May want to check college graduation requirements. Some require a certain amount of proficiency to graduate but will consider 4 years of the same high school language to check the box.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Think long term. Having a second language on the resume is a huge leg up in the job search.

My kid took 5 years of Spanish; almost all As. Can barely speak or understand it. No way most of the kids coming out of the language track in MCPS would know it well enough to put it on a resume.

This is so true. I was the same, French from 7th through 11th grades. I came out of it with maybe the ability to order a hot chocolate in a McDonald's in Quebec.

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if some of the people insisting students don’t have to take at least 3 years of FL are the same ones who insisted (in another thread) that kids HAVE to take physics or else colleges won’t even consider them. It’s funny how the science/math people always think STEM classes are more important than humanities.

No, I wrote in support of physics (though only of the educational value, not about whether it would be necessary for college admission, which is entirely separate.) I think foreign language skills are also very important in order to be a well-educated adult. I would recommend at least 3, but preferably 4 years.

In fact, proficiency in a language is a requirement for graduate study in some STEM fields.

I wonder if some of the people insisting students don’t have to take at least 3 years of FL are the same ones who insisted (in another thread) that kids HAVE to take physics or else colleges won’t even consider them. It’s funny how the science/math people always think STEM classes are more important than humanities.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Think long term. Having a second language on the resume is a huge leg up in the job search.

My kid took 5 years of Spanish; almost all As. Can barely speak or understand it. No way most of the kids coming out of the language track in MCPS would know it well enough to put it on a resume.

Why is FL such a joke here? I had some functional skills by the end of French II in the 80s. My DC can hardly utter a phrase after 3 years. I think the problem is the immersion method without rote practice.

Anonymous wrote:Think long term. Having a second language on the resume is a huge leg up in the job search.

My kid took 5 years of Spanish; almost all As. Can barely speak or understand it. No way most of the kids coming out of the language track in MCPS would know it well enough to put it on a resume.

Anonymous wrote:I've heard that schools are fine with stopping early if kid gets a 4 or 5 on AP exam. My dd is hoping for this because wants to skip FL senior year and is currently in AP Lang. The challenge is that so many native speakers take the language APs that it's really tough for non native speakers to make a 5.

AP exams are not curved. So the number of native speakers isn't really relevant to your kid's score.

My kid got in ED last month to a top twenty SLAC, with three years of a foreign language. The SLAC is one that doesn't require language courses once there FWIW.

No - and you can also do 3 +1, if the 1 year is a cool language that is very different from the 3-year language, particularly if you are looking to major in linguistics, international studies, anthropology, etc. It all depends on how what DC is taking and how it fits with what they want to do ...

Anonymous wrote:I've heard that schools are fine with stopping early if kid gets a 4 or 5 on AP exam. My dd is hoping for this because wants to skip FL senior year and is currently in AP Lang. The challenge is that so many native speakers take the language APs that it's really tough for non native speakers to make a 5.

No it isn't. My non-native kid easily got a 5 in Spanish. But, anyway, sure if you take a language through AP you don't need to take it senior year.

I've heard that schools are fine with stopping early if kid gets a 4 or 5 on AP exam. My dd is hoping for this because wants to skip FL senior year and is currently in AP Lang. The challenge is that so many native speakers take the language APs that it's really tough for non native speakers to make a 5.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I checked the CDS for Northwestern. It lists 2 years FL requirement, and does not specify if this must be met while IN high school (meaning, unclear if taking Spanish 1 and 2 while in an mcps middle school would count).

I am confident that Northwestern wants to see more FL than this, so I don’t know that the CDS info is helpful.

They mean taking it during High School (yes, I know middle school courses count for HS credit, but that's not what Northwestern is talking about).

And it is a MINIMUM requirement - which in reality means that a kid applying from a DMV high school should do more (at least 3 years).

https://admissions.northwestern.edu/faqs/high-school-courses/

And for many kids in the area, they have 4 years minimum: many have done immersion schools from PK on, many have taken after school and weekend language from prek to middle school plus 4 years of high school; and some have Latin in addition to foreign language; many kids are bilingual and take a 3rd language in school; and so on. Having only two years of one language around here is going to look odd.

And some kids are strong academically in every subject except foreign language, often due to learning disabilities. The answer, like everything else, is that it depends. DC should email the regional admissions rep and ask.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I checked the CDS for Northwestern. It lists 2 years FL requirement, and does not specify if this must be met while IN high school (meaning, unclear if taking Spanish 1 and 2 while in an mcps middle school would count).

I am confident that Northwestern wants to see more FL than this, so I don’t know that the CDS info is helpful.

They mean taking it during High School (yes, I know middle school courses count for HS credit, but that's not what Northwestern is talking about).

And it is a MINIMUM requirement - which in reality means that a kid applying from a DMV high school should do more (at least 3 years).

https://admissions.northwestern.edu/faqs/high-school-courses/

And for many kids in the area, they have 4 years minimum: many have done immersion schools from PK on, many have taken after school and weekend language from prek to middle school plus 4 years of high school; and some have Latin in addition to foreign language; many kids are bilingual and take a 3rd language in school; and so on. Having only two years of one language around here is going to look odd.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Think long term. Having a second language on the resume is a huge leg up in the job search.

Which means you are either bi lingual or continued to take the language in college; not that you took four years in high school.

A lot of these posts seem to be about not wanting to take language any more. I know OP didn't state that, but it comes up a lot around here.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I checked the CDS for Northwestern. It lists 2 years FL requirement, and does not specify if this must be met while IN high school (meaning, unclear if taking Spanish 1 and 2 while in an mcps middle school would count).

I am confident that Northwestern wants to see more FL than this, so I don’t know that the CDS info is helpful.

They mean taking it during High School (yes, I know middle school courses count for HS credit, but that's not what Northwestern is talking about).

And it is a MINIMUM requirement - which in reality means that a kid applying from a DMV high school should do more (at least 3 years).

https://admissions.northwestern.edu/faqs/high-school-courses/

Yes, I realize that is what NW really wants. That was my point. The CDs on its face doesn’t provide guidance to OP’s question.

It isn’t so simple. I would make kid take 2 years while in high school at minimum. But if they want to stop with a FL in order to take another advanced science or post-AP math, that can make sense and not hurt them.