DOCUMENT RESUME FL 021 706 ED 372 596 Acquafredda, Miriam AUTHOR A Parent Volunteer Program for the 5th and 6th Grades TITLE To Teach Spanish: The Phoenix Experiment. PUB DATE 93 NOTE 21p. Descriptive (141) PUB TYPE Reports MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. EDRS PRICE Articulation (Education); Elementary School Students; DESCRIPTORS *FLES; Grade 5; Grade 6; Instructional Materials; Intermediate Grades; Material Development; Middle Schools; *Parent Participation; *Parents as Teachers; Program Descriptions; Second Language Instruction; *Second Languages; *Spanish; Teacher Developed Materials; Teaching Methods; Volunteers; Volunteer Training Arizona (Phoenix); *Madison School District AZ; IDENTIFIERS Middle School Students ABSTRACT A Madison School District (Phoenix, Arizona) program in which parent volunteers teach Spanish to fifth and sixth graders is described. The program originated with the author, who as a parent volunteer had been teaching Spanish to her child's class. First, a brief account is given of the history of foreign languages in the elementary school (FLES) and of currently used low-cost FLES methods. In the Madison School District, parent desire for a foreign language program was strong despite minimal financial resources and lack of appropriate instructional materials. In the middle school in question, the seventh- and eighth-grade Spanish teacher agreed to write 20 fifth- and sixth-grade lessons leading into the later curriculum, and parent volunteers were recruited through the'schoAl newspaper and parent-teacher association. Each volunteer received instruction on lesson presentation from the author and the Spanish teacher. Volunteers were found to be conscientious and committed, and the program became an opportunity for friendships and parent involvement. Challenges to be met included support of administration, teachers, and parents; parent preferences and conflicts; a malfunctioning copy machine; and a major cultural project--a school fiesta. A list of references and a sample lesson are included. (MSE) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** TO TEACH 5TH AND 6TH GRADES A PARENT VOLUNTEER PROGRAM FOR THE THE PHOENIX EXPERIMENT SPANISH: by Miriam Acquafredda 9636 N. 26th St. 85028 Phoenix, Arizona 867-3417 "PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS U.S. DEPARTSIM OF tiAiCATION MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY Oft* of Educatronsi Rs **arch and Assrovisnom EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) 0 TT's docummil Ass Win rssessucsd as racerved trorn th pirfson or otgannation acniroatin It. O Minof change Kew taw mad* lo Improve r4Fr0ductarn duality TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES Fended wawa °pintoes $laNte in t does- rstn1 do NS rsicussamy rusrssent Okla] INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)." Of PrI pataron or poky 2 BEST COPY AVAILABLE A PARENT VOLUNTEER FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROGRAM FOR 5th AND 6th THE PHOENIX EXPERIMENT GRADES: STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM: Under the Carter Administration of 1983, suggestions were made by the National Commission on Excellence in Education (1979) to implement a foreign language program in all U.S. schools In 1989, The Arizona State Board of Education mandated systems. that foreign languages need to be implemented into the K-12 classrooms, but the mandate was put into effect without the necessary funding to facilitate its implementation. (1989) Complicating this matter was the lack of established FLES. (Foreign Language in the Elementary Schools) programs in the State of Arizona to serve as models of program development. In addition, only a few FLES classes in the school systems had been offered before or after school hours and no cultural awareness It was for these reasons through FLES had been carried out. that I came up with my volunteer program to teach foreign languages'in the elementary schools. I had a brainstorm to begin a A year and a half ago, parent volunteer foreign language program for the Madison school I had been teaching Spanish as a district in Phoenix, Arizona. Volunteer for four years in that district, and thought it would be a wonderful idea to share my program with all the students in the 5th and 6th grades instead of just my daughter's 5th grade There was no curriculum of any value that had been class. 