ACTFL (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) is an organization aiming to improve and expand the teaching and learning of all

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...

s at all levels of instruction. ACTFL is an individual membership organization of more than 13,000 language educators and administrators from

elementary Elementary may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''Elementary'' (Cindy Morgan album), 2001 * ''Elementary'' (The End album), 2007 * ''Elementary'', a Melvin "Wah-Wah Watson" Ragin album, 1977 Other uses in arts, entertainment, an ...

through graduate education, as well as in government and industry. Founded in 1967 as a small offshoot of the

Modern Language Association The Modern Language Association of America, often referred to as the Modern Language Association (MLA), is widely considered the principal professional association in the United States for scholars of language and literature. The MLA aims to "st ...

(MLA), ACTFL quickly became both a resource and a haven for language educators. Since then, the organization has set industry standards, established proficiency guidelines, advocated for language education funding, and connected colleagues at the ACTFL Annual Convention.

ACTFL language proficiency guidelines

The ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines provide a means of assessing the proficiency of a

foreign language A foreign language is a language that is not an official language of, nor typically spoken in, a given country, and that native speakers from that country must usually acquire through conscious learning - be this through language lessons at schoo ...

speaker. It is widely used in schools and universities in the United States and the ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview is the most widely used oral proficiency test in North America. The guidelines are broken up into different proficiency levels: * novice – subdivided into low (NL), mid (NM), and high (NH) * intermediate – subdivided into low (IL), mid (IM), and high (IH) * advanced – subdivided into low (AL), mid (AM), and high (AH) * superior (S) * distinguished (D) These proficiency levels are defined separately for ability to listen, speak, read and write. Thus, in those American programs that emphasize written language over spoken, students may reach the advanced level in reading and writing while remaining at a lower level in listening and speaking. The ACTFL Performance Descriptors are defined in three different subsets of communications skills with their own more generalized grading scales in terms of domains, functions, contexts/ content, text type, language control, vocabulary, communication strategies, cultural awareness in all of the following modes of communication: *Interpersonal (Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced) *Interpretative (Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced) *Presentational (Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced)

Presidents

*2022: Victoria Russell *2021: Jessica Haxhi *2020: Bridget Yaden *2019: Lisa Ritter *2018: Aleidine Moeller *2017: Desa Dawson *2016: Pete Swanson *2015: Jacque Bott van Houten *2014: Mary Lynn Redmond *2013: Toni Theisen *2012: David McAlpine *2011: Barbara Mondloch *2010:

Eileen Glisan Eileen Glisan is a professor of Spanish language and Spanish language education at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She was elected as the President of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages for 2009. References Externa ...

Indiana University of Pennsylvania Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) is a public research university in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. As of fall 2021, the university enrolled 7,044 undergraduates and 1,865 postgraduates, for a total enrollment of 9,009 students. The univ ...

*2009: Janine Erickson *2008: Ray T. Clifford *2007: Rita A. Oleksak *2006: Paul Sandrock *2005: Audrey L. Heining-Boynton *2004: Thomas Keith Cothrun *2003: Martha G. Abbott *2002: Christine L. Brown *2001: Paul A. Garcia *1999: Emily Spinelli *1998: Elizabeth Hoffman *1997: Ann Tollefson *1996: Valorie S. Babb *1995: Kathleen M. Riordan *1994: Robert M. Terry *1993: Ray T. Clifford *1992: Gerard L. Ervin *1991: Lynn Sandstedt *1990: Diane Birckbichler *1989: Robert Ludwig *1988: Toby Tamarkin *1987: Jacqueline Beneveto *1986: Alice C. Omaggio-Hadley *1985: William N. Hatfield *1984: Helene Zimmer-Loew *1983: Robert Gilman *1982: Charles R. Hancock *1981: Thomas H. Geno *1980: Dale L. Lange *1979: Jane Bourque *1978: Lorraine A. Strasheim *1977: Howard B. Altman *1976: Helene Warriner-Burke *1975: Frank M. Grittner *1974: Carl Dellacio *1973: Jermaine D. Arndt *1972: Gail Hutchinson Eubanks *1971: Lowell Dunham *1970: Lester McKim *1969:

Leo Benardo Leo Benardo (March 13, 1928 – July 31, 2016) was a foreign language educator and the second president of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. Early life and education Benardo was born and raised in the Bronx, NY. He wa ...

*1968: Emma-Marie Birkmaier

Teacher of the Year

Each year the organization names the ACTFL National Language Teacher of the Year. The Teacher of the Year becomes a spokesperson for the language profession to increase the visibility of the importance of learning languages and cultures to the general public. *2022: Heather Sweetser, University of New Mexico, NM *2021: Elena Kamenetzky, Eastern High School, KY *2020: Rebecca Blouwolf *2019: Rebecca E. Aubrey, Ashford School, CT *2018: Ying Jin, Cupertino High School, CA *2017: Katrina Griffin, North County High School, MD *2016: Edward Zarrow, Westwood High School, MA *2015: Nicole Naditz, Bella Vista High School, CA *2014: Linda Egnatz, Lincoln-Way Community High School, IL *2013: Noah Geisel, Denver East High School, CO *2012: Yo Azama, North Salinas High School, CA *2011: Clarissa Adams-Fletcher, Dunwoody High School, GA

''The Language Educator''

The Language Educator (TLE) magazine is ACTFL's membership publication. TLE is published quarterly with issues available to members in print and for digital download and via a mobile app.

References

External links