Ryan Wertz and Kathy Shelton
World Language Consultants, Ohio Department of Education

Another school year is well underway, and world language teachers everywhere are working hard following the recent disruptions in learning to get their students’ proficiency development and intercultural growth back on track.  At the Ohio Department of Education, we are extremely grateful for your perseverance these last few years and remain in awe of your resilience and continuing hard work.  Thank you for all you are doing to re-engage learners and provide them with opportunities to gain proficiency in another language and expand their knowledge of our world.

In this installment of Around the State, we’d like to highlight upcoming professional development activities as well as opportunities to lend your voice in support of our profession. First, we’d like to remind you of the upcoming World Language Wednesday sessions and cohorts that have been booked so far:

• Thursday, Oct. 6 – Project-Based Language Learning (PBLL) Cohort
• Thursday, Oct. 13 – Beginning World language Teacher Meetup
• Wednesday, Oct. 19 – Using the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in World Language Learning
• Wednesday, Oct. 26 – How Is Your District Gathering World Language Data for OTES 2.0?

Check at the bottom of this Department webpage to obtain the Zoom links and to see the full line-up of upcoming world language meetups, including additional sessions that will soon be scheduled. As always, contact hour certificates are available to those who attend and participate for the whole session.

Additionally, we also would like to share the dates of upcoming trainings and professional development sessions that we will be leading:

• Saturday, Nov.5 – Ohio Valley Foreign Language Association (OVFLA) fall workshop at Ohio University in Athens. Ryan will co-present with local district representatives on Expanding Opportunities to Offer Rural Students the Ohio Seal of Biliteracy.

In terms of contributing to the betterment of the field, two opportunities are coming up later this year or early next year. Public input will be gathered on the following:

• The newly revised Model Curriculum for World Languages and Cultures; and
• The Ohio Seal of Biliteracy Rule (3301-16-08), which is up for a routine 5-year review.

Providing your input is a great way to contribute to the continuing development of world language education in Ohio. Look for the calls for participation to come out via our Ohio Ed Updates for World Languages e-newsletter and over the OFLA Google group in the weeks ahead.

In closing, remember that you have many resources available to you when you visit the Department’s World Languages and Cultures webpage. If you haven’t visited recently, check it out.  Our Ohio Seal of Biliteracy guidance is available here.  OTES 2.0 guidance for our content area is located here. And credit flexibility guidance for world languages can be found on this page. As always, don’t hesitate to contact either one of us if you have questions or need assistance. We are here to help!