Opportunities to apply world language skills
Context
Post-secondary German, intermediate-level
German 201 and 202
Brigham Young University
Purposes and background
- Increase student awareness of opportunities available to them
- Encourage students to build a community of learners
It is widely recognized that enrollment in world language courses is declining. I think this is, in part at least, due to a lack of awareness of what doors world language skills open to students. Additionally, many world language classes lack meaningful connection to native speakers, or don’t even direct students towards opportunities to establish those relationships.
Solution
Certainly there is a lot that can be done to address these issues, but one way is simply to build course content that helps students connect with potential opportunities, and then to make sure that this is linked in prominent places. I created a “Opportunities” (“Gelegenheiten”) page that instructors can regularly update to keep student abreast of study abroad, internships, technologies, labs, or other chances to expand their cultural experience and use their emerging world language skills.
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