Language Requirement for High School

Parent Q&A

Select any title to view the full question and replies.

  • I am trying to find out if there is any way around the "one year of a foreign language" requirement to graduate from Bay Area high schools.  Do all students have to complete this?  Please, no lectures on how valuable it is to study another language--I already buy into that. 

    My child has been out of state in residential treatment and will be trying to finish up his senior year when he gets home in January.  I just need practical advice on whether this is always a requirement, or if you know of a charter school where it is not a requirement.  Or if you know if there are different requirements for special ed.  This issue may make or break whether he finishes high school or not.

    Thank you.

    It has been a while since I had kids in high school but years ago sign language was an option.If it is not offered where your child is going you might be able to get permission to take it elsewhere and get the credit.Sign language might appeal to your child and might be more enjoyable than learning another language.

    Hi!  My godson had an IEP for his entire school career (severe dyslexia and also was in residential treatment for four years) and he graduated from Berkeley High in 2012 without having taken a foreign language.  So "Special Ed" is definitely the route to choose.  

    Has he passed the CAHSEE Math and Language Arts?  I've been told that students with an IEP don't need to pass those tests in order to obtain a diploma, but that requirement may differ by school. 

    I suggest that you go to the high school in which he will be enrolled now to work out your child's schedule well in advance of his arrival.  (If he will be enrolled at BHS, you should see Diane Colburn, who runs the Special Ed program there.)  

    P.S.  I just noticed that "EllenM" suggested the possibility of satisfying the foreign language requirement with sign language, so I thought I'd mention that my godson later tried to study sign language at BCC.  Despite having a deaf friend and a real interest in learning ASL, it didn't work out, because signing involves a lot of spelling.  That's a non-starter for someone with dyslexia.  (I don't know if that's your child's condition, but a large number of kids who end up in residential treatment have a (often undiagnosed) learning disability, and so I thought I'd mention it here.)