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Ruth L.
Bennett
1991 is about to begin. The new year is a time to take stock of what our goals are and how well we have been meeting them. No matter how effective we are as educators, there are always areas to which we have not been giving as much attention as we might or that we have not been addressing at all. Here are some of the items on my list of New Year's resolutions. I hope they are on yours. Number 1 on my list is to write more letters to legislators. One of the most difficult things for which to find time is writing letters. Yet we have been told many times that legislators act according to the number of letters they get urging them to vote for a particular bill. We should be alert to notices of bills relating to foreign languages. The editor of Enlace, Dr. Irving Rothberg, plans to include such information in the future. Just a few lines, sent to our senator or congress person, are enough to make an impact. The Joint National Committee for Languages does a great deal to get bills written and into and out of committee, passed by the Congress, and funded. It is the financial support of 36 language associations that makes JNCL possible. The AATSP, being one of the largest groups in the country, is among the top contributors to JNCL. Therefore, we should see that our funds have the greatest possible influence. That means each of us should write those letters that can get the bills to fund foreign language projects passed. My second resolution is to devote time in every course I teach to developing writing and speaking skills in both Spanish and English. In this complicated world, many factors determine success. Besides teaching our students the language, literature, and culture of the Iberian and Latin American countries, we need to give them other tools to be successful. The skills that are important for success in almost any type of work are speaking and writing correctly and intelligently. We need to make assignments meaningful and show our classes the value of developing proficiency in both oral and written work. Instructors of foreign languages can play an appreciable role in teaching these areas. Foreign language training carries over into students' use of English as well. What we are coming to realize is that we must limit short answer questions, and instead develop reasoning skills by more challenging types of exercises. The questions asking for facts should be followed by thought questions that require imagining, setting goals, interpreting information, defining and resolving problems, and drawing conclusions. The simple expedient of giving students the opportunity to assume the teacher's role in posing questions to their peers is a way of putting their minds to work while learning the language. The techniques of developing critical thinking skills can be applied at any level from elementary school through university, in the teaching of language, literature, and culture. Third on my list is to take note of information, easily available in newspapers and magazines, that will affect the career goals of students. We are not only teachers, but mentors, too. We need to stay current to help our classes explore the avenues to a fulfilling career that will make use of their language skills. Articles on census results, demographic studies, the need for teachers on the various levels in different states, the increasing need for translators and interpreters -all these and more should be brought to the attention of our students. A fourth priority for the coming year is to use authentic materials on a wide variety of subjects to broaden students' knowledge of global politics, economics, and geography. We are not social science teachers, but using Spanish and Portuguese newspapers and magazines in class activities will help our young people absorb information about the world they are part of while they are learning the target language. Foreign newspapers and magazines are not the only source of this material. It can be taped from radio broadcasts and videotaped from television programs. There are also audio and video «magazines» available commercially that have printouts of the oral segments they offer, with vocabulary and exercises to make them easy to use in the classroom. You can find material suitable for most levels and for most types of courses. College classes in composition, conversation, culture, and language can all profit from these authentic materials. In high school, they can be used as early as Level II, and up through Level V. Number five, by no means in relative importance,
on my list of resolutions for the new academic year is to prepare to observe
the Quincentennial in 1992 with as many meaningful activities as possible.
I plan to do this by sharing ideas and materials with colleagues, and by
learning about and making use of what is being prepared for us by AATSP's own
Quincentennial Committee. That material will be available to us through
Enlace,
Hispania, and the Pedagogical Resource
Center. In addition, at our 1991 Annual Meeting in Chicago, we expect to have
Interest Sessions, workshops, and part of the five-day Immersion
one, the need to assist in promoting legislation that funds educational projects; two, the need to prepare students to function in the working world, and not merely to teach them Spanish; three, the need to transmit to students career in formation that will help them to prepare for the most rewarding work of which they are capable; four, the need to use authentic materials that will enable students to understand Hispanic culture; and five, the need to involve myself, my colleagues, and students in Quincentennial activities that teach the lessons of history. All these entail being alert to what is happening locally, nationally, and globally. That is the duty of every citizen. For us as educators who shape the minds and lives of young people, it is crucial. 
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