A House bill requiring potential high school foreign language instructors to study abroad for one year has drawn criticism from several people familiar with foreign language teacher requirements.
The House Higher Education Finance Committee heard Tuesday from Rep. Mike Jaros, DFL-Duluth, and Leslie Mercer, research and planning vice chairwoman for Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.
Jaros, who authored the bill, said it is imperative for foreign language instructors to have experience abroad to improve both their language skills and cultural knowledge.
“Most students learn a foreign language in the classroom, and that’s not the best way to do it,” Jaros said.
The former foreign language instructor said he knows how beneficial it is to have experience abroad to develop fluency in a foreign language.
But Mercer said a study-abroad mandate for foreign language teachers would cause problems for students.
“We feel that there are many students for which this would be a burden,” she said. “Our concern is not the intent of the bill but its mandatory nature.”
Mary Bents, professional services director in the University’s College of Education and Human Development, said she agrees with the bill’s idea but said Jaros’ legislation is not needed.
“The spirit of this requirement is not a bad idea,” Bents said.
She explained that the Minnesota State Board of Teaching already sets standards for teachers.
“It seems to me that we already have a board whose responsibility is exactly that,” she said, “so having the Legislature get involved in the details of what people need to do to be qualified teachers is unnecessary.”
In addition, Bents said, the bill could cause financial problems for some students interested in becoming language instructors.
“By having that requirement, there’s an automatic financial implication for students,” she said. “There is certainly more to teaching a language than the technical skill of knowing the language, but I think there are other ways to get that kind of experience as well.”
At the University, approximately 75 percent of students admitted to foreign language teaching programs have studied abroad, Bents said.
Only about half of those have studied abroad for an entire year.
“I don’t know if there’s something magic about studying abroad for a year,” Bents said, adding that many students choose to study abroad for a semester or in separate blocks of time.
The committee will consider adding the requirement in its higher education finance bill, but representatives said they wanted more information before deciding.
Elizabeth Dunbar covers international affairs and welcomes comments at
