DATE: Friday, July 11, 1997                 TAG: 9707100667

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Education 

SOURCE: BY DENISE WATSON, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:   85 lines

FLUENT IN THE LANGUAGE OF SUCCESSAREA SCHOOLS ARE ENCOURAGING STUDENTS TO START EARLY IN LEARNING NEW TONGUE, A SKILL THAT MAY LATER GIVE THEM A LEG UP ON FINDING A JOB.

``Puedes ayudarme?''

Eighteen-year-old Ryan Cooper can, but only because he knows that phrase means ``Can you help me?'' in Spanish.

Educators say Cooper's fluency in French and Spanish provides the recent Booker T. Washington High School graduate with more job opportunities than his English-speaking-only peers.

Cooper realizes he has an edge.

``Just recently, I've seen job advertisements looking for bilingual people,'' Cooper said. ``I know I can apply for those jobs.''

Years ago, foreign-language classes were considered ``tres chic'' for the field trip to Paris or Mexico, or the necessary class for an academic diploma.

No more.

Students should have some proficiency in a second language to be most marketable after high school, educators now stress. Colleges look for foreign-language study. In areas of the country with heavy Hispanic populations - including California, Texas, Florida and New York - Spanish might be a job requirement.

School districts are responding by urging students to enroll in language classes in middle school, when the credit-bearing courses are first offered. Some districts have been more successful than others.

According to Virginia's annual Outcome Accountability Project, which measures student performance, 46 percent of Norfolk's eighth-graders took a foreign language in the 1995-96 school year, an increase of 44 percent over the previous year. Virginia Beach enrolled 45 percent, a 1 percent drop from the 1994-95 year. Portsmouth dropped from 33 percent to 30 percent.

Chesapeake and Suffolk had a 2 percent increase from 34 to 36 percent, and Norfolk and Virginia Beach were the only South Hampton Roads districts to surpass the state average of 38 percent.

Numbers across the board should increase, school officials said.

``Our world is getting smaller,'' said Ann Rolbin, Norfolk Public Schools coordinator for foreign languages. ``The language of business now is the language of the customer. If we want to be successful in this world culture, we have to know the language where we compete.''

Besides strengthening a resume, educators list several benefits to studying a second language. It improves English grammar skills. Learning another language sharpens thought processes, leading students to perform better in other subjects. Studies show that students who take foreign languages do better on standardized test scores. Learning other languages also teaches an appreciation and tolerance of other cultures.

Cooper said he's always had an interest in learning different languages - he studied German and Latin in addition to Spanish and French in school - but he didn't realize their necessity until he took a trip to California a few years ago, before he studied Spanish.

He was humbled by his inability to make basic requests in Spanish.

``We were in a hotel and I couldn't even communicate with the maid,'' Cooper said. ``I didn't even know what the word `thank you' was.''

In order to encourage students to study foreign languages, school officials are trying to make offerings more appealing in addition to stressing their importance. Norfolk and Virginia Beach have the most offerings with classes in six foreign languages, including Russian and Japanese.

Rolbin sends out letters every year to parents, alerting them to the job possibilities for their children, in light of the fact that more than 100 foreign companies are now based in Hampton Roads.

School officials also have programs to introduce foreign languages to students before they start middle school.

Some districts offer summer enrichment classes where elementary school students can take courses. During the school year, Norfolk has a ``cadet program'' where high school foreign language students travel to elementary schools and teach younger students foreign languages.

``The earlier you start, the better,'' Rolbin said. ``Foreign language is a skill. A skill you better learn when you're young.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by Vicki Cronis/The Virginian-Pilot

Ryan Cooper, 18, says he was humbled...

Graphic

Students taking Foreign Languages

Percentage of eight-grade students who took a foreign language

before entering the ninth grade:

For complete copy, see microfilm KEYWORDS: FOREIGN LANGUAGE PBLIC SCHOOL

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