ESPACES - PROGRAM SAMPLER

S-30 IAE-36 S TA N DA R D S ESPACES and the World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages Since 1982, when the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines were first published, that seminal document and its subsequent revisions have influenced the teaching of modern languages in the United States. ESPACES was written with the concerns and philosophy of the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines in mind, incorporating a proficiency-oriented approach from its planning stages. The pedagogy of ESPACES was also informed from its inception by the Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century. First published in 1996 under the auspices of the National Standards in Foreign Language Education Project, the Standards are organized into five goal areas, often called the Five Cs: Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities. Since ESPACES takes a communicative approach to the teaching and learning of French, the Communication goal is central to the student text. For example, the diverse formats used in the Communication and Révision activities in each lesson—pair work, small group work, class circulation, information Gap, task- based, and so forth—engage students in communicative exchanges, providing and obtaining information, and expressing feelings and emotions. The Écriture section also develops students’ communication skills in writing. ESPACES also weaves culture into virtually every page, exposing students to the multiple facets of practices, products, and perspectives of the French-speaking world. The standards are called out in the side panels throughout ESPACES . Communication Understand and be understood: read and listen to understand the French-speaking world, converse with others, and share your thoughts clearly through speaking and writing. Cultures Experience French-speaking cultures through their own viewpoints, in the places, objects, behaviors, and beliefs important to the people who live them. Connections Apply what you learn in your French course to your other studies; apply what you know from other courses to your French studies. Comparisons Discover in which ways the French language and French-speaking cultures are like your own— and how they differ. Communities Engage with French-speaking communities locally, nationally, and internationally both in your courses and beyond—for life.