Professional Development Opportunities

The Practical Program Evaluation initiative offers a series of free webinars and an annual summer institute for language educators.

CARLA-ACTFL Webinar 2024

A Brief Introduction to Language Program Evaluation: Facts, Myths, and Resources

Program evaluation can provide insight into how to maintain, improve, and protect language programs. When undertaking program evaluation, it’s essential to consider the purpose of the program, the motivation for evaluation, and how these will be reconciled in sharing results and planning for change. Moreover, program evaluations can be developed and conducted by external or internal reviewers or a combination of both.  At the same time, many administrators and instructors do not understand the nature of program evaluation and how to effectively implement it. This webinar provides a quick overview of how to use program evaluation to explore what works within a program, improve aspects that need support, and demonstrate the value of language programs.

This webinar is part of the joint CARLA-ACTFL initiative on Practical Program Evaluation. The presenters are the instructors for the 2024 CARLA Summer Institute Practical Program Evaluation for Heritage Language Programs.

Presenters
Margaret Malone is Director of Assessment and Research at ACTFL, and co-leader of Practical Program Evaluation. She is the former Director of the AELRC and has over 30 years of experience in language education. Dr. Malone is well-versed in program evaluation, survey research, materials development, language test development, and professional development delivered through online and face-to-face platforms.

Celia Chomón Zamora is Director for Professional Learning and Certification at ACTFL and co-leader of Practical Program Evaluation. Dr. Zamora has over 15 years of experience as a K-12 language teacher and administrator, an instructor and administrator of postsecondary language courses, and a researcher of heritage language instruction.

 

CARLA-ACTFL Webinar 2023

CARLA-ACTFL Webinar: Program Evaluations: What They Are and What They Aren’t

Evaluation is critical to understanding the outcomes of language programs. In conducting evaluation, it is important to take a comprehensive approach that considers the needs of learners and teachers, the requirements and capacities of administrators, parents and other stakeholders, the values of the discipline and the contributions of the program to society, locally, nationally and internationally. However, many instructors mistake evaluations as opportunities to eliminate programs or evaluate the performances of individual instructors. Join us as we provide an overview of why program evaluations are crucial to the longevity and success of language programs, and combat myths of what they are NOT.

Presenters
Margaret Malone and Celia Chomón Zamora

 

CARLA SUMMER INSTITUTE

Introduction to Practical Program Evaluation for Heritage Language Programs

June 24–July 12, 2024 
Asynchronous* 3-week online summer institute
Note: This summer institute has three required synchronous meetings.

Evaluation is critical to understanding the outcomes of language programs. In conducting evaluation, it is important to take a comprehensive approach that considers the needs of learners and teachers, the requirements and capacities of administrators, parents and other stakeholders, the values of the discipline and the contributions of the program to the local, national and general society. This institute provides teachers, administrators, faculty in teacher preparation programs and other stakeholders an introductory approach to theory and practice to world language program evaluation, particularly in the field of heritage language, in the K-postsecondary context.

This engaging institute will use both scenario-based and actual participant contexts to explore the concepts  discussed and to identify areas of potential success and challenge for implementation. Participants will first define program evaluation for their own contexts and consider the opportunities and challenges of heritage language programs. Next, they will learn to design a program evaluation for their own macro or micro contexts by setting goals, determining outcomes, and defining the instruments needed to conduct the evaluation. Participants will also utilize and adapt existing instruments or develop new instruments for their context. Finally, participants will learn how to best communicate, apply, and implement evaluation results to a variety of contexts.

Instructors
Margaret Malone and Celia Chomón Zamora 

Each summer, the CARLA-ACTFL team will offer the Practical Program Evaluation summer institute with a focus on a different instructional context:

• Summer 2023: Less Commonly Taught Languages
• Summer 2024: Heritage language programs
• Summer 2025: Community Colleges, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and Minority Serving Institutions.
• Summer 2026: All of the contexts listed above.
  
  

PLEASE NOTE: Check out CARLA’s Priority Teacher Professional Development Scholarship Program for the opportunity to attend the 2024 summer institute for free.