SVUSD Says 'Nein' to Foreign-Language Program

For students preparing to enter Saddleback Valley Unified School District high schools, studying the German language is no longer an option.

Incoming freshmen for the 2011-12 school year will be limited to French or Spanish.

According to district officials, limited interest led to the decision to cancel its German introductory courses.

"We are continuing to have to deal with budget issues at all of our schools, especially at our secondary levels, for this coming school year," said Laura Ott, the district's director of instructional services at the secondary level.

For the upcoming school year, the district has had to make reductions in all of its elective programs, leaving students with "fewer photography classes, art classes [and] social sciences," among those programs affected, Ott said.

Foreign language instruction is not required under either state or federal education requirements, Ott said. "There are only so many hours in a day," and the majority of those are necessarily devoted to fulfilling the state's content standards, she said.

Under those rules, languages other than English are "completely elective," she noted.

In California, "we are required to emphasize core content standards that unfortunately don't include foreign languages," she said. That means when budget cuts are imminent, those courses are more likely to show up on the chopping block.

Still, foreign language courses are part of the requirements for students interested in attending a University of California campus.

To enter a UC, two years of a language other than English are required. Three, however, are recommended to better a student's chances of admission.

Still, Ott said, the district's commitment to language programs is undiminished.

"We are very hopeful that perhaps the following year, we will be able to revive the [German] program," she said. "At the same time, we're interested in adding additional languages, such as Mandarin Chinese."

Some students and parents have expressed interest in the opportunity to learn languages other than German, Ott said.

Freshmen entering in the 2011-12 may also be limited to a single introductory French class.

According to SVUSD German teacher Regina Deeter, one of El Toro High's French teachers retired, and the other took another position.

"So at this point, things are up in the air as to how the French classes will be taken care of," Deeter wrote in an email.

The school is looking for a part-time French teacher, but Deeter is credentialed for both languages, so she may end up teaching French in addition to upper-level German.

Higher-level courses for high school students already participating in the German language program will still be offered, according to district officials.