Foreign Language and Culture Requirement
The study of foreign language and culture provides a foundational competency in a language and culture other than the student’s. The study of foreign language and culture strengthens the development of cross-cultural awareness and intercultural communication and provides opportunities for students to be initiated into another way of understanding the world, to explore links between foreign language and other disciplines, and to prepare for and reflect on their study abroad experience.
All students (except native speakers*) will satisfy the Foreign Language and Culture Goucher Commons Requirement (FLC GCR) by taking 10, 8, or 4 credits following one of the following platforms.
| Platform |
Placement |
Required Credits |
Required Courses in a Foreign Language |
| 1 |
110 |
10 |
110+120+132 or 133** (Platform 1 can also be completed by taking 110+120+130) |
| 2 |
120 |
8 |
120+130 |
| 3 |
130 |
8 |
130 + one 200-level course (see list below) |
| 4 |
Beyond 130 |
4 |
One 200-level or one 300-level course (see list below) |
200-level courses = ARB 234, FR 233, FR 250, SP 229, 230, or SP 235.
300-level courses = FR 353, FR 357, FR 358, SP 322, or SP 350
In order to ensure timely completion of the FLC GCR, students should begin to study a language during their first year. Transfer students who enter as sophomores or higher should begin to study a foreign language immediately. For all students, unless there are extenuating circumstances, the final course to satisfy the FLC GCR should not be attempted in the fall semester of the senior year.
Students may not fulfill the FLC GCR by auditing a course. Students may not take any of the 100-level language courses as an independent study. Students need to pass with a C- or above 110 and 120 in the language. Students may fulfill the FLC GCR earning a D on the last course of the language sequence.
Students wishing to fulfill the FLC GCR through the study of a language and culture not offered at Goucher need to enroll in the BSEP program or another accredited institution of higher education approved by the chair of Modern Languages, Literatures and Cultures (MLLC), and follow the same platform system as above.
*Definition of Native Speaker
A native speaker is a student who has completed high school in another language and culture. It is important to distinguish between native and heritage speakers. Native speakers are typically international students and citizens of another nation, were born abroad, and their family often still resides abroad. A heritage language refers to the language of one´s ancestry or culture. Heritage speakers are not native speakers and students should be directed to the chairs of MLLC or Hispanic and Latinx Studies (HLx) if they believe they fall in this category.
Students who are foreign nationals and/or native speakers and writers of a language other than English may be exempted from the foreign language requirement if they provide evidence of their proficiency. Documents serving as evidence include a high school diploma from a school where English is not the primary language, and/or a note from a high school teacher or college faculty member from the student’s home country attesting to the student’s native-level proficiency in the language. Please contact the MLLC chair for more information.
**Platform 1 Course Information
Any student having previously completed 130 or a level beyond 130 may not take 132/133 for 2 credits. 132/133 (2 credits) may not count for the major.
SP 132 and FR 133 are intended for students completing Platform 1 and not intending to major or minor in Spanish or French. Students need to take SP 130, FR 130, FR 133 (4 credits) or ARB 133 instead of 132 or 133 (2 credits) if they intend to major or minor in Spanish or French, or to minor in Arabic Studies. 132-133 courses may be repeated for credit if topic is different.
Placement Tests
All students must complete a placement test before enrolling in a language class. Based on the placement test results, students may be required to interview with a faculty, and will be placed in one of four platforms (see above). Placement results have an expiration date of one year-i.e., students need to retake their placement test after two or more semesters if they have not taken the language course in which they were placed, unless they have opted to satisfy their language requirement with the study of another language altogether. Regardless of an AP score, students cannot receive credit for Spanish or French without taking the Spanish of French placement exam and consulting the department chair in order to be placed in the appropriate Spanish or French course.
Transfer Credits
Credits taken before enrolling at Goucher may transfer as graduation credits. All students must take a placement test to be placed in the appropriate platform. Current Goucher students taking a transfer course should follow the Transfer of Credits Policy.
Students must successfully complete (pass) the terminal course in their platform in a course at Goucher or a regionally accredited, non-profit, public, or private college or university.
For permission to complete the FLC GCR with languages not offered locally, students need to contact the chair of MLLC. The chair will need to approve the syllabus prior to a student enrolling in the FLC course. Informal online sessions with native speakers or self-guided instruction are not the equivalent of a college FLC course
Foreign Language Online Policy
Current policy at Goucher allows students to take courses on an “online” basis. Students cannot complete their foreign language requirement exclusively online.
American Sign Language (ASL)
ASL can satisfy the FLC GCR. Since we do not offer ASL at Goucher, however, students will need to complete 4-12 credits at another accredited institution, according to the level of ASL at which they initially place. Interested students need to provide the MLLC chair a detailed plan and corresponding syllabi from the accredited higher education institution dispensing the courses.
The sequence of ASL courses must include language and culture. Part of that cultural training would most likely include exposure to the world’s diverse sign languages and the fact that ASL is not the same as British Sign Language, nor is French Sign Language the same as Canadian, etc. Please note that you may need to take 4 semesters of ASL (3 language classes + 1 culture class) in order to fulfill the language and culture requirement.
Culture Courses
A list of culture courses is prepared by Accessibility Services (https://www.goucher.edu/accessibility-services/) each semester and made available to students who complete the FLC GCR with culture courses.
Definition of a Culture Course
To be identified as a culture course, the course must focus on the culture of a language taught at Goucher College or one of our inter-institutional programs. A significant component of the course must be based on primary sources that emphasize one or more cultures outside the Western anglophone culture. If a student wants to take a culture course at another institution, the course must be approved by the HLx chair prior to the student taking the course.
The HLx chair will assess the syllabus of the course for which students are requesting approval. Only courses with grades of D or higher may count towards completion of the FLC GCR.
