Shelby County School's World Language Program
This is the second year of the Japanese Program at Shady Grove Elementary School! It is one of a select few elementary schools in the Shelby County School District that receive foreign language instruction. Students in Kindergarten through 5th grade receive thirty minutes of daily Japanese language instruction by a specially trained language teacher. The program is still in its beginning stages, but is designed to serve as a feeder school for White Station Middle School and White Station High School. This allows students to continue their language study through high school, achieving higher levels of proficiency than would be possible after two years of high school foreign language study.
At the elementary school level, students learn language through thematic units that bring context to the language. The world language program focuses on using language in real-world situations. Students learn to communicate with others through oral language, print, and media. Although students need to know vocabulary, grammar, and cultural information, they learn them in order to use them purposefully for communication with others. This emphasis on communication aligns the Shelby County School's (SCS) curriculum with state and national standards.
At each level of world language instruction, students expand the topics on which they are able to communicate, the ways in which they are able to express themselves and understand others, and the sophistication with which they can express ideas. Student understanding of other cultures, ability to behave in culturally acceptable ways, and to recognize the relationships between language and culture grow with each unit, year, and level of world language study.
Each level of the SCS language curriculum is guided by clear statements of what students will know and be able to do. Realistic expectations for how students will be able to use their language and cultural skills are also clearly stated. These objectives determine what teachers teach, what practice activities are provided to students, and how student progress is evaluated. Ultimately, because the goal of learning language is to be able to use it, SCS teachers will test and evaluate their students on what students can do with what they have learned.
Helpful Links:
Shelby County Schools Curriculum and Instruction - World Languages
TN Department of Education Elementary Modern Language (K-5) Curriculum Standards
National Standards for Foreign Language Education - ACTFL
At the elementary school level, students learn language through thematic units that bring context to the language. The world language program focuses on using language in real-world situations. Students learn to communicate with others through oral language, print, and media. Although students need to know vocabulary, grammar, and cultural information, they learn them in order to use them purposefully for communication with others. This emphasis on communication aligns the Shelby County School's (SCS) curriculum with state and national standards.
At each level of world language instruction, students expand the topics on which they are able to communicate, the ways in which they are able to express themselves and understand others, and the sophistication with which they can express ideas. Student understanding of other cultures, ability to behave in culturally acceptable ways, and to recognize the relationships between language and culture grow with each unit, year, and level of world language study.
Each level of the SCS language curriculum is guided by clear statements of what students will know and be able to do. Realistic expectations for how students will be able to use their language and cultural skills are also clearly stated. These objectives determine what teachers teach, what practice activities are provided to students, and how student progress is evaluated. Ultimately, because the goal of learning language is to be able to use it, SCS teachers will test and evaluate their students on what students can do with what they have learned.
Helpful Links:
Shelby County Schools Curriculum and Instruction - World Languages
TN Department of Education Elementary Modern Language (K-5) Curriculum Standards
National Standards for Foreign Language Education - ACTFL