Argumentative
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 24, 2004 Contact: Cheryl V. Walker or Kevin P. Cox
336-758-5237
walkercv@wfu.edu[->0] faten atiqah www.wfu.edu/wfunews[->1]
FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY
IMPORTANT IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
As the No Child Left Behind Act and budget woes put pressure on many school systems to cut back on foreign language study in the elementary grades, Mary Lynn Redmond advocates for strengthening foreign language programs.
Redmond, director of foreign language education and associate professor of education at Wake Forest University, is also the executive secretary of the National Network for Early Language Learning. “Children should start learning a foreign language in kindergarten and continue through high school,” Redmond says. “Learning languages helps increase listening ability, memory, creativity and critical thinking — all of which are thinking processes that increase learning in general.”
In addition to developing thinking skills, foreign language study exposes children to other ways of looking at the world, she says.
To those who consider foreign language study in elementary school a frill, Redmond stresses that foreign language education supports the core curriculum. When done right, foreign language instruction uses themes that support the elementary curriculum including math, science, social studies and language arts.
The holistic instructional approach used to teach foreign language incorporates
-more-
Early Foreign Language, 6/24/04,
many different strategies within a lesson, Redmond says. This enriches the learning process and appeals to students’ various learning styles.
“This is important in light of the way No Child Left Behind focuses so much attention on the subjects of math, reading and writing due to testing requirements,” Redmond says. “The courses that address many different ways of thinking and learning such as foreign language are being marginalized in
336-758-5237
walkercv@wfu.edu[->0] faten atiqah www.wfu.edu/wfunews[->1]
FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY
IMPORTANT IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
As the No Child Left Behind Act and budget woes put pressure on many school systems to cut back on foreign language study in the elementary grades, Mary Lynn Redmond advocates for strengthening foreign language programs.
Redmond, director of foreign language education and associate professor of education at Wake Forest University, is also the executive secretary of the National Network for Early Language Learning. “Children should start learning a foreign language in kindergarten and continue through high school,” Redmond says. “Learning languages helps increase listening ability, memory, creativity and critical thinking — all of which are thinking processes that increase learning in general.”
In addition to developing thinking skills, foreign language study exposes children to other ways of looking at the world, she says.
To those who consider foreign language study in elementary school a frill, Redmond stresses that foreign language education supports the core curriculum. When done right, foreign language instruction uses themes that support the elementary curriculum including math, science, social studies and language arts.
The holistic instructional approach used to teach foreign language incorporates
-more-
Early Foreign Language, 6/24/04,
many different strategies within a lesson, Redmond says. This enriches the learning process and appeals to students’ various learning styles.
“This is important in light of the way No Child Left Behind focuses so much attention on the subjects of math, reading and writing due to testing requirements,” Redmond says. “The courses that address many different ways of thinking and learning such as foreign language are being marginalized in