The AATSP and the Teaching of Portuguese

I would first like to congratulate and thank Sheri Spaine Long, Editor of Hispania, for including this collection of essays centered on Fred P. Ellison and the State of Luso-Brazilian studies in the twenty-first century as the State-of-the-State Feature in this issue of the journal. While these essays provide an impressive tribute to Professor Ellison, they also provide important historical and up-to-date information about the status of Portuguese and Luso-Brazilian studies in K–12 programs and in post-secondary institutions in the United States.

Throughout his career Fred P. Ellison worked tirelessly to promote the teaching and learning of Portuguese and Luso-Brazilian cultures. As part of his endeavors, Professor Ellison strongly supported the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese and encouraged the organization to support his efforts. Because of his leadership and vision, the number of Portuguese language programs increased especially in post-secondary levels and the post-secondary curriculum broadened to include Luso-Brazilian literatures and cultures.

The AATSP is proud to be able to state that it is continuing the endeavors of Professor Ellison by advocating strongly for the inclusion of Portuguese and Luso-Brazilian cultures in the K–12 curriculum as well as in language departments of post-secondary institutions. The following list of activities and projects provides ample evidence that the AATSP is maintaining the legacy of Professor Ellison.

• • The AATSP currently provides numerous programs for K–12 teachers and students of both Spanish and Portuguese. In some cases, there are parallel programs for Spanish and Portuguese, such as National Spanish Examinations and National Portuguese Examinations. In other cases, a single program offers activities for both students of Spanish and Portuguese, such as the Poster Contest, the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica, and the Sociedad Hispánica de Amistad. In recent years the number of students of Portuguese participating in these programs has grown. In fact, the number of students participating in the National Portuguese Examinations has increased significantly over the past two years.

• • The AATSP also provides numerous opportunities for teachers and students of Portuguese at the post-secondary level. The Portuguese Newsletter is published in the spring and fall and sent in print form to AATSP members who teach Portuguese. Phi Lambda Beta, the Portuguese honorary society for undergraduates, has recently undergone a restructuring and will undertake a campaign to increase chapters and student honorees. Mary Risner, the current Portuguese Representative on the Board of Directors, continues to make AATSP members aware of opportunities for teachers and students of Portuguese and to increase the number and quality of those opportunities.

• • The number of sessions included in the annual AATSP conference that are devoted to Portuguese and Luso-Brazilian culture has more than doubled over the past decade. The AATSP also works with embassies and consulates of the Portuguese-speaking world to provide speakers and events at the conference.

• • The AATSP engages in advocacy on behalf of Portuguese programs independently and with JNCL-NCLIS (Joint National Committee for Languages-National Council for Languages and International Studies). Because of these advocacy efforts Portuguese was named a critical language some five years ago and thus became eligible for federal funding in key areas.

• • The federally funded Portuguese Flagship Program at the University of Georgia is thriving and engaged in many activities and projects for the improvement of the teaching of Portuguese and Luso-Brazilian culture. As Executive Director of the AATSP, I sit on the Advisory Council for their Portuguese Acquisition Linkages (PAL) grant which is providing professional development opportunities for K–12 teachers of Portuguese throughout the United States.

• • The American Councils on International Education has launched its online proficiency exam for Portuguese for high school students pursuing advanced college placement or credit. The exam is part of the National Examinations in World Languages (NEWL) project. The AATSP is working with American Councils to publicize the exam and make it available to Portuguese students throughout the United States.

• • The AATSP works to publicize successful Portuguese teachers and programs such as the Portuguese-English dual language immersion program in Utah. Jamie Leite...