Spanish I student Faith Shack explores her folder of information on the conference.
On October 14, the Watauga High School World Language Department held a virtual world language conference through the Global Seal of Biliteracy program. The Global Seal of Biliteracy is a seal students can earn on their diploma by completing four high school levels of the same language. This commitment shows that students are on the track to biliteracy. As their website puts it, “the Global Seal of Biliteracy is your language passport to opportunity.”
“Knowing more than one language has so many benefits in life,” Spanish teacher Carmen Scoggins said, reiterating the importance of language knowledge for student’s futures. “It makes one more globally minded and helps shrink the world around them. Employers often seek out people who are proficient in another language, so future jobs and employment might depend on how much language study you have.”
During the conference, students browsed videos under the following categories: “Leveling Up” language skills, “Leveraging” language credentials, and “Linking” to future
opportunities. Each category offered many on-demand videos created by language experts and experienced language-learners. Students could also choose to watch a live session that varied between class periods. The live sessions for people learning Spanish covered topics including the Day of the Dead, studying abroad, cooking, vacations, and cultures of various Spanish-speaking countries. Administrators, teachers, and local businesses also helped provide resources like snacks, folders, and prizes.
According to Watauga world language teachers, learning targets for students included allowing students to see how their language study can continue after high school, to experience and see the value in a conference, and for students to choose and explore what interests them.
Spanish teacher Ms. Martinez explained why opportunities that help students connect with other language-learners are important.
“It is very interesting for [students] to see that other people are watching—from 56 other countries—are watching the same things that they are,” said Martinez.
Sophomore Ava Pinnix identified with the meaningfulness of connecting with a global community.
“It was a great experience to be connected with language teachers all around the world,” Pinnix said. “My eyes were opened to many careers where language skills would be beneficial and it inspired me to pursue the Global Seal of Biliteracy,”
“We wanted our students to feel part of something bigger than just our small microcosm of Watauga County,” Scoggins said. “By connecting them to other language learners, we were hoping to create a shared experience for them. We want them to see how languages can benefit their lives in the long-term and not just while they are in high school.”
Making learning fun also sparks students’ curiosity about other languages. According to Martinez, students get to do activities in other languages besides the one that they’re studying.
“I saw several students that were interested in gaming...and so they were watching that in German,” Martinez said.
Thanks to generosity from teachers and administrators, Watauga was able to participate in the conference. However, teachers are interested in support for future conferences, so that students can have the necessary supplies to get a taste of the interactive conference experience. Martinez explained that she expected the conference to be more interactive between students, but that after all, it is their first time organizing a conference and they hope to continue to evolve in the future.
She said that it would be beneficial to continue holding similar conferences in the future. They “encourage students to keep taking the language, to even get interested in other languages.” She doesn’t want students to abandon their language, but to add on, and to grow their curiosity. Opportunities to see and meet new people across the world also encouraged students to travel and to mention to their friends the potential that language offers.
Ms. Martinez said that students were excited by something new. The department implementing similar engaging opportunities in the future could keep students excited about learning a language. Ms. Scoggins hopes to make the conference an annual event.
“By giving students a ‘conference’ experience like this, we expose them to a new way of thinking, learning, and sharing,” said Scoggins. “We are proud of our world language program and our language learners at Watauga High School!”
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