We believe that world language education at all levels of instruction in the United States is in crisis. In this article, we respond to this crisis by proposing a spectrum of situatedness and its relation to five distinct pedagogical approaches in world language education. We help to elucidate this spectrum with classroom vignettes, illustrating…

Whole language learning implies that teachers look at adult learners as whole persons rather than just ESL learners. It asks the teachers to see the learners in their classes as parents, spouses, employees or business owners, neighbors, churchgoers, and members of various communities. In other words, when they approach learners in their classes as…