I remember how it was -- JR
NC State’s Quixotic Foreign Language Requirement
For decades, universities have required students to fulfill a foreign language requirement. However, some research has shown that two semesters of a foreign language appears to have no meaningful effect on the language proficiency of college graduates.
Putting students through language classes adds to their tuition bill, but doesn’t teach them a new skill for their careers.
In North Carolina, the University of North Carolina schools require two years of a foreign language during high school for admission. For certain majors, such as business, the humanities, and social sciences, UNC students are expected to take more foreign language classes as undergraduates.
Usually, majors that require foreign language courses expect students to take an exam and place in more-advanced classes. If students don’t do well on the placement exam, they can take the introductory language class but receive no credit (similar to a remedial course), or choose a new language and start in the introductory class. Then, they can take a second-level course and complete their language requirement.
If a student didn’t work hard on a foreign language in high school, the incentive is to take a new class to avoid taking extra classes for no credit. Otherwise, it could delay their graduation—it only takes one or two extra classes to delay graduation by a semester. And that is a real concern: the National Center for Education Statistics noted that only 41 percent of first-time full-time college students complete a bachelor’s degree in four years.
Foreign language requirements can’t carry all the blame for students not graduating on time, of course. But the mindset that requires them and many other boxes to be checked without asking whether they benefit students makes it harder for students to learn and graduate. If faculty or provosts won’t ask hard questions, then governing boards should.
Courses that do not count toward graduation are often “remedial courses” because colleges require them, but do not earn credits. Those classes are supposed to prepare students for regular college courses. Ruth Gross, the department head of Foreign Languages and Literatures at NC State, explained why they don’t consider no-credit language courses to be remedial courses:
Our FL 101 courses are definitely university-level classes. I think it might be clearer if you didn’t call them “remedial” which they are not… For those students who have studied a particular language in HS and wish to continue with that language, we offer the placement test, so they may attain the proper level, progress quickly, and not have to redo material already learned. If those students do not place out and need to take 101, they do not get credit, since, at that point, they are redoing their studies.
The main motivation for foreign language requirements at most colleges, as Columbia University explains in Inside Higher Ed, is to prepare students to be “tomorrow’s conscientious and informed citizens.” The goal is to teach students about cultures and ideas beyond where they grew up.
Students aren’t getting that knowledge by learning—or failing to learn—another language, however.
“Practically no student who fulfills a language requirement of two, three, or four semesters will have acquired professionally relevant language proficiency,” said Eckhard Kuhn-Osius, a German language professor at Hunter College, Inside Higher Ed noted.
Another survey of four-year college graduate students found similar results. “All of the variations in proficiency is explained by students opting for majoring or minoring in language study and/or exposure to the language in their home or community,” W. Russell Neumann’s Survata study found.
The goal of learning about foreign cultures and languages is laudable, but with so few students actually reaching proficiency, students may learn more about foreign culture and history through non-language classes rather than foreign language requirements.
Why not require students to take a course on Indian or Brazilian history or an art survey course that covers Chinese art or Scandinavian art, for example? Universities could offer a wide range of non-American history and culture classes, and students who are serious about learning a foreign language would get smaller classrooms full of other dedicated students.
If the United States wants to increase the analytical and critical thinking of students, they should focus on introducing a foreign language to students at a much younger age. Children learn by associating words with their meanings and can become fluent in a second language more easily when they are young. But colleges and universities can’t force that change with their general education requirements.
There’s an argument to be made that students should learn about foreign cultures while in higher education, but current foreign language requirements are failing even by their own standards.
With the current foreign language requirements, students already face an uphill battle to reach proficiency. Perhaps it’s best that colleges admit the time has come for a change.
https://www.jamesgmartin.center/2020/12/nc-states-quixotic-foreign-language-requirement/
Losing a Generation: Across the Country, a Frightening Number of Students Are Receiving Failing GradesAcross the United States, school districts are reporting an alarming number of students who are receiving at least one failing grade, which has educators and administrators asking: Are the students really failing — or are the schools failing the students?
The “Great Experiment” in “virtual” classrooms is turning out to be a catastrophic failure.
