Washington Academy of Languages

Split Water

Originally uploaded by klattu01

I am often asked, “What is the best way to teach a language?” The only answer that I can give is that I have noticed that effective teaching and learning occurs when students balance meaningful communications with direct teaching. The history of second language teaching is marked with periods where people believe more in one approach, e.g. meaningful communication, than the other way of teaching, direct language teaching for accuracy. Then there are periods when the reverse happens. So it goes in language teaching methodology. There are many methods that have come over the dam and down the stream. But in the end the stream flows in one of these two directions.

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Day 23 - Exam hall

Originally uploaded by jackhynes

In the fall of 2008, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) unveiled a revamped exam for endorsement certification. To earn an ELL or Bilingual Education endorsement, the candidate must complete an accredited education program, and then take the state-mandated exam, followed by an in-class practicum called the Field Experience.

Previously, this exam was known as the Praxis 2 and has been administered by Educational Testing Services. In the 2008-2009 academic year, the Praxis 2 has been joined by the WEST-E. These two tests will be offered until July 2009, when the WEST-E will become the sole qualifying exam for the ELL and Bilingual Education endorsements.

To help clarify the changes that have come about from this innovation, we want to point out some of the key differences between these two exams.

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The Washington Academy of Languages is pleased to announce that we not only offer quality language instruction, but cultural seminars as well!

Recently, we hosted a holiday class centered around Italian culture - Le Feste in Italia, and we have one coming up focusing on the holiday cultures of Spanish-speaking countries - Las Fiestas de Espanol. The cultural seminars are filled with lively conversation, holiday samplings and excitement.

Some comments from attendees:

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A classroom

Originally uploaded by Im *S

The central debate in the recent election for the position of Superintendent of Public Instruction was teacher and student accountability. The issue took the form – as it usually does: what type of objective tests will demonstrate student learning and, therefore, teaching effectiveness? There is one area that received scant attention from the candidates: the civil rights of students.

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