Competency Examinations

To take the competency examination in the Fall of 2009, students must register with Prof. J. Vos-Camy, no later than Monday, October 5, 2009. The exam will be held on Wednesday, October 28, 2009 from 9-12.

To take the competency examination in the Spring of 2010, students must register with Prof. J. Vos-Camy, no later than Monday, March 1, 2010. The exam will be held on Tuesday, March 16, 2010 from 2-5 p.m. The oral proficiency interviews required of education majors will be booked by contacting Renée VanKeulen.

For French Majors
All French majors are required to take the competency exam administered by the French Department.

For Teacher Certification Candidates
In addition to the skills test administered by the State of Michigan, all French education majors and minors (both secondary and elementary) are required to take the French Department written competency exam and an oral proficiency interview (OPI) at least one semester prior to student teaching.

According to the standards of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), the proficiency requirements are as follows:

• Proof by written examination of a minimum proficiency level in writing, listening, and reading skills of ADVANCED LOW (ACTFL scale).  Education minors who expect to student teach in another subject field must also complete this requirement prior to certification.
• Proof by oral examination (Oral Proficiency Interview, OPI) of a minimum oral proficiency level of
• ADVANCED LOW (ACTFL scale) for students enrolled 2007-2008 and after;
• INTERMEDIATE HIGH (ACTFL scale) for students enrolled before 2007-2008,

Education minors who expect to student teach in another subject field must also complete this requirement prior to certification.
Once students pass the written part of the exam, they must contact the department assistant to book an OPI with the external testing agency, Language Testing International.  The OPI needs to be booked at least a month in advance and should take place by mid-October.  The interview is conducted over the phone in a Calvin College office with a French professor acting as a proctor. Currently, the OPI costs $134. The French Department pays half. The remaining half will be billed to the student’s miscellaneous account.

In the event that a student does not achieve the required ACTFL proficiency levels, s/he will not be recommended for a teaching internship. The department will give suggestions for improvement and a schedule for retaking the exams.

Students are reminded that achieving oral competence is not simply a matter of sitting in class.  Students are expected to be proactive in finding meaningful ways to improve their skills in proficiency. To obtain the Advanced Low level of proficiency in particular, the majority of students will need to spend an extended period of time in a francophone country.  Students contemplating a French Education degree should know that during the teaching internship they will be required not only to teach French but also to conduct a major part of the class in French.  Consequently, students aspiring to student teach in French would do well to do all they can to acquire the linguistic competence necessary to manage a classroom in the target language.

ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines for Speaking: Advanced-Low

According to the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines, speakers at the Advanced-Low level are able to handle a variety of communicative tasks, although somewhat haltingly at times. They participate actively in most informal and a limited number of formal conversations on activities related to school, home, and leisure activities and, to a lesser degree, those related to events of work, current, public, and personal interest or individual relevance. Advanced-Low speakers demonstrate the ability to narrate and describe in all major time frames (past, present and future) in paragraph length discourse, but control of aspect may be lacking at times. They can handle appropriately the linguistic challenges presented by a complication or unexpected turn of events that occurs within the context of a routine situation or communicative task with which they are otherwise familiar, though at times their discourse may be minimal for the level and strained. Communicative strategies such as rephrasing and circumlocution may be employed in such instances. In their narrations and descriptions, they combine and link sentences into connected discourse of paragraph length. When pressed for a fuller account, they tend to grope and rely on minimal discourse. Their utterances are typically not longer than a single paragraph. Structure of the dominant language is still evident in the use of false cognates, literal translations, or the oral paragraph structure of the speaker’s own language rather than that of the target language. While the language of Advanced-Low speakers may be marked by substantial, albeit irregular flow, it is typically somewhat strained and tentative, with noticeable self-correction and a certain ‘grammatical roughness.’ The vocabulary of Advanced-Low speakers is primarily generic in nature. Advanced-Low speakers contribute to the conversation with sufficient accuracy, clarity, and precision to convey their intended message without misrepresentation or confusion, and it can be understood by native speakers unaccustomed to dealing with non-natives, even though this may be achieved through repetition and restatement. When attempting to perform functions or handle topics associated with the Superior level, the linguistic quality and quantity of their speech will deteriorate significantly.

*Complete information for all ACTFL guidelines

Competency Exam Guidelines for Preparation

To prepare for the written examination, which includes listening comprehension, grammar, English to French short-sentence translation, reading comprehension, and short free-writing assignments, the following suggestions are offered:

1. Begin early a systematic review of grammar. For review, the French 216 text is recommended:  Léon-François Hoffmann, L’Essentiel de la grammaire française, 3rd edition.

2.  Read.  One of the best ways to review is to read a variety of materials:  magazines, newspapers, plays, novels, etc.  This will improve vocabulary, as well as reinforce grammatical skills.

3. Write.  A useful way to maintain writing skills is to keep a journal.  One should begin practicing writing short paragraphs and essays several weeks prior to the exam.

4. Speak and listen.  Find and utilize opportunities afforded on campus for conversation and listening comprehension.  Activities such as French Chapel, French Table, and the French Film series offer the opportunity to refresh and maintain listening and speaking skills.  French language programming is also available through TV5 on Calvin's cable channel 15.

Credit and Exemption Exams

Credit and/or exemption exams in the department will be given on the same dates as the proficiency exams for education students, but may be taken only once.  The procedures and fee structure for taking such exams are explained in the Calvin Catalog under General Information, Admission and Standards, Policies for Course Credits and Exemption Examinations.

Tutorials

Core level courses may not be completed as tutorials.
For more information on tutorials, click here.