[ Foreign Languages & Literatures ]

Certification for Teaching

If you’re planning a teaching career, you should consider certification in one or more languages, as bilingual educators are in high demand in today’s schools. You should also consider the abundant opportunities for teaching English abroad. At Elmhurst, we’ve created a foreign language certification program specially designed for future teachers. Students who select this course of study are advised by faculty in both the Department of Education and the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures to ensure their success as bilingual educators.

Prospective teachers must include FL 440 Special Methods in the Teaching of Foreign Languages in their program. Students should be aware that all teachers must pass written competency tests (Basic Skills, K-12 Foreign Language, and K-12 APT) in order to receive state certification. As of July 1, 2004, they must also pass a standardized oral proficiency test.

Candidates for certification as foreign language teachers must demonstrate speaking and listening competency showing that they are able to:

• Narrate and describe in paragraph length past, present, and future time consistently
• Get into, through, and out of unforeseen situations
• Converse in a clearly participatory fashion and be understood by a native speaker

Upon completion of their course of studies, students will demonstrate these listening and speaking skills through an oral interview with faculty or similarly qualified examiner.

Students planning to teach foreign languages should meet with advisors in both the education and foreign language departments. Students seeking certification after July 1, 2004, will be certified in K-12 foreign language. See department chair for additional course requirements to prepare to meet the state K-12 standards in foreign language instruction.