“Bonjour!” “¡Hola!” “Hallo!” “你好!” They all mean hello, except in French, Spanish, German, and Chinese. Taking a foreign language class in high school is required by the Texas Education Agency. Students have to earn at least two credits of foreign language in order to graduate. This is not only for graduation- many students decide to take foreign language classes with full passion to explore the new culture.
Four foreign languages classes are offered, allowing students to choose the language they feel most interested in.
“I found Chinese interesting and wanted to try it since it was seen as a challenge,” junior Katherine Wise said.
Aside from the interest in the new language, however, the distinct differences between their first language and the foreign language often become a challenge for students.
“The biggest obstacle is listening comprehension. I find it hard to distinguish what is being said when I see videos of German people talking,” junior Andrea Garcia said.
Despite the obstacles students have to overcome, the benefits students can get out from the program is beyond imagination.
“It opens your doors for careers. I speak Spanish and Portuguese, and it opened many doors throughout my career,” Spanish teacher Don Figg said. “Plus, it enriches your life, because you know about different cultures, you can go to different countries, you are able to communicate, and you appreciate the cultures.”
Foreign language classes help students in multiple ways: career opportunities, economic developments, cultural understanding, social interaction, and divergent thinking. These are certainly not the only advantages, but the memories made along the journey will be treasured for a long time.
“The best thing that I remember from taking Spanish was when I learned the prepositions through a song, and I had to sing it to my teacher,” junior Aliza Matthew said.
Although passing the class is important for students, teachers’ expectations for their students are more than that. They want their students to actually be interested in the language and gain a deeper understanding of the culture.
“By the time they leave my class, I would like them to be able to express their needs and wants in German, and ask people questions,” German teacher Julie Schneller said.
To get the students to reach higher levels of understanding, teachers try to make the classes more interesting by not only teaching materials on textbooks, but also relating them to current society.
“I try to tie current events to what we are learning in class. We watch German children news, I also try to teach the things they want to be able to say and express,” Schneller said.
For teachers, the experience of teaching can be memorable because of the love from students and their achievements in the future.
“My best experience is just making the kids laugh, and having their attention,” Figg said.
Learning a foreign language can be really demanding, but gaining the knowledge of a new language is a rewarding achievement. Students can also widen their understanding of various diverse cultures and it can provide them with greater opportunities in the future.
“Having a second language skill in today’s global economics is really important. I think it’s important for them to be able to say on their resumes that they are bilingual,” Schneller said. “Students communicating and understanding people in another language shows the openness to the world.”