The majority of students studying a foreign language in a traditional high school program reach benchmark level 3 (corresponding to ACTFL Novice-High) in reading by the fourth year of study, regardless of the target language (Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish). Students typically reach benchmark level 4 (corresponding to ACTFL Intermediate-Low) in writing and speaking by the fourth year of study. Interestingly, the data suggest that students progress faster in speaking and writing than in reading.

CASLS investigated students' levels of proficiency as part of its Ten Burning Questions research project sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education Title VI program. The results are based on administration of the Standards-based Measurement of Proficiency (STAMP) in 2007-08. The data focus specifically on students who speak English as their native language and who studied the target language for one to four years in a traditional (non-immersion), full-year program. Students who speak the language of study at home or who have been in an immersion program are not included. Benchmark levels are intended to correspond approximately to the ACTFL scale.

Download the entire report to access tables detailing the percentages of students at each benchmark level based on years of study.

The U.S. Department of Education Title VI program sponsors this research. Partnering institutions at the Center for Language Education and Research at Michigan State University, the National Foreign Language Resource Center at the University of Hawaii, and the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) at the University of Minnesota will assist CASLS and the UO Department of Linguistics in completing the research for these educator-initiated questions.