SWCOLT 2025

Are you an educator of Spanish or Portuguese? Come meet your officers of the Arizona chapter of the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese and find out about our organization's activities for you and programs for your students. These programs include the National Spanish Exam, Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica, and Annual Poster Contest.

Presenters: Hope Anderson, Lacy Chavez, Laura Zinke

Learn about ChatGPT and other AI platforms. This session will review how AI can assist language teachers with lesson planning, assessment, and provide better feedback to students. We will learn what this tool is, its capabilities, and how it can make our teaching tasks more efficient. Bring a device. Session will be in Spanish.

In higher education, one of the most recent threats has been labeled "the enrollment cliff". This demographic phenomenon will touch not only post-secondary institutions, but secondary ones as well. After reviewing the general data behind the trend, the presenter suggests challenges and potential opportunities for world-language instruction. Participants brainstorm to 1) assess their institutions' sensitivity and degree of planning for these changes; 2) discuss the implications of this looming threat to their disciplines and to their pedagogy; and 3) strategize what their unit can do to mitigate shrinking numbers (possibly and reduced staff) to reconfigure effectiveness in teaching world languages.

Discover a wealth of free resources, professional development opportunities, and scholarly journals tailored for language educators, all offered by the National Foreign Language Resource Center, funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Whether you're interested in podcasts, Project-Based Language Learning, online language pedagogy, or the latest publications, this session invites you to explore a diverse array of tools and learning experiences designed to enrich your teaching practice. Don't miss this opportunity to enhance your professional growth!

The Summer 2024 NAU-Led Program in Chongqing, China, offered 12 students a transformative academic and cultural experience, fostering a deep understanding of China's rich heritage and dynamic contemporary landscape. This program integrated rigorous coursework with immersive field experiences, allowing students to explore Chongqing’s historical sites, engage with local communities, and examine the region's economic development firsthand. Students benefited from collaborative activities with local Chinese college students, enhancing cross-cultural competencies and global perspectives. The program not only enriched academic knowledge but also honed practical skills through experiential real-life learning, preparing students for future international endeavors. The presenter will share reflections on the successes and challenges encountered during the six-week study abroad program in China, and will discuss examples of culture shock experienced by the twelve participating American students.

Integrative Leadership Development is a professional learning model that empowers world language leaders to thrive as they advance proficiency-based instruction. Participants will understand the connection between social emotional wellness and ACTFL World Readiness Standards. Participants will gain skills for honoring linguistic and cultural heritage and prioritizing rest.

Presenters: Christine Lanphere & Liz Matchett

Discover strategies to maximize teacher-intern partnerships through clear expectations, constructive feedback, open-mindedness, and defined classroom roles. Enhance collaboration and effectiveness in World Language Education by ensuring teachers and interns thrive in a supportive and productive learning environment. Participants will leave with practical ideas for productive collaboration from a recent mentor-intern partnership!

Presenters: Madison Rubino & Taylor Neihoff

None of the tools for language acquisition or proficiency matter if the student doesn’t care and they’re only “in it” for the test or grade. Boomalang can be the first breakthrough for a student, allowing them to recognize the joy, challenge, and gateway to another world that a language can afford them.

In a globalized and interconnected world, languages and language learning are essential skills, yet relatively few US students study an additional language, and there has been a decline in language enrollment at the college and university level. Language advocacy is needed now more than ever before, with professional collaborations and community partnerships key elements. A range of advocacy topics will be discussed, including goals, strategies, and methods, highlighting the fact that everyone can be a language advocate.