Come join us on Oct. 5, 2023, at 3:00 PM EST, for a presentation by Cristina Lozano Argüelles and Aída Martínez-Gómez.
This presentation is part of the Center for Integrated Language Communities (CILC) Heritage Interpreting research project (HI) , which aims to develop an interpreting curriculum that capitalizes on the strengths of heritage learners.
The field of translation and interpreting is experiencing significant growth, with a projected 20% increase in job opportunities between 2021 and 2031. While college language departments are responding to this trend by introducing translation and interpreting programs, these programs typically overlook both the distinct needs of heritage speakers—who make up a sizable portion of these majors—and their valuable previous experience as informal translators and interpreters for their families and communities. This presentation addresses these students’ current language use; their language acquisition trajectories; their language proficiency in English and Spanish (both self-assessed and ACTFL-rated); their interpreting competence; and their experience as child language brokers. This presentation will also describe how knowledge of these particular linguistic characteristics can support the development of a curriculum better tailored to these future interpreters. Read more
ILETC invites you to participate in a day-long, virtual ACTFL workshop (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) on text typology, led by Professor Cynthia Martin.
This workshop will explain how to use the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines to develop learners’ general proficiency in interpretive modes (Listening and Reading) in the target language. Participants will review the Guidelines, which will be followed by an introduction to text typology for these interpretive modes. The majority of the workshop will be spent engaging in hands-on activities to guide participants in how to 1) evaluate the effectiveness of their existing teaching materials in terms of overall goals and target audience, and 2) select authentic reading and aural texts and use them to design appropriate proficiency-based activities at various levels. At the end of the workshop, participants will also have the opportunity to discuss implications for assessment of these interpretive modes.
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Come join us on Friday, November 11, 2022, from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM, for an interactive presentation online.
What are the differences between traditional writing assignments (prompts-draft-feedback-final copy) and assignments created following a genre-based approach? What do students and instructors gain by using a genre-based approach? More specifically, what are the distinct benefits for heritage language learners, who typically express an understanding that writing is their weaker skill in the heritage language?
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When working with multilingual students in your heritage language, English comp, or ESL classes, have you ever wondered about these learners’ ability to do things in “the other” language? For instance, should we assume that bilingual CUNY students who received most of their education in the U.S. write better in English than in their heritage language? What about how large the gap is between writing abilities in the two languages? Can our students accurately evaluate whether they are better at one of the two languages? And, is there anything in their biographical profile that seems to help predict language dominance in writing?
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Dear CUNY Heritage Language Instructors,
We invite you to learn about We Authors (https://weauthors.commons.gc.cuny.edu/), a website for multilingual students enrolled in heritage language courses across CUNY.
We Authors provides students with a public-facing component to their assignments (under instructor supervision), which allows them to write with a purpose, something known to be instrumental in increasing learner engagement and advancing writing proficiency. Read more
October 15th, 2020, 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Registration is now open. Limited spots available.
The Institute for Language Education in Transcultural Context (ILETC) is pleased to offer a webinar on facilitating student-to-student interaction in the virtual language classroom. This two-hour webinar is intended for language instructors who began teaching in the online format in Spring 2020, and who now wish to further solidify and systematize their skills. Read more
Methodological Developments in Teaching of Spanish as a Second and Foreign Language
A Workshop for Teachers, XIV. Language Programs and Methodology
April 25th, 2020
Room TBA
Barnard College
10:00am – 1:00pm
Guadalupe Valdés
Stanford University
Teaching and Learning Spanish in an Age of Shifting Theories, Ideologies, and Policies
3pm – 6pm
Marta Antón Read more
Workshop Description
The Institute for Language Education in Transcultural Context (ILETC) invites CUNY Spanish language instructors who teach heritage or mixed L2/heritage courses to participate in a year-long workshop aimed at revising curriculum, discussing pedagogical approaches, and evaluating materials and assessment tools.
We at ILETC consider collaboration to be a key aspect of improving language education. The workshop sessions offer organized spaces for participants to work with and learn from each other. There will be group meetings to discuss progress with colleagues, reading groups and lectures from experts to keep ourselves up-to-date on the changing dynamics of language education, and structured activities to facilitate curriculum development. This professional development activity will be led by ILETC Director, Alberta Gatti, and assisted by a graduate student.
Meetings will take place at the Graduate Center on Fridays, with the first meeting scheduled for Friday, September 21st. The group will meet three times in the Fall and three in the Spring, with the last meeting scheduled for May 2019. Additionally, ACTFL will be invited to offer a day-long workshop for participants. The complete schedule will be available in early September.
There are a limited number of spots available. To apply, please fill out the application form (applications now closed) no later than August 30, 2018. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to ILETC@gc.cuny.edu.
