Department of German

Series of panel discussions on the topic of
“Representing Foreign Language Education
at the National/Federal Level in the United States”

During 2007-2008 a series of four moderated panel discussions were organized by Leo van Lier, Editor of The Modern Language Journal, and Heidi Byrnes, Associate Editor of Perspectives, in order to lay the ground work for Perspectives 92,4 (December 2008). The topic for that issue of Perspectives and the panels is: "Representing Foreign Language Education at the National/Federal Level in the United States.” Open sessions took place at the following conferences:

• ACTFL, Friday, Nov. 16, 2007, San Antonio, TX, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, Room 218: 3 – 5 p.m.
• MLA, Saturday, Dec. 29, 2007, Chicago, Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers, Erie Room: 8:30 – 9:45 a.m.
• Northeast Conference, Friday, March 28, 2008, New York, Marriott Marquis: 2 - 4 p.m.
• AAAL, Monday, March 31, 2008,Washington, DC, Omni Shoreham, Empire Room: 2:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Each panel featured experts representing various constituencies and education policy experiences and interests. They were charged with imagining forms of institutionalization for foreign language education policy-making at the federal level of the U.S. that assure the development of encompassing, coherent, and long-term policies and practices. Following panelists’ brief opening statements, the sessions featured a moderated discussion and sought commentary from attendees.

This initiative on the part of the MLJ responds to the following situation:
In the last few years diverse interested parties, including the government legislative side, the government user side, the business community, and the academic-professional side, have created documents and reports that state well the problems in foreign language education in the United States. While the specifics of these reports naturally vary by the interests of those who produced them, one theme appears over and over again: the lack of a coordinated policy for foreign language education and international studies at the federal level. That means that, as various agencies make decisions about language study in the U.S. and considerable resources are being expended, particularly for the study of security languages, the language studies field itself does not have an assured place at the educational policy table at the federal/national level. It enjoys no permanent forms of representation or institutionalization, nor can it expect transparent procedures or processes to be followed regarding decisions pertaining to foreign language learning and international studies. In the meantime decisions are being made at the federal level (not at the state and district level) that affect the field in dramatic ways. The No Child Left Behind legislation is but one of many such instances. 

Various remedies have been proposed, including diverse legislative proposals. However, what is missing are proposals for forms of institutionalization, structures, procedures, and processes that would assure for all of foreign language education a permanent place in language educational policy making at the national/federal level in the United States.

• A set of Guiding Questions informed the discussions and helped panelists prepare their proposals and remarks.
• General background information on needs in foreign language education includes ACTFL blueprint 2005; CED report on foreign languages, 2006; CED testimony, 2007; Senate FL hearings, 1-2007; Oleksak/ACTFL testimony, 2007; and MLJ Perspectives, 91, 2.
• Particularly influential has been the report by the National Academy of Sciences pertaining to the Title VI and Fulbright Hayes programs, 2007 (Executive Summary).
• Programmatically NOT structurally oriented legislative proposals are The National Security Education Act, and Rep. Rush Holt's Foreign Language Education Partnership Act, H.R.2111.
• Most appliable to the discussion are diverse proposals for possible forms of institutionalization, including Rep. Rush Holt's (D-NJ) Foreign Language Education Partnership Act, H.R. 2111 and the most recent (Jan. 2008) proposed bill, being considered in conjunction with its Senate counterpart, S1642. Rep. Holt's bill, H.R. 5179, would establish in the Department of Education the position of an Assistant Secretary for International and Foreign Language Education and an Office of International and Foreign Language Education.
  Also pertinent is Sen. Akaka's FL Coordination Act.

In conjunction with the panels the following documents are now available:

• Outlines of proposals from each of the panelists: ACTFL panelists and proposals; MLA panelists and proposals; Northeast Conference panelists and proposals; AAAL panelists and proposals;
  A composite of all proposals can be found here.
• Post-event summaries of the panel discussions: ACTFL panel summary; MLA panel summary; Northeast Conference panel summary; AAAL panel summary.

Immediately after the conclusion of AAAL, on Wednesday, April 2, 2008, a one-day invited conference on the same topic took place at Georgetown University (GU conference schedule). For a summary, click here. The Chronicle of Higher Education reported on this conference in the on-line edition of April 3, 2008.

Perspectives 92,4 (Dec. 2008) will summarize and critically consider the four panel discussions and the main points raised at the conference. In addition, six perspectives papers will treat in greater depth areas that the group determined to be of particular interest. Authors are: Rosemary Feal (MLA), Bret Lovejoy (ACTFL), Sally Magnan (Univ. of Wisconsin), Gail McGinn (Department of Defense), Richard Schmidt (University of Hawaii), and Helene Zimmer-Loew (AATG).

For further information, contact Heidi Byrnes at byrnesh@georgetown.edu.

Updated April 7, 2008