Mission and Vision
The Desert Vista World Language Department inspires language acquisition and cultural awareness by making connections through communication, comparisons, and community involvement.
Philosophy
The World Language Department at Desert Vista is proud of the comprehensive program in Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese offering Honors Spanish 5, AP Spanish Language, and AP Mandarin Chinese.
We are one of the largest and most comprehensive language departments in the state. Through our program, students can select a program of study that will best prepare them for their future: travel abroad, college-bound, or translation work. We boast an enrollment of over 50% of the students enrolled at Desert Vista. We are very proud of our retention rate in our upper-division classes. Some highlights of our department include that we are one of the few schools in the Phoenix region to offer Honors Spanish 5, AP Spanish Language and AP Spanish Literature concurrently each year.
Our department promotes a communicative approach to language learning at all levels. Our objectives are geared toward providing students with the ability to communicate clearly and grammatically in the target language while at the same time, enjoying the language-learning experience and gaining an awareness of the diverse cultural aspects of the language.
We offer both dual enrollment classes and Advanced Placement courses in our languages. Through our partnership with Rio Salado Community College, students have the opportunity to earn college credit for upper division high school language classes, which are taught concurrently as college classes. We adhere to the college curriculum and our teachers are state-certified college instructors.
Students that complete dual enrollment courses will begin earning credits towards a major or minor in a second language. We have students that graduate from our program only needing 3-4 language classes at the university to earn their minor. Students that complete the 7-8 level of their language will have earned up to 202 credits in the respective language, fulfilling any university language requirements for graduation. We have students that graduate from our program only needing 4 language classes at the university to earn their minor.
Goals of Desert Vista's World Language Department
Our department promotes a communicative approach to language learning at all levels. Our objectives are geared toward providing students with the ability to communicate clearly and grammatically in the target language while at the same time, enjoying the language-learning experience and gaining an awareness of the diverse cultural aspects of the language.
