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From https://www.capitolnewsillinois.com/Blog/Posts/439/Uncategorized/2019/7/State-Board-of-Education-releases-new-world-languages-standards/blog-post/

State Board of Education releases new world languages standards
New guidelines stress cultural awareness, use of languages across disciplines
by Peter Hancock
July 31, 2019

Foreign language teachers in Illinois are being asked to update the way they teach those courses starting in the upcoming school year by putting more emphasis on world cultures and how to use languages across different academic disciplines.

The Illinois State Board of Education on Wednesday released its newly-updated educational standards for world languages, replacing ones that were adopted in 1997.

...In addition to guiding teachers on how to structure their lessons, the world language standards are also used to determine whether graduating high school students have met the qualifications for a State Seal of Biliteracy, an award that recognizes students for achieving a high level of proficiency in two or more languages.

...Traditionally, foreign language classes have focused on memorizing vocabulary lists and rules of grammar so students gain a functional understanding of the printed and spoken word of another culture.

But Kim Johnson, a consultant with ISBE’s Curriculum and Instruction section, said the new standards go beyond that by focusing on the people and the culture behind the language in order to give students studying that language — whether it be Spanish, French, Mandarin Chinese or Russian — a broader, more multicultural view of the world.

Read the full article at https://www.capitolnewsillinois.com/Blog/Posts/439/Uncategorized/2019/7/State-Board-of-Education-releases-new-world-languages-standards/blog-post/