Schools

District 109 Removes French From 6th Grade Curriculum

Incoming sixth graders will learn Spanish rather than choose between the two languages.

Spanish will be the only foreign language offered to incoming sixth graders at Caruso and Shepard Middle Schools in next year, according to a report from Superintendent Renee Goier at Monday’s Deerfield Public Schools District 109 Board of Education meeting.

In the past, students have had the choice of taking French or Spanish in middle school. After teachers and staff met with the Deerfield High School language department, they decided to offer only Spanish for the coming term and take that time to study the impact of the change.

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“That year will include a thorough review of the impact of the move, and determine if it is best for students and staff to focus resources on one language,” a report on the Board meeting contained on the District website said.

Over the past few years, interest in French has been declining while the appeal of Spanish has been increasing. Students enter middle school with several years of experience in Spanish from the primary grades.

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There is a “dearth of high quality curriculum for French, and teachers are challenged in finding prep time when they are teaching multiple languages to multiple grade levels,” according to statements attributed to Assistant Superintendent Maureen Hager on the District website.

Deerfield High School will continue to offer French “as long as there are students who want to take it,” according to the District website.

Board Discusses Other Business

In addition to honoring outgoing Board members and a number of student achievements during the meeting, the Board recognized the District’s receipt of the Meritorious Budget Award from the Association of School Business Officials for the third straight year.

Compliance officers from the Regional Office of Education made their quadrennial visit to the District recently and found everything in order.

Jeffrey Zoul will head the District’s learning department next year. He is currently the assistant superintendent for teaching and learning for District 41 in Rock Island where he presides over those areas of concentration for 6,300 students. Zoul’s contract was recommended by incoming Superintendent Michael Lubelfeld.

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