Education Week – Emily Liebtag and Caitlin Haugen
“It makes sense that teachers would study another language to meet the needs of their ethnically and linguistically diverse students. Teachers who study world languages can better communicate with students and their parents, understand the difficulties and frustrations of language learners, and experience a window into other cultures. Multilingual teachers model global competence and prepare their students for working in the 21st century. And what better place to be exposed to language learning than during teacher preparation?…Leading supporters of internationalization from organizations and institutions of higher education—including unions—have long advocated that the study of world languages is a necessary element for developing globally competent teachers, but teacher education is still slow to change…When all teacher education programs take ownership of ensuring their candidates are globally competent, we will see a demand—and drive—for language learning for future teachers and teacher educators alike. “(more)