World Languages Department

Why study French? According to the Ministère de l’Europe et des Affaires Étrangères, more than 300 million people speak French on the five continents. Furthermore, French is the second most widely learned foreign language after English, and the fifth most widely spoken language in the world. But enough with statistics! Why study French? To broaden one’s mind and expand one’s horizons. In their French classes, students will be introduced to the cultures and history of France and various Francophone countries. They will be immersed, as much as possible, in the language and will cultivate speaking, reading, listening and writing skills by creating dialogues, decoding literature excerpts, playing vocabulary games or watching short videos. They will hopefully develop a taste for French and will want to continue learning beyond high school.

Ancient Rome has influenced many modern civilizations, including America, through its legal system, government, and philosophy. Therefore, a knowledge of Latin (and the Greco-Roman world) will help you better understand the world and nation we live in today. By learning to translate, you will develop your brain in ways that will help you in any number of subjects, and you will begin to see connections to Latin in all of your studies. Latin words remain present in fields like medicine, law and some English language expressions taken over directly into English from Latin. There has been a significant influence of the Roman Empire on our culture- not only in language but in history, art, literature and civil society.Due to the influence of the West on the shaping of the present world reality this impact is still in evidence today.

Sign Language I and II introduce the basics of American Sign Language (ASL). These courses are designed for students with no or minimal sign language skills to develop basic skills in use of ASL and knowledge of Deaf culture. Emphasis is upon acquisition of comprehension, production and interactional skills using basic grammatical features. ASL will be taught within contexts and related to general surroundings and everyday life experiences. The method in which these courses are taught is a combination of the Direct Method (teaching strictly in ASL) and speaking only when necessary.

In Spanish, we expose students to the daily use of the language in the many spanish-speaking countries and territories in Latin America and the world. As well as exposing students to the grammar that unites these countries and territories under one language, our goal is to introduce students to the diversity in cultures and lifestyles that make each place or area unique. Literature, films, classroom activities, lectures, presentations, and essays will immerse students in the common language and highlight the cultural differences within the Spanish-speaking world. We hope that the exposure to the language and cultures of the spanish-speaking world in the classroom will encourage students to one day travel abroad and continue their lifelong learning of Spanish and the many cultures that surround this language as the Hispanic population in the US continues to grow and Latin American countries evolve into key economic markets of the 21st century.