| Syllabus | Schedule | Assignments | Links/Bibliography |
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1. What are the National Standards?
2. What are the Performance/Progress Indicators for the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines?
3. What are the standards for World Language teachers in Minnesota?
4. How can you best appeal to students' different learning styles?
5. Many of the Assessments we read about included activities which went beyond discrete-point answers. They included synthesize, organize, etc. What "theory" is being addressed with these activities? Why are they important?
6. The major tenet of today's methodology talks about "meaningful communicative activities" to best ensure student learning. Does that reflect a "teacher-centered" or a "student-centered" classroom? Explain the benefits you see of each.
7. Explain the following terms:
* a. modes
* b. modalities
* c. communicative competence
* d. functions
* e. backwards design
* f. TPR, TPRS
* g. teacher chatter
* h. context
8. What kind of discourse are we aiming at in the long-term world language program?
9. Explain the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines:
* a. how are they scored?
* b. how long does it take to reach Intermediate or Advanced proficiency?
* c. are students necessarily simultaneously at the same level in all four modalities?
* d. what can the Intermediate High person do orally?
10. Explain the elements of:
* a. Audio-Lingual Approach
* b. Natural Approach
* c. Functional Approach
11. How can we best enhance student learning in the classroom?
12. What is the role of grammar in a Communicative Competence classroom?
13. Explain the principles of Structured Input.
a. Think of a structure in your target language where the first noun (or pronoun) is not the subject (agent). What would you do to teach this structure?
14. What techniques do you find valuable to teach reading?
15. Find a web site that students can listen to in the target language. What would you design as a listening comprehension activity?
16. Which of the four diagrams do you prefer to orient your instruction:
* a. "yellow" diagram
* b. "purple" diagram
* c. National Standards diagram
* d. Curtain and Dahlberg diagram
17. Do you prefer rubrics or traditional grades? Explain.
18. Does "children's literature" seem to you to be a viable way to enhance learning? Explain.
19. What did you learn about lesson planning?
20. What did you learn about teaching world languages?