New Legislation Would Remove Foreign Language As Requirement For Delaware Diploma

Foreign Language Diploma Requirement

State Rep. Kim Williams is on a roll today!  House Bill #182 would get rid of foreign languages as a requirement for a high school diploma in Delaware.

This Act eliminates a barrier that prevents students from graduating from high school by prohibiting the Department of Education from requiring world language credits to receive a State of Delaware Diploma. Many students struggle to pass language classes and while language classes are often necessary for college admission, language classes are not necessary for entry into trades.
The proposed changes to state code are underlined:

122. Rules and regulations [Effective Aug. 1, 2019]

(b) The Department shall prescribe rules and regulations:

(3) Governing the issuance of certificates and diplomas for the public schools of the State. Rules and regulations on this subject shall be proposed by the Secretary subject to approval by the State Board of Education and may not require world language credit ;

I don’t have an issue with this.  If a student plans on going to college they should certainly take a language.  But if they have other plans post high school, why should they take courses that will not do anything to help them in the future?  I approve!

The bill’s Senate primes are Nicole Poore and Jack Walsh while the co-sponsors are Reps. K. Johnson, Kowalko and Osienski with Senators Paradee and Sturgeon.

7 thoughts on “New Legislation Would Remove Foreign Language As Requirement For Delaware Diploma”

  1. I have a child with a severe speech disability. We’ve been trying to acquire a foreign language waiver for over a year. His educational diagnostician tells us that, in Delaware, it’s no longer possible to graduate (with a diploma, not a certificate) without taking two years of a world language. His Spanish 1 experience has been positively tragic, both to his psyche, and to his GPA. The doctor that we contacted about the extensive testing he would need to qualify for a waiver (that may or may not still exists) charges $4000, none of which would be covered by insurance.

    The passing of this bill would make a real difference in our son’s life. Thank you for posting about it; I’ll be contacting my representative now.

    Liked by 2 people

      1. They receive a Diploma of Alternate Achievement Standards. And I agree, calling it a diploma is great, but with the exception of the world language credits, my kid is on track to get a diploma just like his neuro-typical peers. That’s important to him.

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  3. Foreign language requirements discriminate against students with language processing disorders. Mastering English is a daunting task. Science, Social Studies, and Literature contain difficult language, reading and writing hurdles already. The state has never addressed the current deficiencies in Language Processing Disordered curriculum policy or teaching practice. Despite many LPD students deserving and needing to go to college, it is difficult to imagine how adding or maintaining a foreign language requirement will be of any benefit to this group of students.

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