I was very surprised and disappointed by the recent announcement of the upcoming changes at the middle school. I am a parent of a seventh- and a ninth-grader and a world language educator with 16 years of classroom experience. Moving into town eight years ago for the schools, I was thrilled for my children to have the opportunity to begin French and Spanish in elementary school, as research shows this is the optimal time. It was disappointing when the language exploratory programs were removed from Hildreth Elementary School several years ago. And now significant reductions in language instruction at the middle school next year without discussion? It’s time to use my teacher voice.
What is language proficiency and why does it matter? Proficiency is the ability of an individual to speak or perform in an acquired language. World language teaching methodology has changed significantly over the past 10 to 20 years. The focus is now on communication. Language is a skill that’s continually being developed and it requires frequent targeted practice. The levels are clearly identifiable by what learners can do with the language, and the research shows how much instructional time it takes to move up a level.
What is the Seal of Biliteracy? The Seal of Biliteracy is a national movement—adopted by more than 40 states—that recognizes students who can communicate and function in English and another language. The Massachusetts State Seal of Biliteracy is conferred on seniors upon graduation with a seal on their diploma. A state-approved language assessment is used to test students’ proficiency in four skills: interpretive reading and listening and presentational speaking and writing. Currently 176 Massachusetts districts participate. The Bromfield School has participated since 2017 and next month, 24 Bromfield seniors will graduate with the seal on their diplomas.
The Massachusetts Seal of Biliteracy with Distinction requires an MCAS score of at least 501 and advanced low proficiency in all four skills.
The Massachusetts Seal of Biliteracy requires an MCAS score of at least 472 and intermediate high proficiency in all four skills.
Won’t middle school students still have French or Spanish 1, just over three years? French 1 and Spanish 1 are just labels and their only purpose is to sequence the courses. I would argue that the district’s current labels are misleading. French 1A, French 1B, and French 1C are currently taught as any core subject would be. They are each 45-minute classes that meet five times a week totaling 135 hours of instructional time per year. The rule of thumb among proficiency experts is that with each 135-150 hours of targeted instructional time, most students can progress to the next level. To avoid this confusion, some school districts label their courses with proficiency starting points such as novice, novice high, intermediate low, intermediate mid, intermediate high, or advanced low.
It’s only a pilot year, what’s the problem?
Reducing the instructional time from 135 hours to 45 hours for even one year reduces the total amount of language proficiency our future graduates can develop. Even if it were to be reversed after the pilot year, the reduction would create a negative ripple effect through the program.
What is WYN-WIN? WYN-WIN is an acronym that stands for what you need, what I need. It is a 39-minute period of time at the end of each day on the proposed schedule for grades 6, 7, and 8.
What’s problematic about WYN-WIN? If you listen carefully to the way WYN-WIN is described in the middle school info video, it is full of possibilities without a lot of details. From listening to the presentation, WYN-WIN promises to provide time for all of the following: for teachers to prepare lessons and collaborate, for advanced students to get enrichment, for struggling students to get support, for clubs, for group building and social-emotional learning, to run a potential advisory, to do homework, and so on.
Inverted pyramid representing American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages rating scale with major ranges and sublevels.(Source: ACTFL)
To effectively implement even a few of those ideas would take a lot of planning and organization. To be ready at this point seems like magical thinking. Our new administrators are in their first year. How is it possible to have done all that advance planning? Have instructional materials been created or purchased? Is there a budget for the significant curriculum work that will be required of teachers to plan for the beneficial learning use of this time? The other uses of the time the administration is proposing would not count as instructional time.
My sense is that without a concrete plan and a curriculum, WYN-WIN could easily become a study hall. There will be a reduction of 54 minutes of instructional time per day—270 minutes of instructional time per week (39 minutes of WYN-WIN time plus 15 minutes of homeroom each day).
What’s problematic about the rollout of all of this? There has been very poor communication from the administration about these major changes that seem rushed and underdeveloped. It is May 2023 and we already have a schedule that we will be piloting next year while the district’s strategic plan states that “by June 2023 [they will] establish a committee to study the schedules at Bromfield and set outcomes and a timeline for the following year.”
Are the Youth Risk Behavior survey results related to the programmatic reduction in world languages? Not really, but it’s all about the repurposing of instructional time. The administration wants to focus on SEL (social-emotional learning) and relationship-building as a response to the survey’s findings. They are proposing the WYN-WIN block as the time for this and other initiatives from their strategic plan. The time for the WYN-WIN block comes from a two-thirds reduction in the instructional time of our current middle school world language program.
How does world language help students who feel isolated? A major goal of world language classes is communication. Teachers work hard to create a welcoming environment where students are comfortable having daily conversations in the target language about what’s going on in their lives. At first it’s just “ça va?,” but it quickly grows from there. Scaffolding is provided so that students can soon talk with their peers and teacher about why they’re tired or stressed, what they’re excited about, how much they slept, and what happened last weekend. Curriculum themes can include wellness, sleep, stress, relationships, and even gratitude. Through these conversations rapport is developed and students get to know a trusted adult. I would argue that incorporating relevant SEL and authentic relationship-building into each subject area while maintaining the current world language instructional time would be the true win-win.
Is deleveling related to programmatic reduction in world languages? Not really, but again it’s all about the repurposing of instructional time. The idea is that if courses were deleveled, teachers would need more time to support students who aren’t getting what they need in the mixed-level class. They would need more time to plan and collaborate. The students would need time to meet with their teachers for support or enrichment. The research on the benefits of deleveling is mixed, and many are not sure where they stand on this issue. When the argument is made to delevel classes, the intention is not to hold students back, but to provide opportunities so that all students can succeed.
By repurposing two-thirds of the instructional time that is currently used for our sixth- through eighth-graders to develop their proficiency in a world language, the unintended impact is to significantly reduce their opportunity for success with the Seal of Biliteracy. Instead of providing 945 hours of world language instruction, which can correspond to an intermediate high to advanced low proficiency, the bar would be lowered significantly for all students as 675 hours only corresponds to an intermediate mid to intermediate high level of proficiency. A student continuing their language studies all the way through 12th grade would no longer meet the requirements to earn the state’s Seal of Biliteracy.
What I hear from the administration is excitement and possibility, but I am concerned that the potential benefits of these currently underdeveloped plans do not outweigh the loss to our students’ opportunities for academic growth. The administration needs to pause, return to the original timeline for the schedule change, and communicate openly with all stakeholders. Working together we can find creative solutions to meet the needs of our students without removing their ability to achieve proficiency in a world language at the Bromfield School.
Dot Samsi is a world language teacher in Sudbury and has a master’s degree in foreign and second language education from Ohio State University. She lives in Harvard and is a parent to two Bromfield students.
