<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p> In order to enhance mobility, competitiveness, and opportunities for work, the European Union lists the ability to communicate in a foreign language and to understand another culture as an important objective in their language education policy. Knowledge of a foreign language is also an important objective for many American universities, which require students to study a foreign language as a prerequisite to graduate. Students with documented disabilities affecting the learning of a foreign language or students with poor foreign language learning skills, therefore, pose a significant challenge, since a foreign language requirement may prevent such students from graduating unless universities are willing to make special arrangements such as having students graduate without fulfilling the requirement or letting them take substitution classes. The question of what to do with such students is at the heart of this article. It describes how one mid-sized private university with a two-year language proficiency requirement has approached the problem to ensure that policies are implemented fairly. Rather than pulling students out of the foreign language classroom, the university succeeded in keeping students engaged with foreign language study through advising and mentoring across departments</p></abstract>

In order to enhance mobility, competitiveness, and opportunities for work, the European Union lists the ability to communicate in a foreign language and to understand another culture as an important objective in their language education policy. Knowledge of a foreign language is also an important objective for many American universities, which require students to study a foreign language as a prerequisite to graduate. Students with documented disabilities affecting the learning of a foreign language or students with poor foreign language learning skills, therefore, pose a significant challenge, since a foreign language requirement may prevent such students from graduating unless universities are willing to make special arrangements such as having students graduate without fulfilling the requirement or letting them take substitution classes. The question of what to do with such students is at the heart of this article. It describes how one mid-sized private university with a two-year language proficiency requirement has approached the problem to ensure that policies are implemented fairly. Rather than pulling students out of the foreign language classroom, the university succeeded in keeping students engaged with foreign language study through advising and mentoring across departments

A Cross-Departmental Approach to Supporting Students with a Disability Affecting Foreign Language Acquisition

Prague Journal of English Studies

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

In order to enhance mobility, competitiveness, and opportunities for work, the European Union lists the ability to communicate in a foreign language and to...

A Cross-Departmental Approach to Supporting Students with a Disability Affecting Foreign Language Acquisition

Published Online: Sep 25, 2014

Page range: 85 - 111

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/pjes-2014-0019

Keywords
Foreign language proficiency, foreign language learning disability, disability, foreign language waiver, foreign language acquisition, academic advising

© Faculty of Education, Charles University

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

A Cross-Departmental Approach to Supporting Students with a Disability Affecting Foreign Language Acquisition

Published Online: Sep 25, 2014

Page range: 85 - 111

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/pjes-2014-0019

KeywordsForeign language proficiency, foreign language learning disability, disability, foreign language waiver, foreign language acquisition, academic advising

© Faculty of Education, Charles University

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Foreign language proficiency, foreign language learning disability, disability, foreign language waiver, foreign language acquisition, academic advising