Language and communication are central to our everyday interactions. Global trends and technological advances have reduced distances, bringing nations and languages into our homes,
connecting us with every part of the globe and increasing opportunities for trade, travel and employment. The Modern Languages Syllabus focuses on developing students’ ability to
communicate in three of the languages in use in the Americas – French, Portuguese and Spanish.
As students develop the competence to listen, speak, read and write in these languages and interpret aspects of the culture in which the languages are embedded, they will acquire the means
to facilitate deeper interaction with our neighbors. Ultimately, students will be equipped to meet the needs of living, studying and working in a multilingual region and in a culturally and
linguistically diverse world.
The syllabus has been organized around three main concepts: Functions and Notions, Settings and Topics, and Grammar and Lexis. In the Syllabus, emphasis is placed on the students’ ability
to use the target language in a functional way. Therefore, the basic functions needed for communication are identified. It is intended that these functions should be the core of the
instructional planning process.
This approach used in organizing the syllabus seeks to shift attention away from a purely structural approach to a more communicative one. It is expected that students following this
syllabus will be able to carry out these functions in the target language.
