The framework on which the culture standards is based and analysis of the three elements of culture—perspectives, practices and products are discussed. There is an in-depth examination of how perspectives, practices and products of culture relate to each other and how they can be incorporated into the foreign language classroom. Hands-on practice in planning for the inclusion of Cultures and Comparisons in classroom practice is provided. The role of the Cultures and Comparisons standards within the “Five C’s” of Foreign Language Education is reviewed.

Participants are acquainted with a developmental sequence of writing tasks based on the descriptions contained in the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines – Writing (Revised, 2001). Participants learn to develop writing activities and assessments that take into account the topics, purposes, intended readers, and functions of the message.

The twenty-first century brings both a growing awareness that our students will be living in a “global village” and a challenge to prepare them to prosper in that competitive environment. Connecting language study with other subject areas helps prepare learners to interact effectively across the world’s many linguistic and cultural boundaries. This workshop introduces Languages Across the Curriculum (LAC), a curricular initiative that links languages and other subjects and proposes strategies for effectively integrating language learning with other disciplines at all levels of education.

This workshop explores the meaning and importance of articulation within levels, level to level, school to school, and discipline to discipline and prepares teachers to develop a plan for articulation. Participants examine and share their own classroom and assessment goals and practices, and discover the practices of colleagues in order to develop bridges leading to a more effective and seamless foreign language sequence for their students within the framework of the National Standards.