This year ACTFL celebrates our 50th year--growing from a small organization spawned by the Modern Language Association in 1967 to the major organization we are today! We are pleased to bring you this report that tells the story of ACTFL's successes in 2016 through important data that reflect our growth in publications, professional development, and OPI certifications. Our story is in our numbers. A record attendance in Boston at the Annual Convention and World Languages Expo marked a special moment in our history as Past Presidents of ACTFL gathered to commemorate our accomplishments. Establishing the ACTFL Center for Assessment, Research, and Development (CARD) was a major step forward to emphasize the value we place on research and its implications for classroom practice. As we look ahead to 2017 language advocacy continues to be a central part of our mission helping to promote language education in the U.S. We want to thank our dedicated Board of Directors and staff, and, of course, our members who open the world to our students and help them become the globally competent citizens of tomorrow.
ACTFL offers a sincere thank you to all the charter members, leadership, members, volunteers, and staff who helped our organization reach this major milestone. We look forward to 50 (and more) additional years working together to collaborate on behalf of language education.
Past President Robert M. Terry, Ph.D., dove deep into the archives to craft a detailed and compelling history. Filled with photos and original documents, A History of ACTFL tells the story of how ACTFL went from an idea to a reality to the premier association for language educators.
In August 2016, the ACTFL Board of Directors established the Center for Assessment, Research and Development (CARD) to facilitate a cohesive focus on ACTFL's endeavors in these areas. CARD's mission is to:
Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) | 34,489 |
Computerized Oral Proficiency Interview (OPIc) | 218,715 |
Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) | 9,002 |
Reading Proficiency Test (RPT) | 6,315 |
Listening Proficiency Test (LPT) | 2,065 |
Computer Adaptive Listening and Reading Test (L&Rcat) | 258 |
ACTFL Assessment of Performance toward Proficiency in Language (AAPPL) | 225,625 |
Total | 496,469 |
ACTFL also strengthened its ability to serve US government clients by increasing its capability to 120 languages and dialects for Oral Proficiency Interviews (OPIs) assessed using the Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) proficiency descriptors. The ILR testing cadre includes over 500 testers.
ASL Project
ACTFL is committed to the development of a Proficiency Interview in American Sign Language (ASL). As a first step, ACTFL has certified 3 testers of ASL and continues to collaborate on the development of a valid testing protocol.
ACTFL Workshops explore proficiency-oriented approaches to language learning, teaching and assessment.
This new book presents an approach to teacher education and professional development that emphasizes carefully deconstructing fundamental instructional practices that are complex and often not visible through observation, definition, or brief explanation. Its goal is to assist teachers in learning how to enact specific practices, referred to as high-leverage teaching practices, deemed essential to foreign language teaching and situated in theory and research.
In July, ACTFL transitioned to new membership levels. These new levels were created to give members a greater ability to choose the benefits that they desire and value most.
All levels of membership still include the same benefits: discounts on publications, professional development, workshops and Convention, full access to the online Community, insurance discounts, one free Special Interest Group (SIG), scholarship opportunities, and more.
The new levels include benefits such as: one additional free SIG, access to all e-books, and two additional print publications, and access to three Virtual Learning Module Series (VLMs) for one year.
From November 18-20, 8,538 attendees came together at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center for the ACTFL Annual Convention. It was a professional development program tailor-made to appeal to thousands of educators teaching virtually every language and at every level. It was the celebration of ACTFL's 50 years of history as the premier organization representing language educators. It was an occasion marked not merely by record-smashing attendance, with the highest number of attendees by far at any ACTFL Convention.
Katrina is a German teacher at North County High School in Glen Burnie, MD, and represented the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (NECTFL).
At the convention, outstanding contributions to the field of language education were recognized with an award presentation. ACTFL Past-President Jacque Bott Van Houten presented awards to school districts and individuals.
ACTFL and coalition members successfully advocated in 8 states to establish Seal of Biliteracy programs:
ACTFL held workshops in 21 states, and in China and Canada.
ACTFL workshops consistently received top marks. Workshop participants, on average, give our presenters a score of 3.8/4.0
Revenue | % of Total Revenue | |
Contracts
|
$7,519,917.00 | 54.06% |
Convention
|
$2,186,919.00 | 15.72% |
Royalties
|
$1,240,662.00 | 8.92% |
Workshops & Seminars
|
$1,234,082.00 | 8.87% |
Membership
|
$714,795.00 | 5.14% |
Grants
|
$129,349.00 | 0.93% |
Publications
|
$247,255.00 | 1.78% |
Advertising
|
$109,943.00 | 0.79% |
Sponsorships
|
$130,232.00 | 0.94% |
Other Income
|
$73,751.00 | 0.53% |
Certifications
|
$153,525.00 | 1.10% |
Contributions
|
$170,000.00 | 1.22% |
Total Revenue: | $13,910,430.00 | 100% |
Program Services | % of Total Revenue | |
Contracts
|
$5,166,102.00 | 39.33% |
Convention
|
$1,694,897.00 | 5.04% |
Awards
|
$147,136.00 | 1.12% |
Testing
|
$435,572.00 | 3.32% |
Membership
|
$426,079.00 | 3.24% |
Outreach
|
$612,203.00 | 4.66% |
Professional Development
|
$400,926.00 | 3.05% |
Workshop & Certifications
|
$657,279.00 | 5.00% |
Other Programs
|
$243,603.00 | 1.85% |
Supporting Services | ||
Management & General
|
$689,913.00 | 5.25% |
Reserve and Investment
|
$2,000,000.00 | 15.23% |
Total Expenses: | $13,136,257.00 | 100% |