements. With the progress of research in diagnosis, accommodation, and remediation of reading disabilities, many of these students are now able to attend and complete their academic and professional education. Yet in many cases the…

Describes the University of Arizona's plan of action for defining and testing second language proficiency at the fourth semester level (a college requirement). Tasks include (1) reviewing proficiency literature; (2) redefining the second language requirement by using the ACTFL proficiency guidelines; (3) developing testing techniques; and (4)…

Many educational institutions have already determined that American Sign Language (ASL) is indeed a language, that it has a culture, and it is sufficiently foreign to fulfill a foreign language requirement. Consequently, schools and universities struggle to place ASL in the context of academic foreign language programs. The challenge is to develop…

Describes an English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program in which international graduate students in the sciences are grouped according to their particular disciplines. This ensures that the peer group members are the content experts, whereas the ESL teacher serves only as the language expert, providing help in organization, grammar, pronunciation,…

In Florida, foreign language teaching has consistently followed national trends. Currently, there is a renaissance in language study. Enrollment has increased dramatically at all educational levels, due to a mandated state university system entrance requirement and two programs, the Florida Academic Scholars Program and Foreign Languages in the…