World Language Education, Teaching, Scholarships, WAFLT

Retirees for WAFLT

Lee Belanger-Gonzales March 20, 2024

Retirement is often seen as a time to sit back and relax, but it can also be a time to continue learning and growing in your profession. One way to do this is by remaining active in a professional organization after retiring. There are many benefits to doing so, both for the retiree and for the organization. With this in mind WAFLT has started a new Retiree Committee. For a WAFLT retiree, remaining active in a professional organization can provide a sense of purpose and community. Many retirees find themselves feeling isolated after leaving the workforce, but being part of a professional organization can help combat this. It can also provide opportunities for continued learning and development, as well as networking with other professionals in your field. In addition to the benefits for the retiree, remaining active in a professional organization can also be beneficial for the organization itself. Retirees

Language as a Superpower: Empowering Students through Virtual Exchange

Keyli Peralta August 15, 2022

Have you ever had a student ask you, “Why do I need to know this?” When it comes to learning a second (or third!) language, the answer is easy. When a student has access to more than one language, their ability to communicate with people across the globe expands. Fluency in another language also gives students a competitive advantage in an increasingly interconnected global workforce. There’s a wonderful Spanish proverb that sums it up nicely: “Quién habla dos idiomas vale por dos,” which means “The person who speaks two languages is worth two people.” And yet, despite the boundless reasons why knowing multiple languages can enrich a student’s life, the United States still lags behind in the percentage of primary and secondary students who are learning a foreign language¹. One way to show U.S. students the undeniable benefits of learning a new language is to give them concrete examples