3 written for 2nd to 6th grades, but I had spent an enormous amount of hours creating educational games and other learning experiences over the four years prior to that time. Considering these factors, and the prevalence of Spanish spoken in the Phoenix area, I thought that teaching this language in the classroom would be a worthwhile endeavor. This paper is an account of how I designed and implemented this project and overcame significant obstacles along the way. REVIEW OF THE PAST AND PRESENT HISTORY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE TAUGHT IN KINDERGARTEN THROUGH 6TH GRADES: OVERVIEW OF THE 1950'S-19706: The launching of Sputnik and the Cold War caused the teaching of foreign languages to gain government attention in the 1950- 1970s. People wanted to be able to communicate in all languages as space and other technologies were developing at a very rapid pace. In the 1950s, the federal goveroment provided the National Defense Education Act to train foreign language teachers. (Hamayan, 1958) According to Patterson, (1969) during this period some of the students were introduced to teaching the language via television. Classes for instance, would listen to a French teacher on T.V. twice weekly. After viewing the lesson, the class would respond to the T.V. Instructor's questions about the segment taught. The children's regular classroom teacher would listen and assist with eliciting correct responses. The problem with this type of approach was that it was difficult to 4 The distinguish verbatim what the T.V. Educator was saying. In the 1980's and's 1990's there seems to be a resurgence of classroom television was a distance away from the pupils' The T.V. individual desks which made listening difficult. Instructor could not tailor the lesson to fit the particular Moreover, the class environment that was being instructed. were generally not fluent or teachers in the regular classroom knew little if any of the language, and much confusion took place Most of the pupils retained for both the Teacher and students. simple phrases while others retained virtually nothing from this new advancement. Another development during this errl was to pull out the more advanced students, and give them foreign language instruction in These programs were created for the a separate classroom. They consisted of grade level appropriate 4th-6th grades. was limited, Funding concepts from the High School texts. Cold War Perhaps the decisions of the and interest was lost. disarmament agreements caused the overall foreign language Some parents felt this foreign thrust to be discontinued. language benefit should be made available to all children (Abramson, 1966) instead of the brightest disciplines. In the 1970's, a study showed that intelligence played only a minor role in predicting the achievement of foreign language proficiency. The students' performance level was determined foremost by motivation with other factors of positive attitude to foreign languages and different cultures also playing a role. 5 (Genesee, 1976) OVERVIEW OF THE 1980'S-1990'S: In the 1980's and's 1990's there seems to be a resurgence of interest in learning foreign languages. Studies (Rafferty) are showing that pupils that take a foreign language excel better academically than their counterparts that do not partake in the In addition, the world is developing a same subject matter. global economy, and the need to be able to communicate is becoming increasingly more important. (Rafferty, 1966) Despite these factors, federal and local funding for FL programs has not been plentiful. In the 1980's-1990's, foreign language is being presented to teach culture as well as to learn tha way to converse in a second The innovative teaching approaches promote the use of language. Hamayan (1986) foreign language for meaningful interaction. believes that it will be many years before we will feel the effects of producing a generation that has grown up with foreign language training in all levels of the school system. PRESENT LOW COST FLES METHODOLOGIES: In the 1980's, some methods of implementing the teaching of foreign languages in the classroom were developed that do not require special funding. For instance, a new instructional modality was implemented entitled, "Think-pair- Students are taught to learn a foreign language in a share." conversational approach. This activity entails cooperative learning that allows students to participate in classroom 6 discussions and increase their opportunities to learn from each According to Lorenz, (1984) other using that foreign language. this process does not specify a group to be taught, grade level, teacher,or materials to be used nor does it have any flaws that were documented. Another low cost method invites foreign workers to a foreign This enables the pupils to practice speaking language classroom. the language first-hand and to even learn an appreciation of other cultures. Here again, no special funding, teachers, The only materials, grade level or grouping is necessary. requirements are that the workers speak the language without grammatical errors and that they address the specific grade level The philosophy could be utilized as concerns they are teaching. an immersion concept since the worker-educator is from a country, and is visible throughout the school campus. (Described by Stern, 1984) can A low cost game concept, described by Pluto, (1984) also be adapted in all aspects of the elementary school It is even recommended that pupils make their own classroom. games as they learn how to write, and read in the second This creates a fun, educational experience for the language. The games should be in both languages, and the teacher students. would need to process elementary skills in the language being The funding traditionally only covers the art supplies, taught. and district in-service training sessions that demonstrate how to It is less expensive to have the regular help the students. 