We Teach Languages Episode 68: Lead with Languages with Erin Whelchel

In episode 68, Maris Hawkins interviews Erin Whelchel about the Lead with Languages campaign from the American Council for the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). Did you know that research shows that world languages are one of the top skills required by employers across all industries? Listen as Maris and Erin discuss the value of language learning as well as the advocacy resources available through the Lead with Languages campaign.

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Show Notes

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Maris Hawkins is a secondary Spanish teacher at Bullis School and has been a contributor the We Teach Languages Podcast since December 2017. You can hear more from Maris by checking out the episode in which she was a guest: Episode 31: Blogs, Novels, and Teachers Sharing their Work with Maris Hawkins. You can get in touch with Maris on Twitter @marishawkins or on her website marishawkins.wordpress.com.

Erin Whelchel is the Outreach Manager for the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). She taught English abroad in France as part of the “TAPIF” (Teaching Assistants Program in France) program organized by the French Embassy. Maris and Erin met at the regional conference for GWATFL, the Greater Washington Association of Teachers of Foreign Languages, in the spring of 2017. To reach out to Erin, you can email her at leadwithlanguages@actfl.org or visit the Lead with Languages website at leadwithlanguages.org or follow the campaign on Twitter, Instragram or Facebook @LeadWLanguages.

 

Some useful resources…

…Lead with Languages Homepage: www.leadwithlanguages.org

…Social Channels @LeadWLanguages:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/leadwlanguages
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeadWLanguages/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadwlanguages/

…The Blog: http://www.leadwithlanguages.org/blog/

…The Language Advocacy Toolkit with classroom activities for teachers: www.leadwithlanguages.org/toolkit

Reports mentioned…

…American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Commission on Language Learning

America’s Languages: Investing in Language Learning for the 21st Century (2017)

https://www.amacad.org/content/Research/researchproject.aspx?d=21896

…New American Economy

Not Lost in Translation: The Growing Importance of Foreign Language Skills in the U.S. Job Market (2017)

http://www.leadwithlanguages.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/NAE_Bilingual_V6.pdf