FOREIGN LANGUAGES IN CRISIS

Hortencia E. Silfa

John F. Kennedy High School

Introduction:

New York City is the capital of the world and it is the home of many immigrants; especially immigrants from Spanish-speaking countries. You are a “Public Policy Analyst”. Through the study of Spanish, you will learn to communicate with Spanish speaking people in your neighborhood.

Assume that you live in an all-Spanish neighborhood in the Bronx, New York. You, as well as millions of other people in New York City, do not speak Spanish but must communicate with people who do not speak English. Assume that you have tried to become friends with your neighbor next door, but that you cannot speak a word of Spanish. You are a High School student and you want to enroll in a Spanish class. You visit your School Guidance Counselor and you request to be enrolled in a Spanish class. Your Counselor gives you the bad news – funding for Foreign Languages was reduced to zero. You, as well as thousands of students, will be deprived of instruction in a second language. You inquire, and you learn that Region 2 (Bronx, New York) does not deem necessary or important to study foreign languages.

As a Public Policy Analyst, your assignment is to investigate the policies needed to expand the Foreign Language offerings in the Bronx, to study the effects of those policies on our society and to propose your own policies necessary to promote the study of Foreign Languages.

Keep in mind that funds are not unlimited. Providing additional funds requires reducing funds for other areas. Be prepared to recommend and justify funding cuts in other educational areas.

Task:

As a Public Policy Analyst you will produce and submit for grading the following work:

v Complete worksheets

v A written report which:

a) explains the background of the social problem,

b) analyses current policies affecting the funding of Foreign Language

programs in the Bronx, and

c) makes recommendations for a new public policy.

v Give an oral presentation of your report

You must cite at least 3 on-line sources where you obtained the information necessary to create your written report.

Process:

v Students should divide into pairs.

v Use the 6-step Public Policy format which you have already learned. Complete the handouts given to collect information for each step.

1. Define the problem

6. Select the best solution

v Go to the PPA and complete the worksheets:

1. Identify and define the problem of not being able to a enroll in a Foreign Language class and to learn to speak a second language in New York City. Use the worksheet found at the website:

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet1.html

2. Gather evidence for this problem and complete worksheets.

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet2.html

3. Identify the causes and effects of not being able to enroll in a Foreign Language class and to learn to speak a second language in New York City by using the worksheet found at the website:

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet3.html.

4. Create three of your own public policies that will address the social problem of not being able to enroll in a Foreign Language class and to learn to speak a second language in New York City. Use the worksheets found at:

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet4.html and http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/solutions.html

6. Finally, evaluate the effectiveness of your public policy solutions and select the best solution to solve the problem of not being able to enroll in a Foreign Language class and to learn to speak a second language in New York City by using the worksheet found at the website:

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/TIPS/worksheet6.html

Internet Resources:

Public Policy Analyst Website

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/tips.html

http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/tips/welcome.html

Websites

1 Define the problem http://www.actfl.org/index.cfm?weburl=/public/articles/index.cfm?cat=28

http://www.nafsa.org/Template.cfm?Section=PublicPolicy&NavMenuID=50

http://www.nafsa.org/content/PublicPolicy/USIntlEdPolicy/NIEP2003updateFINALwebversion.htm

http://www.nflc.org/security/lang_schools.htm

http://www.nflc.org/security/background.htm

2. Gather evidence

http://www.aas.duke.edu/development/Miscellaneous/ace.html

http://www.cal.org/ericcll/countries.html - INTRO

http://www.nflc.org/security/lang_education.htm

http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v8n2.html

3. Identify causes

http://www.pch.gc.ca/offlangoff/perspectives/english/econo/part2a.htm

http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v8n2.html

4. Evaluate a policy

http://www.cal.org/ericcll/faqs/rgos/policy.html

http://www.cal.org/topics/pubpol.html

5. Develop solutions

http://www.cal.org/ericcll/countries.html

http://www.mantoman.co.kr/issues/m044/m4409.htm

http://www.nflc.org/security/lang_schools.htm

6. Select the best solution

http://www.cal.org/ericcll/countries.html - STRONG

Search Engines

EVALUATION:

GRADE:	1	2	3	4
Oral Presentation	No knowledge of the uses of PPA . Presents no data to support the proposed policy.	Little knowledge of the uses of PPA. Presents several sources of data in a logical format to support the proposed policy.	Acceptable amount of knowledge Of the uses of PPA. Presents several sources of data in a logical and organized format to support the proposed policy.	Superior knowledge of the uses of PPA. Presents an exceptional amount of data to support the proposed policy.
Research	Links are not relevant to support the proposed policy.	Enough links but few support the proposed policy.	Many links that support the proposed policy.	All links support the proposed policy.
Report & Worksheets	Incomplete Does not use the conventions of standard written English.	Weak usage of the conventions of Standard Written English.	Acceptable usage of the conventions of Standard Written English	Superior use of the conventions of Standard Written English

English Language Arts (ELA) Standards:

1. Students will read and write for information and understanding.

2. Students will read and write for literary response and expression.

3. Students will read and write for critical analysis and evaluation.

4. Student will speak and listen for social interaction.

Social Studies:

Standard 4: Economics

Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate:

1. understanding of how the United States and other societies develop economic systems and associated institutions to allocate scarce resources

2. how major decision-making units function in the United States and other national economies,

3. how an economy solves the scarcity problem through market and non-market mechanisms.

Conclusion:

This PPA WebQuest will help you to understand the difficulties which a person faces when he or she must communicate in a second language and is not able to enroll in Foreign Language class due to lack of school funding. As Public Policy Analyst you will have identified the issues, researched the current policies, and created an alternative viable policy. As a result of this project you will have learned to identify and improve public policies that affect you as a member of the American society.