World Languages

Philosophy

The purpose of studying a foreign language, whether modern or classical, is to enrich one’s education both in the classroom and in the community. The study of language is not merely the study of grammar and vocabulary but also involves the study of culture, religion, society, history, and geography. To learn another language is to learn about other people and to compare one’s own society with that of others. Foreign language broadens the learner’s perspective and helps one to place himself or herself within the larger context of the world. Foreign language studies open windows into other global communities that might not otherwise be accessible.

Graduation requirements: Two credits in the same foreign language. Students are highly encouraged to continue on to the fourth level of a foreign language.

A Sampling of Classes Offered at SMCA

List of 5 items.

  • AP French Language

    Credit Earned: 1.0
    This college-level course is designed to continue to formalize the skills developed in Honors French III. Students will gain the ability to understand spoken French in various contexts and will also acquire a French vocabulary sufficiently ample for reading various written texts and understanding a higher level of spoken French. The ability to express themselves coherently, resourcefully, and with reasonable fluency and accuracy in both written and spoken French will expand. The primary objective of this course is to cover the syllabus of the Advanced Placement Curriculum in preparation for the AP French exam, which includes current podcasts, films and literature from various Francophone countries.
     
    Prerequisites: Honors French III, Recommendation & Grade Requirement

  • AP Spanish Literature and Culture

    Credit Earned: 1.0
    This course seeks to enhance students' proficiency in Spanish. This course will continue to fine-tune students’ skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing while exploring Spain and Latin America. This course also enables students to
    use previously mastered material on a daily basis as they read and speak about a variety of topics and literature. Students will be assessed using a variety of methods including: oral/aural assignments, presentations, dialogues, short compositions, and other displays. Students are expected to participate using the target language.

    Prerequisite: AP Spanish Language

  • Intro to American Sign Language (ASL)

    Credit Earned: 1.0
    This course is designed to introduce students to ASL through instruction in fingerspelling, numbers, vocabulary, ASL grammar,  and  facial  expressions. The class  will  offer  guided  opportunities  to  communicate  using  sign  language without voice or verbal communication. In addition, cultural aspects and the history of the deaf community will be discussed, with the possibility of guest speakers to share their experiences.

  • Latin II

    Credit Earned: 1.0
    Armed with the fundamentals of the language, in Latin II we will complete our acquisition of the grammar.  We will continue to write, read, and speak the language, and we will be emboldened in our exploration of the people and literature of the ancient world. We will begin considering issues of rhetorical style and poetic figures of speech, honing our abilities to discuss literature of all stripes and languages to a razor’s edge.
     
    Prerequisites: Latin I & Department Placement

  • Mandarin III

    Mandarin III is designed for students who successfully complete Mandarin I and II courses. As an intermediate course, students will continue to develop listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in the language. Students will also learn more complex grammatical structures and sentence patterns to communicate on familiar topics through interactions and description. They will participate in conversations and presentations, sing Chinese songs, art projects,  dialogues, create and  perform skits, design print publications related to daily life. Upon completion of this course, students will have gained knowledge in learning strategies, communicative strategies, and resource strategies to understand more complex information in Chinese. Students will also gain Chinese cultural knowledge and acquire cross-cultural awareness and international perspectives.

    Prerequisite: Mandarin II

World Languages Department Faculty

List of 3 members.

  • Aitor Arrondo 

    Spanish Instructor

  • Sarah Bannon 

    American Sign Language Instructor

  • Meishing Chen 

    Mandarin Instructor

List of 1 items.

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    Family of Families
3000 Barton Creek Boulevard, Austin, Texas 78735  (512) 328-2323

Accreditations

Associations

St. Michael's Catholic Academy is mindful of its mission to prepare the student holistically for leadership, service, and decision making consistent with Catholic values; and admit students of any race, color, or national and/or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to the school. St. Michael's Catholic Academy does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and/or ethnic origin, age, or gender in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, financial aid and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs. St. Michael's Catholic Academy does not discriminate against students with special needs; a full range of services might not be available.