Change, in general, is something most people fear; implementing the aforementioned pieces of competency-based learning in the language classroom can be a challenging task. Strategies will depend on your institution, its culture, and its access to resources. 

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In this step, you'll want to:

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• Read an example of a math program that converted to competency-based

• Reflect on your hiring practices

• Elicit faculty input and volunteers

• Office incentives to instructors

• Balance instructor autonomy with program unity

• Onboard, train, and support

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The Details

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Read an Example of a Math Program that Converted to Competency-Based

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• Sample developmental math program conversion from traditional to competency-based education (CBE). Click here.

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Reflect on Hiring Practices

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• It is critical to always hire qualified and experienced world language teachers (i.e. bilingual; a degree related to second language teaching theory and pedagogy); without this underlying piece, language acquisition develops randomly or only with the most determined few students, or program proficiency expectations will not be met, resulting in long-term reduction in student enrollment

• If your program has instructors who do not meet these qualifications, this model of competency-based learning may not be appropriate

 

Elicit Faculty Input and Volunteers

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• Emphasize transparent, clear communication, and elicit input as early as possible from faculty and other stakeholders

• Gather a team to help research and pilot this competency-based language learning model

• Select instructors who (a) are self-starting and passionate about competency-based learning, (b) view the model as a response to a "gap" or problem they see in their own classroom or program, and (c) can work in small, achievable steps that can be accomplished within a reasonable amount of time

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Offer Incentives to Instructors

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• While some instructors innately have the drive, time, and energy to make major modifications to their own teaching, many do not and will need to be adequately compensated

• Consider asking your instructors to make the switch to this competency-based model as part of their professional development, annual goal, or evaluation process

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Balance Instructor Autonomy with Program Unity

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• Programs may value academic freedoms; however, instructional variation that is not unified creates inconsistencies, which may effect student readiness for subsequent coursework

• Think about which program policies related to competency-based learning described in this model will be centralized, or mandatory, and which will allow instructors individual autonomy. For example, ensuring that "all instructors are required to document student performance on each SLO for their course" might be a mandatory policy, while "instructors may design learning activities or authentic assessments for their course using their own materials, expertise, and resources" might be a logical policy supporting instructor autonomy. 

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Onboard, Train, and Support

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• Always pilot the model with a few motivated instructors first before any full-scale implementation

• Consider the timeline for rollout; a phasing-in of competency-based learning/phasing-out of the traditional approach can help to ease confusion and potential push-back from instructors

• Promotion of the model is critical; the more widely it is used, the more common and the  culturally accepted it will be by any leery instructors and students

• Upfront communication with instructors before signing on to teach a competency-based language course is critical (i.e. “If you are interested in teaching this class, this is the required competency-based grading structure you will use and the policies you are required to follow.")

• Providing instructors with access to the ProficiencyBuilder website and its resources will help to clarify and streamline the sign-on process

• Instructors will need sufficient initial and ongoing training, collaboration, and support, including orientation to the model, meetings to share ideas and frustrations, help define proficiency or outcomes, or develop and interpret competency on proficiency assessments

• Identify and offer professional development opportunities related to competency-based learning and language teaching in general for both new and veteran instructors

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