Language spotlight

CJ Brown, Writer

The language department at BFA is one of the many departments in the school. The department covers French, German, Latin and Spanish. Traditionally, textbooks featuring one language have been used. However, this has become a declining trend.

Quizlet is a free online resource used for studying. Among offering customizable flashcards, it also offers games and various tests that teachers and students can take advantage of.

Madame Leet, the current French I, III, and IV teacher has picked up on using Quizlet in an attempt to add more technology to her classroom.

“It’s better for the environment than making flashcards because you’re not wasting paper, it’s all online. It also saves you time because you don’t have to write them out. I make a list and share it with the students,” Leet said.

Quizlet has been increasingly popular with not only Mme. Leet, but the Language department as a whole. Rather than buying books every few years, Quizlet offers the opportunity of complete customization over what one would want to study.

The days of buying a textbook for a class, and only using half of the content because it doesn’t fit with the curriculum. Because of the accessibility and customization, this could save schools hundreds of dollars.  

Mrs. Batten is the current Latin teacher and department chair. She has an opposite view on the program.

“Personally, in my class, we don’t use Quizlet,” Mrs. Batten said.

Although some of the teachers are on board with Quizlet, there are others who are not as fond of the tool. Studies have shown that actually writing out what you are studying greatly increases your memory of the one topic.

While Quizlet is often seen as a time-saver and one of the most popular study tools, and  it’s use could also be seen as a harmful tool rather than an aid. Rather than writing the material and learning it by heart, one would to look at flash cards. This may work for some people, but it doesn’t work for all.

According to Pam Mueller and Daniel Oppenheimer of Princeton University, writing down the content that you are trying to remember is a majorly beneficial to one’s memory than just looking at the words.

This does have a work around however. You can print the flashcards and tests off the site. This work around lets teachers print out hassle free tests, letting them have more time to polish their assignments.

Quizlet could be seen as a new dawn for educational tools. Its practicality and usefulness is excellent for students and teachers alike. If nothing else, it will make foreign languages a little less foreign.