World Language Exam – Everything You Need to Know!
By Ayesha Gulzar and Maclain Monsky
October 8, 2021
Can you read and write another language? Around 75% of students at Glasgow have the option to potentially earn 3 high school language credits because they are fluent in a language that is not English. The World Language Exam (WLE) is an exam that 7th through 12th graders can take to test their skills in various languages. The languages provided are American Sign Language, Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese – Mandarin, Farsi, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Nepali, Pashto, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Sanskrit, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, Tamil, Telugu, Tigrinya, Turkish, Twi, Urdu, and Vietnamese. Once you complete the exam, it will be graded by someone highly proficient in the language you chose.
Ms. Anastasia Criswell, a French teacher at Glasgow, highly encourages students to take the exam. She stated, “If you can write, why wouldn’t you try. You’ve got nothing to lose (it doesn’t go on any record if you fail). Plus, if you get all 3 credits, you get the seal of biliteracy on your diploma, which looks pretty cool.” The exam consists of students having to write various paragraphs based on personal experience. You are then judged based on your proficiency in that essay. To prepare, Alisa Oden, an 8th grader who passed the exam last year, says, “I went over grammar rules and did a lot of reading. Also, work on whatever else you think you need more work on.” To prepare, Ms. Criswell also says, “Write a page about something like what you did last summer. Then show it to your parents, a teacher, or any fluent speaker in the language you are preparing for, and ask them, ‘what do you think?”
If you can write in one of the provided languages, go ahead and apply in student services by October 13. If you don’t feel up to it this year, try taking it next year, and if you are not satisfied with your score if you take the exam, don’t worry. You can take the WLE up to 2 times. For more information, check out this link:
https://www.fcps.edu/academics/high-school-academics-9-12/world-languages/credit-exam-world-languages
Ayesha Gulzar (she/her) is an 8th grader at Glasgow Middle School. She was born in Lahore, Pakistan but was raised in Alexandria, Virginia. She is a passionate creative person who loves to write, draw, bullet journal, and do calligraphy. In her free time, she likes to learn new things or organize because she is a true neat freak at heart.
Maclain Monsky (she/her) is an 8th grader at Glasgow Middle School and lives in Virginia. She is a competitive swimmer for the Potomac Marlins and the Dowden Terrace Dolphins. In the spring, she plays defense, attack, and goalie for Annandale Lacrosse. She recently joined VA 1 which is a travel lacrosse team. She enjoys art, especially using the mediums of markers and colored pencils. Another one of her favorite things to do is play Minecraft and Valorant with her brother.
Tahira
Oct 22, 2021 at 9:29 am
Thank you so much for sharing this information. A lot of people don’t know about that. Your article is really good. Keep it up and share the knowledge which is beneficial for others. Proud of you all guys.