<p>My son wanted to take German in high school, but we convinced him to take Spanish because German I was a new offering and German II was not guaranteed to be offered (two years of same language required). He dislikes Spanish and only signed up for Spanish III his senior year when he realized hed need it to be competitive for admissions.</p>
<p>At Dartmouth, should he stick with Spanish or try something new? If he starts fresh, will he be at a tremendous disadvantage taking what appear to be fast-paced classes along with students who already have a basic knowledge? Hes leaning toward a major in Government/Economics/History/Education. What language might he enjoy and find useful?</p>
<p>Many high schools only offer a few languages–German, Spanish, French, for example. He will probably have many classmates without any prior language although the ones who have four years of high school language and start in the first level for an easy grade are really annoying. He should go for a language he has some interest in. Foreign language study at the high school level depends so much on how good the teacher was. There is such a variety of abilities. Good luck.</p>
<p>The same thing happened to me. I wanted to take French in high school but my parents convinced me to take Spanish (and I greatly dislike). I plan on taking French in college. </p>
<p>I think he will do fine in German if he is interested in it. I’m sure there are other students in the beginning classes that will have no prior experience. Also, starting fresh may be beneficial because he will be taught a language throughly on one program.</p>
<p>I think he should take whatever language he wants for the language requirement. If your S doesn’t enjoy Spanish, he shouldn’t be forced to take it – after all, he’s just taking a class to fulfill his language requirement, not to major in Spanish or anything. I don’t think he’ll be at a disadvantage if he starts introductory courses; those are the courses that new students with very minimal if any experience take, I believe that’s why they are called “introductory” courses. Anyways, your S should take what he likes. </p>
<p>That’s the case with me – even though I took AP Spanish Lang last year and spanish continuously through high school (and I’d be far at an advantage if I was to continue Spanish), I believe I’ll be taking Russian at Dartmouth because it interests me more.</p>
<p>My daughter took three years of German in high school but then started over with Latin when she got to college. I have no idea why. It was a lot of work but she got through her year of Latin okay.</p>
<p>Speaking of this… I’ve heard latin has no drill portion? Is this true? I’ve wanted to study latin for a long time. and not having to wake up at 7:30AM would be extra incentive… haha. Also how is the Chinese program? it’s the second language I’m considering…</p>
<p>Latin has no drills and you only need to take two Latin courses to fulfill your language requirement. But be forewarned that Latin classes are a lot more intensive than modern language classes. With other languages you can get a decent grade with less than an hour of work everyday. With Latin you need 2 hours of work everyday (or at least that’s how I experienced it). Same for Ancient Greek.</p>
<p>Chinese also requires intensive work, and has mandatory drill for all three terms. As long as you put in the work, though, you can pull off a pretty good grade. The Chinese program at Dartmouth has serious grade inflation issues. Overall it’s pretty good, though – the drill instructors really help you nail the speaking in a way I suspect other language programs might not.</p>
<p>My son and I appreciate your input - reading this thread has relieved some of his language concerns. He will visit my brother in Germany for two weeks after graduation and be able to get a taste of their language and culture. Knowing that he can pursue German, or another language, without starting out far behind his classmates will be reassuring. He took a comparative religion class last semester and a Hebrew seminar at governor’s school last summer, so may want to tackle an Asian or Middle East language. Anyone familiar with any of these at Dartmouth?</p>
<p>If I am a Spanish native speaker would it be alright to take some Spanish courses at a higher level or perhaps something like a Spanish Literature class at Dartmouth?</p>
<p>Do advisors have the final word on where a student starts level-wise in an already studied language (or any subject, for that matter) or are they merely responsible for suggesting, with the student making the call?</p>
<p>How do placement tests work and who decides which one(s) a student takes?</p>
<p>If you go to the Dartmouth web site and search on “language placement” you’ll get lots of detailed info. It appears that placement is done primarily by either standardized test scores (AP, SATII, A levels, IB, et al) or by placement test. The Spanish dept, for example, offers an online placement test in August.</p>
<p>The best way to get accurate info for your student’s situation is to go directly to the department web site.</p>
<p>BTW, lots of kids start new languages at D, so I doubt anyone would find themselves in a class with people who have already studied the subject. </p>
<p>Now, I’ve heard that some kids do choose to repeat Chem and Econ, both of which may be “weeder” classes, in order to boost their grade.</p>
<p>It’s my understanding that in addition to the regular language classes, small groups of students–around 8, maybe?-- meet with a TA for an intensive speaking-the-language session four or five times per week. I gather that what the drill leader asks you to do depends on how far along in the language you are. (Conjugating verbs, maybe answering conversational questions, etc.)The idea, I think, is to get students speaking the language immediately, in an immersion-like environment. The Rassias method, right?</p>
<p>If you have some knowledge of Chinese (both writing and speaking) you can place into an advanced first-year class; if you’re <em>really</em> good, you might be able to place into a second-year or higher class. The most advanced first-year class meets only in the fall, and after that you’re expected to go on to second-year Chinese. If you place into any of the other first-year classes, you will take them in this sequence:</p>
<p>Regardless of skill level, once you complete first-year Chinese, you can apply to go on the Beijing FSP in the coming summer or fall.</p>
<p>Drill meets every term for first-year Chinese, but does not exist beyond that, as far as I know. All/most first-year classes are actually taught mainly in English, but use of Chinese in the classroom steadily increases. Traditional characters are used initially, but simplified characters are introduced in Chinese 3. The pedagogical approach is basically the same as at anywhere else: memorize a bunch of words/characters and learn how to use them in sentences. Emphasis is also placed on getting the pin1yin1 right.</p>
<p>Nice… question about drill. I’m thinking of doing one of three options: Spanish - to continue what I’ve been learning throughout high school, French - because French is awesome and I’ve always wanted to learn, and Latin - no drill. Realistically, how effective is the drill method? And how effective is the language program at Dartmouth in general for non-language majors? I’m afraid that taking a year of a language is not really enough to get me proficient in a language, and if that’s the case, I don’t want to make wasted effort getting up early for drill. So is it worth it?</p>
<p>From what I’ve heard Spanish is pretty quick, easy and painless – it also gets you into some really chill LSAs which both solidify your command of the language and give you a chance to experience a bunch of awesome places. Personally I think it’s kind of a waste for you to come to Dartmouth and not go through drill, since that’s one of the classic definers of the Dartmouth experience. Then again, that’s easy for me to say since I’ve already gone through it – while I was going through it, it was unbearably painful to get up so early everyday. (I’m the exact opposite of a morning person.)</p>
<p>One thing to note is that Chinese is the exception in that it does drill for all three terms of the first-year sequence. Most other languages only do drill up to the second term, if I’m not mistaken.</p>
So is it worth it?</p>