7 classroom teacher use this type of an enrichment to the normal class activities rather than hire a special FLES teacher. In this manner, all students would be benefited by this program. Other ways to incorporate foreign language instruction without extra funding would be to teach social studies and institute the study of the target culture in English. In addition, pupils with this type of background should be encouraged to bring family members into the classroom to speak Projects could be and have discussions with the students. assigned in which those students from bilingual backgrounds could According to involve grandparents and other family members. (1970) in the teaching of the target language, the Dohrer, outcomes of such a program could be exciting, however, it would need to be employed in a multi-cultural school population. Many other ideas have been proposed to keep foreign language One is instruction in the classroom without increased funding. sharing visual aids and use of associated physical activities. Such kinesthetic approaches provide opportunities to make use of non-verbal cues to meaning, enliven the classroom and maximize This can service all grade levels without hiring learning. specialized FLES teachers; only additional instruction for the This solution only requires present teachers could be needed. an initial capital outlay of monies without further ongoing revenue spending. (Bohrer, 1970) NEED FOR A CHANGE: The district had surveyed the wants and needs from the 8 Eighty eight per cent of the surveys families of every student. I had indicated a strong desire for a foreign language program. been volunteering in my daughter's class for the last four years The state mandate teaching Spanish at the primary school. (K-4) There was no was still in effect without financial support. money available for a FLES program in my daughter's school and no I felt that commercially available FLES curriculum materials. having parents come into the classroom to teach Spanish would be a good solution to the problem. It seemed the next step was to share my program with the middle school as my daughter would be In other words, this program was a starting the 5th grade. Although serendipitous idea for me to pursue this next step. the middle school serving grades 5-8th, the 5th and 6th this wia Since the 7th grades did not have a foreign language curriculum. and 8th grade foreign language teacher, Mrs. Deborah Beresford, agreed to write materials a curriculum that would *stair step the classes into the Junior High Spanish class, Spanish was selected as the language to be taught to the 5th and 6th graders. THE STRUCTURE OF THE PARENT VOLUNTEER SPANISH INSTRUCTION: class received Each parent that volunteered to teach a instruction on how to present the lessons form Mrs. Beresford, Mrs. Phyllis the Junior High Spanish teacher and myself. *stair step means to have enough information present to flow directly into the next level of higher learning skills. 9 BEST COPy AVAILABLE Schwartz, Madison Meadow's school principal, approved the Twenty lessons were written for the curriculum for the students. parents to follow. (Refer to appendix for sample lesson plan) Overhead transparencies, videos, listening tapes, worksheets, and any supplemental materials were applied as part of the lesson As the Spanish lessons proceeded, the teachers acquired an plan. appreciation of the parents' efforts, and agreed to extend the lessons and have the classes at the end of the school day if this accommodated the parent's schedules. Parent volunteers were solicited in the school newspaper, and at PTA meetings. The parents who volunteered were if they were unable to make a conscientious and committed. lesson, they would arrange for another time with their This became an opportunity for the respective classroom teacher. parents to become involved with their children's education. They also met other parents that were involved with their Parents also children, and friendships were consummated. volunteered that did not have children in these grades because they felt that FLES was a valuable asset in their school. CHALLENGES TO OVERCOME WITH THE PTA, ADMINISTRATION, TEACHERS, PARENTS, MACHINERY, AND THE FIESTA: PTA: There were a multitude of challenges to overcome to gain the support of the PTA, Administration, Teachers, Parents, Machinery, I made sure the and the Fiesta. Before attempting this program, PTA would give me their full support for these FLES classes. 10