Content Area Courses
Note: Language courses begin at the Advanced language for the major. A placement test in the language is required to determine skill level and appropriate level to begin the language. Beginning and Intermediate language courses are in addition to the content area requirements but can fulfill open elective requirements.
Advanced Language Core: 24 quarter hours required, grade of C or better required
Chinese Studies: 24 quarter hours required, grade of C or better required
- Choose six of the following:
Teaching Culture Core: 4 quarter hours required, grade of C or better required
Education Courses: 40 quarter hours required, grade of C or better required
Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) Test
Pursuing certification in the teaching of a world language (Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, or Spanish) requires the oral proficiency test – an Interview – before you begin student teaching. You must earn a rating of "intermediate high" or better on the test.
Open Electives: 8 quarter hours are required
Open elective credit also is required to meet the minimum graduation requirement of 192 hours. The following cannot be used to fulfill an open elective: WRD 98
, MAT 94, and MAT 95. EE 281 recommended as open elective course. Electives must be approved by the WLE Program director.
Student Teaching: 12 quarter hours required, grade of B- or better required
Registration in student teaching requires completion of all requirements and procedures indicated in the college core section. EDU 95 indicates to the Illinois State Board of Education that all field experience hours are complete. All students also take WLE 384 with student teaching (listed in the Liberal Studies section).
All individuals licensed by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) are required to complete licensure tests specific to their teaching license. World Language Education Chinese majors must complete the following tests:
- Test of Academic Proficiency (TAP) (test #400) - assesses knowledge of reading comprehension, language arts, writing, and math. It is recommended to be taken during the first or second quarter in the program. Test is required before Student Teaching (deadlines apply). *Check with your advisor about qualifying for a waiver with acceptable ACT or SAT test scores.
- Chinese Content Area Test (test #126) – assesses knowledge of the Chinese language and culture. Test is required before Student Teaching (deadlines apply).
- OPI Test (see above).
- Assessment of Professional Teaching (APT) – assesses knowledge of teaching planning, delivery, assessment, professionalism, and technology. Test is required to be licensed; recommended to be taken before Student Teaching.
- EdTPA - assessment conducted during the student teaching
experience including video clips of instruction, lesson plans, student
work samples, analysis of student learning and reflective commentaries.
Students will submit an electronic portfolio to an outside agency for
independent evaluation and a fee will be imposed by that agency as part
of the assessment.
BASIC TECHNOLOGY LITERACY
(0 Credit) This online course provides students with a knowledge about assembling, using, and troubleshooting basic technology hardware and software. In this course, students demonstrate understanding of basic computer setup and the use of peripheral devices such as printers, speakers, flash drives, scanners, digital cameras, videos, and computer software.
METHODS OF TEACHING WORLD LANGUAGES IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
This course is designed to provide training in the theory and methods of teaching Foreign Languages in the elementary school (FLES) to both pre- and in-service teachers. Pre-service teachers include World Language majors interested in elementary school teaching and elementary majors who are proficient in a world language and interested in teaching FLES. In-service teachers include elementary teachers proficient in a world language who are teaching or who are interested in teaching FLES and secondary trained teachers who are teaching or who are interested in teaching FLES. In order to meet the objectives of this course and subsequent methods courses, it is expected that all participants be able to demonstrate proficiency in English and a second language before enrolling. Issues surrounding elementary methods are discussed and deliberated through university classroom experiences as well as required field experiences (20 hours, minimum; level 2).