Many students and faculty believe foreign language classes should be required for an advanced diploma.
“Foreign language class should be required for an advanced diploma because getting an advanced diploma shows you’re willing to work hard and apply yourself,” Mrs. Sheri Williams, French teacher, said.
“It should be a requirement for an advanced diploma because advanced should mean you’re being challenged,” Roselynn Richard, a freshman in French III, said. “Foreign language class is a challenge, so it shouldn’t be mandatory for a standard diploma because not everyone is built for a challenge.”
“Foreign language classes should be required for advanced diplomas, because students’ horizons should be expanded, and world language accomplishes that,” Mrs. Melissa Gery, Spanish teacher, said. “It should not be required for a regular diploma because language class is a college prep class and not everyone is up to that.”
“Knowing other languages is good to have, so it should be a requirement to get an advanced diploma,” Kendall Parsons, a freshman, said. “I think at least one semester of foreign language class should be required just to graduate.”
“Language class should be a requirement for an advanced diploma because if it wasn’t, I wouldn’t be a foreign language teacher, I would be an electrician,” Mr. Michael Brown, Spanish teacher, said. “Not everyone has the skills and memorization levels to take a foreign language class, so it should not be a requirement to graduate,” Brown said.
Others believe that foreign language classes shouldn’t be a requirement.
“I do not think foreign language should be a requirement for graduation,” Alex Spong, freshman taking French III, said. French class is hard and complicated, so if it wasn’t a requirement to get an advanced diploma, I would not be taking it. After this year, I’ll probably forget all of the French I learned in the first place.”
“Foreign language class should be optional to get your advanced diploma, but it is good to know other languages for communication,” Sofia Hernadez, a freshman, Spanish-speaking student in Spanish I, said.
“Other language classes shouldn’t be required to get an advanced diploma or a standard diploma because a lot of languages aren’t useful,” Nadia Rigney, a freshman in Latin I, said. “The Spanish that people are learning isn’t even the Spanish that is prominently being spoken in America,” Rigney said.