The question is what to do about it. Here, wokeness meets reality in an unambiguous way. If teachers were to give these failing grades, a disproportionate number would be in black and brown communities. But school officials are extremely reluctant to fail so many minority children lest it makes them feel bad.
But failing any kid when the fault is not entirely their own seems unfair. Would they have failed if they had been allowed to attend in-person classroom instruction? The answer to that is almost certainly no.
Yahoo News:
In the first quarter of 2020, one school district in Charles County, Maryland, saw a 72.7% increase in failing grades for students enrolled in high school, WTOP reported. Forty-two percent of students in Houston received at least one failing grade in this school year’s first grading period, The Associated Press reported. This past year, secondary schools in Salt Lake City saw a 600% increase in the number of failing students, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
“Obviously we’re concerned,” James Tobler, the president of the Salt Lake City teachers’ union, told Insider, adding that teachers are trying to do their best “under the circumstances we are dealt with.”
Those “circumstances” have been almost entirely created by teachers’ unions and the politicians who coddle them. They are circumstances that teachers dealt with themselves. They can’t push the blame onto anyone else.
Some educators and administrators think they should just cancel grades for this year or even eliminate the entire idea of letter grades. At one time, getting good grades was necessary to get into a good college. But colleges today don’t really care how you performed in class previously. If you’re the right color, you’re virtually in.
Still, grades are a yardstick that parents (remember them?) can use to judge their child’s progress — or lack of it.
In an interview with Insider, Michael Gottfried, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, suggested that during the pandemic schools may potentially explore other options like a pass-fail system over letter grades used in the traditional grading system.
Madhabi Chatterji, a professor at the Teachers College at Columbia University, told Insider that grades should not be taken away completely. During the pandemic, teachers need to use grades “to gauge how effective their instruction has been” through online courses, she said.
A disproportionate number of minority children are failing, with one big reason being lack of access to the internet in the home. That might be one reason why 40 percent of Los Angeles school kids are absent on any given day. The school district also decided to defer any “F” grades until January. That’s not a solution, but at least they’re not ignoring the problem.
The obvious solution is to get kids back in class immediately and have school districts offer tutoring and remedial instruction for kids who are far behind. But that’s extra work for everyone and besides, it’s not in the contract the teachers signed. Worse, it’s not in the budget.
It’s a distinct possibility that this generation of children will become known later on as a “lost generation” when it comes to education.
Australian universities allowing almost anyone into their courses this year
Teenagers who missed out on studying their dream degree due to a low ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank) are being urged to take a short bridging course or apply directly for entry.
One university is admitting students based on teacher recommendations, rather than ATAR scores, this year.
Others are counting community service and work experience towards university entry.
Students who copped health or financial curveballs in 2020 can also apply for special entry on “equity’’ grounds.
Universities, bleeding cash due to the lockout of fee-paying international students, are bending over backwards to admit more domestic students for 2021.
Universities Australia chief executive Catriona Jackson said 2020 had been “exceptionally tough’’ for students and advised them to use different “pathways’’ to a degree.
“These include work experience, other qualifications such as bridging courses, leadership and community service, equity and special circumstances,’’ she told News Corp Australia.
“Options for university admission don’t end with the ATAR.
“Universities understand that the disruption caused by the COVID-19 crisis may have affected students differently and will be looking to provide flexibility to students.
“All universities will be ready and willing to talk with students about their individual situation.’’
Budding criminologist Megan Ting, 23, was devastated when she received a low ATAR but is now studying a Bachelor of Forensics Science at UTS, after completing a bridging Diploma of Life Science at UTS Insearch.
“Your ATAR doesn’t define you at all,’’ she said.
“Just don’t stress out – there’s always another way.
“I wish someone had told me earlier not to stress out and think it’s the end of the world.’’
The University of Tasmania has already admitted 1800 students through a side door, using its Schools’ Recommendation Program.
“We take a teachers’ recommendation along with prior academic performance, not just ATAR which is not a good predictor of future success,’’ vice-chancellor Professor Rufus Black said yesterday.
