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Updated Seal of Biliteracy Guidance Now Available
Updated Seal of Biliteracy guidance is now available. A few updates to this year's guidance include:
- Districts will complete their intent to participate in the fall BEDS collection. If you are a classroom teacher and are interested in your district participating, please talk to an administrator to determine the district contact for completing the BEDS collection.
- An updated assessment list.
- You will be able to request a physical seal sticker from your AEA.
Iowa World Language Conference
IWLA Conference 2019 – Biliteracy and Beyond
The conference is just around the corner!!
It will take place at the Iowa Memorial Union on the University of Iowa campus, in Iowa City, Iowa on October 4 and 5, 2019. Go to http://iwla.net/conference for overall information. You can receive the early bird conference rate if you register before September 10th. Register at http://iwla.net/registration. See below for additional information.
- Housing and Travel information is available http://iwla.net/travelandhousing
- License renewal credit and graduate credit will both be made available for attending the conference – details will be posted soon! http://iwla.net/conference-credit
- So many great 3-hour workshops are already available to sign up for at the conference – learn some new techniques in the classroom or hone what you already know in these in-depth sessions!! Take a look at http://iwla.net/workshops.
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Immersing Himself Into a Classroom- and Culture
Javier Ruano Gomez is one of the 18 teachers participating in the Visiting Teachers from Spain program. Javier is headed to Sioux City where he will teach an immersion class for 1st graders. To read the full story go here.
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Achtung! A New Opportunity for Students
Districts that teach German in their schools just got a new resource – straight from Germany.
The Iowa Department of Education and the German Central Agency for Schools Abroad signed an agreement that would promote the German language and culture. Under the agreement, Germany has assigned a liaison to work with Iowa schools. Go here for more information.
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New Advisor from German Central Agency for School Abroad
Leeni Martinkari has been named the new contact from the German Central Agency for Schools Abroad (ZfA). She will serve as the point of contact for Iowa and will help support the new agreement we have with ZfA.
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ACTFL Releases Report on Value of Language Among Employers
The demand for language skills in the U.S. workforce is greater than ever before. In boardrooms and in the field, with customers and partners and on social media, U.S. employers today are increasingly conducting business in a language other than English. Accordingly, the ability to effectively communicate in more than one language is a critical asset for U.S. students and employees—not only in boosting their marketability in the workplace, but in helping them thrive in a global economy. To view the full report go here.
ACTFL Releases Statement on World Languages and Computer Science
ACTFL advocates the study of both world languages and computer science. Both are essential skills in a world that is connected across borders and through technology. Both provide specific skills and a way of thinking; however, the perspectives and skills gained are not equivalent. They argue several reasons, however, why a computer coding course is not the same as a world language course. Read the full statement here.
A New Dual Language Program Begins This Year
Bishop Heelan Catholic School in Sioux City is opening a dual-language academy. The academy will use a 90/10 model where 90% of the class will be taught in Spanish and 10% in English. Each year the amount of English will increase as students move towards 5th grade Check out the full story here.
100 Dubuque Students Earn the Seal of Biliteracy
For the first time, Dubuque Senior High School and Hempstead High School seniors had the opportunity to be recognized by the State of Iowa with the Seal of Biliteracy! At graduation, the Dubuque
Community School District adorned seniors with 100 Seals of Biliteracy for three world languages: French, German and Spanish. The district values this honor as an asset that will contribute to the success of students as they advance toward their chosen
career or college path.
View the flyer here.
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National Teach German Day is October 4th
National Teach German Day is a celebration of the teaching and learning of German. Go here to request a free kit to celebrate the day and find several other resources for celebrating during National German Week.
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Langscape
Check out this interactive map that allows you to zoom into any spot in the world and see what languages are natively spoken there.
WALS- World Atlas of Language Structures
WALS is a large database of structural properties of languages gathered from descriptive materials. Check it out here.
Coffee Break Academy
This site includes free podcasts for teaching French, Spanish, Italian, German, and Chinese. Check it out here.
Oregon LTS: Language Career
This is perfect for students or pre-service teachers interested in becoming a language teacher. The site includes several resources from doing a resume to the interview process.
Beelinguapp
Beelinguapp shows the exact same text in two languages; side by side At the same time, it is an audiobook. The are 13 languages available including Spanish, English, German, Portuguese, Korean, French, Hindi, Russian, Turkish, Chinese, Arabic, Italian, and Japanese. Check out more information here.
The Fluent Show
The Fluent Show is a podcast about loving, living, and learning languages. There are several episodes available. Check out more information here.
Stefanie Rosenberg Wager
Social Studies Consultant
21st Century Skills- Civic and Financial Literacy
World Languages
Iowa Department of Education
Grimes State Office Building
400 E. 14th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319
Phone: 515-725-7842
Cell: 515-419-2876
Fax: 515-242-5988
Email: stefanie.wager@iowa.gov
Social Studies standards, website, Iowa Core Social Studies, newsletter, calendar, Pinterest
Financial Literacy website, newsletter, Pinterest
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