Workshop Facilitator
Alberta Gatti is Associate Professor of Linguistics at the Graduate Center, City University of New York, where she directs the Center for Integrated Language Communities (CILC, a National Language Resource Center) and the Institute for Language Education in Transcultural Competence (ILETC, a research and resource center for language education at CUNY). For the past four years she has been conducting research on the proficiency of heritage speakers, which resulted in two publications and multiple conference presentations. Previously, she conducted work on Early Modern Spanish literature. Alberta Gatti holds a Ph.D. in Hispanic Language and Literatures from Boston University and a degree in Classical Studies from the University of Buenos Aires.
The Institute for Language Education in Transcultural Context (ILETC) along with the Office of Academic Initiatives and Strategic Innovation (AISI) invites language instructors to participate in two workshops.
Workshop 1: Modified OPI Assessment Workshop (MOPI)
This two-day workshop is focused on the Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) and introduces the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) rating scale, the structure of the OPI and techniques for administering and rating the OPI including its applications in the language classroom. Participants will observe and conduct live practice interviews at Novice and Intermediate proficiency levels. Participation in a MOPI Assessment Workshop is the first step toward becoming an ACTFL Certified OPI Tester with Limited Certification.
Workshop 2: Developing and Assessing Academic Reading Proficiency
This one-day workshop will address current research in foreign language reading proficiency with respect to the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines 2012 – Reading. Questions that will be considered include:
- What is the role of reading in world language curricula?
- How does reading proficiency influence—and how is it influenced by—listening, speaking, and writing proficiency?
- How are academic reading requirements different from everyday reading requirements?
The workshop is comprised of three interrelated issues: text typology; defining comprehension tasks; and building a reading proficiency program that includes the development of formative and summative assessments for departments of languages and literatures in higher education. The ACTFL Reading Proficiency Test (RPT) will be introduced as an example of a valid and reliable summative assessment.
Both workshops will be conducted in English for a mixed-language group, and will be led by Dr. Cynthia Martin from the University of Maryland. Further details on both workshops including cost, dates, times, and how to register can be found on the drop-down menu below.
This program is offered by the CUNY Institute for Language Education in Transcultural Context, in partnership with the CUNY Graduate Center’s Office of Academic Initiatives and Strategic Innovation.
ACTFL Workshop: Modified OPI Assessment Workshop (MOPI)
Workshop Cost
- Instructors affiliated with CUNY: $50 non-refundable fee
- Non-CUNY instructors: $175 non-refundable fee
Workshop Meeting Information
Meetings will take place at The Graduate Center, CUNY on the following dates and times:
- Tuesday, January 21, 2020 9:00am – 6:00pm
- Wednesday, January 22, 2020 9:00am – 6:00pm
To register please click this link.
ACTFL Workshop: Developing and Assessing Academic Reading Proficiency
Workshop Cost
- Instructors affiliated with CUNY: $25 non-refundable fee
- Non-CUNY instructors: $75 non-refundable fee
Workshop Meeting Information
The workshop will take place at The Graduate Center, CUNY on the following date and time:
- Thursday, January 23, 2020 9:00am – 6:00pm
To register please click this link.
The Institute for Language Education in Transcultural Context (ILETC) invites language instructors who teach heritage or mixed L2/heritage courses to participate in a year-long seminar series aimed at exploring issues related to the teaching and learning languages.
This seminar series offers organized spaces for participants to work collaborately while learning from one another. Discussions are geared toward understanding heritage learners and their languages with the goal of supporting curricular a pedagogical improvement. This professional development activity will be led by ILETC Director, Dr. Alberta Gatti, with the participation of Maria Carreira, co-director of the UCLA National Heritage Language Resource Center.
Seminar Cost
- Free for CUNY instructors and graduate students.
- $110 (includes $10 registration fee) for those not affliated with CUNY.
Class Meeting Information
Meetings will take place at The Graduate Center, CUNY on Fridays from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. Dates of the courses and topics are as follows:
- September 20, 2019 4:00 – 6:00pm – Heritage Learners and Heritage Languages “in the Wild” and “in the Classroom.”
- October 18, 2019 4:00 – 6:00pm- Sociolinguistic Profile of Heritage Language Learners and Critical Pedagogy.
- November 15, 2019 4:00 – 6:00pm- Proficiency and Literacy.
- February 28, 2020 4:00 – 6:00pm- Pedagogical Approaches I: Teaching mixed L2/heritage classes
- April 3, 2020 4:00 – 6:00pm – Pedagogical Approaches II: Successful Pedagogies for Heritage Language Education.
- May 1, 2020 4:00 – 6:00pm – Placement and Assessment.
Location
The Graduate Center, CUNY
365 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10016
Registration is now closed for this event. Please email iletc@gc.cuny.edu or agatti@gc.cuny.edu about any questions.
