By Sofia Rico, Clarion Staff Reporter
Advanced Placement French Language and Culture has successfully returned to John F. Kennedy, and students now have the chance to become fluent in French with veteran instructor Joan Taylor, as well as earn their Seal of Biliteracy.
But what did it take to finally get to this point?
Reviving AP French caused a lot of debate and confusion throughout the 2023-2024 school year between the counseling department, interested students, and Taylor. Taylor has fought strongly and firmly for her program in order to give her students the chance to continue French through all of high school and to help them unlock opportunities for their futures.
Taylor states, “I like to say that by the end of AP French, they are 'mini-fluent.' They can converse, they can write, they can read, and they can understand spoken French very well.”
She is very dedicated to helping her students achieve these goals to give them the chance and confidence to learn another new language, continue French beyond high school, and visit various French-speaking countries.
For the same reason, Kennedy Freshman Coordinator Dr. Siobhan Reilley is also glad that calls for the return of AP French have finally been answered. She believes that it is important for John F. Kennedy as a school to be able to say they can do it for their students – not only with French, but other languages as well.
Taylor agrees that it is most important to put students first, considering her program isn’t the first or only world language program at Kennedy to be put at risk. Kennedy used to offer other languages including Chinese and Latin, which have been phased out.
“There is a lack of understanding about how studying a language allows you to, A, be better in your own language, B, open a huge cultural window, and C, makes you more prepared to enter an international world.”
She talks about the importance of allowing students to study a new language, and it is often ignored by those who should care the most.
“It's cheating our students. I’ve always felt we cheat our students,” says Taylor.
Fortunately for these students, she is committed to putting the kids first and teaching them all they want to learn, and much more.
Senior AP French student, Lucy Orcutt “because since my first year taking French, I hoped to be able to do it throughout my whole high school.”
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