Nixa High School offers the Seal of Biliteracy test that certifies students as bilingual. Students can take the test when they have reached the fourth level of their language class – either Spanish or French. This year, the test will be taken on Feb. 5 and 12. Students have to score at least proficient on the English II EOC to be eligible for the Seal of Biliteracy.  If they pass, they get a special stamp on their transcript and are qualified to get free college credits at a participating college or university in Missouri. 

   “The Seal of Biliteracy is an award for becoming bilingual during high school,” Spanish teacher Ashley Dense said. “So to earn it, you have to be able to prove that you can write, speak, understand, and read in the language, as well as your own first language really well.”

   There is a need for people who speak more than one language in the workforce because people use different languages to talk to clients or patients every day.

   “Becoming bilingual opens up a lot of opportunities that you didn’t know you may have,” Dense said. “A lot of students don’t realize how big of a need there is for someone who can speak two languages.”

   Most students, though, get the Seal of Biliteracy because it helps them in college. Getting the Seal of Biliteracy provides many opportunities both professionally and socially.

   “I think a lot of [students] originally are motivated by the college credits,” Dense said. “It helps them save money and time in college. … They also, over time … just really see the value of what they can do with it.”

   There are different ways to prepare for this test. One way to be ready is to use the language in everyday life. Another way is to get over the fear of messing up and keep trying until it’s right. 

   “Look over the different conjugations of the verbs, so past tense, present tense, future tense, and like verbs with those,” Junior Eunice Cercea said. “Do a lot of Spanish reading, and also practice Spanish writing, and then how to speak Spanish.”

   The test has four parts: reading, writing, listening and speaking. From the start of the foreign language classes, teachers start preparing students for this test. Students have lots of practice in each category, as the Spanish classes do assessments at the end of each unit similar to those in the Seal of Biliteracy test. 

   “From the very start of Spanish 1, students are getting that practice to show their efficiency for what the test is trying to assess,” Dense said. “[Students] should have been preparing all of their four or five years … taking all of the opportunities to learn that their teachers provide for them.”