PENDLETON — Tri-County Technical College Spanish instructor Timeko McFadden has been selected to participate in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Languages and Literacy Collaboration Initiative.

The ACTFL is dedicated to the improvement and expansion of the teaching and learning of all languages at all levels of instruction. This national initiative connects collaborative teams of world language educators and colleagues from other disciplines from across the United States in a project focused on developing learners’ literacy skills.

McFadden will serve on a team of six language professionals– three from South Carolina, one from Texas and another from Wisconsin — who will work together for the next year and a half on assessments and activities to implement in the classroom that will reinforce bi-literacy.

Many students are bilingual but not bi-literate, which means they aren’t proficient in writing a foreign language, explained McFadden. She and her team will write the curricula and focus on oral and written proficiency.

“For so many years, foreign language educators have focused on speaking the language; now we are focusing on writing as well. We will connect foreign language educators from K-12 and beyond so we are all on the same page,” said McFadden.

The development of the Languages and Literacy Collaboration Center (LLCC) will give all educators access to a multitude of resources.

Teams of five to ten educators will collaboratively develop model units and lessons for diverse learners. These model units and lessons may be discipline-specific or interdisciplinary depending on the site team membership and focus.

Through webinars, mentoring, a virtual resource portal, and online discussions, educators will collaborate around strategies to reinforce and strengthen learners’ literacy skills.

Before joining Tri-County in 2011, McFadden was a Spanish teacher and Spanish Department Head at Woodmont Middle School in Greenville County. Prior to teaching, she worked at a pastry chef at several restaurants including The Cliffs at Glassy in Landrum, Soby’s on the Side in Greenville and the Greenville Country Club.

She earned a B.A. in Spanish, as well as a B.A. in religion, from Converse College. She has a master in arts in Hispanic Literature from the University of Georgia. In 2005, she received an associate degree in Culinary Arts and Food Service Management, as well as a certificate in Business, from Greenville Technical College.

McFadden, who also speaks Portuguese, is a member of Alpha Mu Gamma. She was session chair of the 2011 CLA Conference in Spartanburg, was a presenter at the 2009 Upstate Foreign Language Faculty Development Workshop, and in 2010, was a co-sponsor of Expresate, an Upstate language organization for Spanish enthusiasts.

Tri-County Technical College Spanish instructor Timeko McFadden has been selected to participate in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages Languages and Literacy Collaboration Initiative.
http://pickenssentinel.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_tctcmcfaddenchosen.jpgTri-County Technical College Spanish instructor Timeko McFadden has been selected to participate in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages Languages and Literacy Collaboration Initiative. Courtesy photo

Staff Report