<p>Advice needed for freshman student on foreign language requirement. My son really struggles with Spanish, but otherwise is a good B+/A- student. When colleges say they require 2 yrs of a foreign language, but recommend 3, do they mean 3 years at the highschool or do they mean until level 3? For example, my son did two years at the middle school level and entered freshman year taking Spanish 2 and then will take Spanish 3 in sophmore year. Can he stop at level 3 after sophmore year? Is that enough or does he need to take Spanish 4 his junior year for 3 years at highschool?? I am very concerned that he will not be able to handle Spanish 4, I hear its very hard. He struggles to get a B/B- in Spanish. Advice??? thanks</p>
<p>A LOT of kids at our HS stop after level 3 (taken in their sophomore year). They do go mostly to state schools or not too highly selective local privates. It depends on what type of college he is interested in attending.</p>
<p>My son is not aiming for an ivy or top 25 school, but would like to go to a good solid college.
If he stops at level 3 (after sophmore year),do colleges consider that 2 years of language or 3 years of language (since level 1 was at jr high)?? Do folks know?? Lastly, would it be worthwhile to take Latin 1 as opposed to Spanish 4? I just dont’ think he could really handle level 4 of any language… M</p>
<p>My son is in the same boat-- he’s a sophomore now and in Spanish 3, and not doing well. He took Sp 1 in middle school (over grades 7 & 8), then Spanish 2 in 9th grade. He barely made a B- in his 2nd yr of Spanish 1 (in 8th grade), then he went to a private HS for 9th grade, where he had a fabulous Spanish teacher (whom I also suspect was a bit lenient but who never spoke English to the students) and got A’s and B’s. Now he’s in the large public HS in Spanish 3 and is struggling big time. He has a D- right now, and I’m frantic that he won’t be able to make a C (or even C-) by the end of the quarter. I can’t imagine him taking Spanish 4 next yr unless he spends the entire summer say doing community service in Latin America and living with a Spanish-speaking family.</p>
<p>But the bigger question is-- does he NEED Spanish 4? Like Michelina, my S will not be targeting Ivies or other similar schools.</p>
<p>Thanks for any advice.</p>
<p>S stopped his foreign language after 3 years (junior year)… They were switching from “regular” Mandarin to Honors & AP only. He said it had been his hardest class, tougher than all his APs & he wasn’t ready to have them ratchet it up to honors or AP. He had no problems getting into many great schools with good merit aid.</p>
<p>D also took less language than she would have liked (never could quite complete 2nd year), and also was accepted as a transfer into a very good private U. This summer, she took two intensive courses of German at in-state flagship U & is now taking 3rd semester German conversation & completing her foreign language requirement.</p>
<p>2 of my 3 stopped after Spanish 3 in 10th grade. One went to, and has since graduated from, WUSTL, one is a junior at University of Chicago. Didn’t hurt either in the admissions process.</p>
<p>OP and Bflogal, I think that there is absolutely no problem in dropping language after 3 years since they are struggling. Most schools outside of the top 20 will find 3 years plenty adequate. I don’t recommend Latin. It’s very difficult.</p>
<p>
I think it depends on what aspects of language study are giving students the most trouble in their current language. If they are struggling most with grammar, Latin may not be for them. But if their difficulty is more about the performance aspect, becoming a fluent communicator, they might actually find Latin easier. I have always had “two left tongues” when it comes to learning foreign languages, but I found first-year Latin a breeze and a ton of fun. (It did get tougher after that, but I think that was partly because the teaching got worse.)</p>
<p>So just for clarification, does "3 years of foreign language " mean making it to level 3 ( which could happen in sophmore year if one takes FL in jr high) or does it mean 3 years as a high school student??</p>
<p>It means level 3. Jr. High school should count. My D’s 8th grade grades are on her HS transcript.</p>
<p>Three years means three years, not Level 3. Out of the four years of high school, adcoms want to see at least 3 years (6 semesters) of foreign language. (Highly competetive schools want to see four years (8 semesters).</p>
<p>Ask your child’s college counselor for her opinion.</p>
<p>Call two or three admissions offices of schools to which you think your child might apply.</p>
<p>yes, three years means level 3, whenever it is taken If Years 1 & 2 are taken in Middle School, they will count as long as your high school considers them equivalent courses – they are in our district. It’s no different than taking Alg I and/or Geom in middle school.</p>
<p>I think most solid colleges want to see a student take 3 years of a language in high school no matter what level it takes them to. Also, there needs to be a good excuse for not taking a language as far as it can go other than struggling with it for good colleges, IMO. When you see weak grades and then it gets dropped, the kid looks like a quitter. When you see a kid doubling up in math and science that’s another story.</p>
<p>I’d hire a tutor and do the three years. Even good state schools are becoming super competitive.</p>
<p>Foreign language is my son’s biggest problem area. He didn’t even attempt a full time Spanish course in middle school and we looked for college programs where a language wasn’t required in the core curriculum. What he did take and do reasonably well with is Latin. He took it for 3 years in high school at the college prep (not honors) level.</p>
<p>A friend of mine called schools and asked them if his S could drop Spanish after Spanish 2 and take 2 yrs of Latin, because his S struggled in Spanish. He told me that they were unenthusiastic, and would clearly prefer at least three HS years of the same language.</p>
<p>Agree with QM and bb, it’s the final level reached, not the number of years in HS.</p>
<p>Well, IF a student has hopes of applying to a very selective college, then they should take at a minimum the “recommended” # of years of F.L. WHILE IN HIGH SCHOOL, regardless of the “level” they ultimately reach, unless they start at an advanced level as a freshman and take the AP language class in their Sophomore year.</p>
<p>(a) It has to be the level reached, not the number of years. That’s the only position that makes any pedagogical sense.</p>
<p>(b) Everyone has some version of this “requirement”, but there are so many people who seem to be accepted to the relevant colleges notwithstanding failing to meet it that I think it’s fair to ask whether is isn’t more of a vague ideal than an actual policy. I think it’s a good idea, I more or less wish it were a requirement, but it really doesn’t look so much like one. I have the impression, however, that the kids who are accepted at top universities without at least three years of one language tend to have academic resumes that are self-proving – i.e., it’s obvious why they dropped the language, and it’s obvious that they made really good curricular choices even if they didn’t include the optimal amount of language study.</p>
<p>My daughter struggled with a related decision earlier this year which I described in this thread:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/634028-dropping-language-mid-year-impact-admissions.html?highlight=dropping+language+mid+year[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/634028-dropping-language-mid-year-impact-admissions.html?highlight=dropping+language+mid+year</a></p>
<p>As a part of her decision, she called 4 academically oriented LACs on the west coast, all of whom said that Junior high years of a language count towards the 3 year requirement - assuming that the HS counts them.</p>
<p>One of the “advantages” of taking foreign language in HS is to test out of FL in college. Unfortunately, many people have indicated the tests for foreign language are very difficult so the student may still have to repeat a lot. Our D started an entirely new FL (German) in college, as she found the HS Mandarin such a tough experience she decided to start fresh. She has LOVED learning German and found it much easier!</p>
<p>It is a good idea for student to contact some of the Us s/he may be interested in applying to for clarification about their FL policies to make an informed choice.</p>