The Daily Bulletin Archive

Buffalo State’s undergraduate foreign language education programs in French and Spanish recently received the designation of “nationally recognized” by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). The programs are the first in the Buffalo area to receive the recognition.

The achievement raises the value of the degree for students, said Mark Warford, associate professor of modern and classical languages and coordinator of the department’s education programs.

“Attending a nationally recognized program means being subjected to rigorous standards for language proficiency and pedagogy,” he said. “For the institution, there are high expectations for candidates to demonstrate teaching practices that reflect the latest research and standards.”

The “nationally recognized” designation for foreign language education programs began in 2002, and about 85 institutions nationwide have received the honor. NCATE requires the fulfillment of six teaching standards in areas such as linguistics, culture, theory, and professionalism.

“Students must now pass an oral proficiency exam with an interviewer from the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages,” Warford said. “There is also greater emphasis on integrating literature and civilization into language teaching. In the end, this creates a much broader portfolio for students.”

Buffalo State’s programs will maintain the recognition for the next five to seven years. Warford hopes the designation will help Buffalo State become a destination for aspiring foreign language educators.

“This is a high-need profession, and we want to improve the number and quality of teacher candidates in Western New York,” he said. “The NCATE recognition will challenge students and faculty to do great things in the classroom. This is a distinctive honor that is good for our campus and for foreign language teaching in the region.”