“Teachers are ideally placed to know if a student is on the right path to further studies.
“We (also) take into account people’s work and other life experience when considering their application to study.
“Not having an ATAR, or not having the ATAR you were hoping for, doesn’t have to be a barrier to your dream course.’’
Charles Sturt University (CSU) gives school leavers from regional areas a five-point ATAR bonus, and has already made 1859 early offers to school leavers.
CSU takes into account “soft skills’’ such as empathy and resilience, demonstrated through community and charity work.
Indigenous students can undertake a five-day entry program that provides guaranteed entry into a broad range of bachelor degrees.
CSU also offers “micro-credentials” in community leadership and resilience, to certify skills that show a student’s ability to do a job or continue study.
CSU acting vice-chancellor Professor John Germov said that “ATAR scores are not what they used to be’’, with 70 per cent of students entering via other pathways.
“ATAR scores do not necessarily reflect the skills and attributes that many occupations and professions require, and which students might possess when they apply for entry to university,’’ he said.
“A nurse is nothing without empathy for her patients, a veterinarian will struggle without the resilience required to deal with the death of the animals in his care.’’
The University of Southern Queensland (USQ) offers free three-month Tertiary Preparation Programs, covering English, maths and study management, with guaranteed entry to a range of USQ bachelor degrees regardless of ATAR results.
It also offers six-month certificate programs as a stepping stone to a full degree.
“You do not have to give up on your dream career,’’ vice-chancellor Professor Geraldine Mackenzie said.
“This year 12 cohort has had a lot thrown at them in the last 12 months.
“They’ve shown grit and resilience and will no doubt continue to do this throughout their university studies and into their careers.’’
In Victoria, RMIT University offers a new Pathways Guaranteed program, to help students without an ATAR get into a degree course by completing a TAFE course first.
“The benchmark of some VCE students will be disproportionately impacted this year by the disruptions of bushfires and COVID-19,’’ a spokeswoman said.
“The cost of a Pathways Package is often cheaper than completing a full Bachelor program.’’
University of Queensland acting deputy vice-chancellor Professor Doune Macdonald urged school leavers to “keep their ATAR in perspective’’.
“While it’s disappointing not to get the ATAR they were hoping for it can be a detour for school leavers – and for many students, that detour can become their passion,’’ she said.
The University of South Australia is offering diplomas or foundation studies to help students leapfrog into a degree.
“If students didn’t achieve the result they needed to get into their chosen degree, we encourage having a back-up plan by preferencing a degree in a similar field,’’ UniSA chief academic services officer Professor Marie Wilson said yesterday,
The Australian Catholic University (ACU) has introduced a new Foundation Studies Program at its Blacktown Campus in Sydney, to help students without a Year 12 qualification get into uni.
“While the year was extremely challenging for Year 12s, we are also seeing a very large number of applicants with high ATARs so not all students will be able to get in to their first choice,’’ ACU vice-chancellor Professor Greg Craven said yesterday.
He said the federal government was funding extra places for school leavers to complete a certificate first, and then transfer into a bachelor degree once they meet the entry requirements.
The University of New England (UNE) already admits 90 per cent of its students without an ATAR result, and offers free short courses to gain entry.
“If you didn’t get the ATAR that you hoped for, there is absolutely no reason why you still can’t go to university and go on to a successful career in your chosen field,’’ UNE student success director Barb Shaw said yesterday.
The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) advises school leavers to study a diploma or certificate in a similar discipline, as a pathway to a full degree.
Students can also combine a TAFE certificate with a QUT qualification, or study a different bachelor degree course before switching to their dream degree.
James Cook University (JCU) offers a Certificate of Higher Education that lets students catch up on any missing prerequisite subjects, in time to start most bachelor degrees in February 2021.
“If a student didn’t get the ATAR they need for their dream course, the Diploma of Higher Education is a six-month to one-year full-time course designed to help them meet the entry requirements for most JCU courses,’’ a spokesman said.
“They’ll study a combination of introductory and first-year degree subjects and develop the practical skills to be a successful university student and gain credit towards their chosen degree.’’
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