College of Education > Academics > Teacher Education, Kinesiology and Educational Studies > Licensure & Endorsements > World Language Education Endorsement

Initial Teaching License (PEL) with World Language Education Endorsement

In today’s global world, learning a world language is more important than ever. World language teachers promote cultural awareness and strive to find new ways to make language come alive for their students. They differentiate instruction to challenge students at different levels of language fluency and use technology, real-life situations and issues of interest to expand students’ horizons.

The World Language Education Licensure program provides students who already hold a master’s degree in Arabic, Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Russian or Spanish the opportunity to become teaching professionals. It is designed for those who are committed to diversifying language offerings, extending instruction to the middle and elementary grades, and promoting the many advantages of world language learning.

World language educators teach in public or private, urban or suburban, elementary, middle and high schools. Some work as adult education teachers, community educators, tutors, interpreters or translators. Individuals who speak another language can be found in research institutes, international organizations and companies, and the publishing and film industries.

Are you interested in enrolling in this program? View its admission requirements and application instructions here or contact the College of Education’s Office of Graduate Admissions at (773) 325-4405.

Licensure

The World Language Education Licensure program leads to a special (K-12) teaching license with an endorsement in a specific language. DePaul offers Illinois State Board of Education approved programs in Arabic, Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Russian and Spanish.

Program Format

To accommodate working professionals, the World Language Education Licensure program offers courses that meet on weekday evenings at DePaul’s Lincoln Park Campus, online or a hybrid online/on-campus format (although field experience and student teaching requirements must be fulfilled during weekdays.) In addition, the program’s schedule is flexible, allowing students to attend full-time or part-time as their professional and personal schedules allow.

Program Requirements

The World Language Education Licensure program includes 52 quarter hours of coursework in Social and Cultural Foundations in Education and Teaching and Learning; however, teaching licensure requires more than a series of courses—there are special requirements such as completing field experiences and a student teaching internship, meeting content area course requirements and passing state licensure exams.

This program is typically eligible for financial aid. Please see this document and consult your advisor in the COE.

Admission Requirements

To be eligible for the World Language Licensure only program, students must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.

To apply, please submit the following materials to the Office of Graduate Admission:

A completed College of Education graduate application
Online application fee
One official transcript from each college and/or university attended
Two letters of recommendation from professors or employer
Resume
A brief statement which explains your reasons for wanting to enter the World Language Licensure program at DePaul and discusses your potential for becoming a teacher.

Course Requirements

Education Courses: 40 Quarter Hours Required, Grade of C or Better Required

Course List
Course	Title	Quarter Hours
SCG 406	HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING:SECONDARY	4
T&L 425	CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION IN SECONDARY EDUCATION	4
Select one of the following:		4
SCG 408	EDUCATION AND SOCIETY
SCG 409	SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION
SCG 411	PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION
BBE 560	SECOND, WORLD AND HERITAGE LANGUAGE ACQUISITION	4
BBE 570	LANGUAGE, LITERACIES AND CULTURES	4
BBE 526	THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS OF TEACHING ESL AND WLE	4
T&L 449	STANDARD AND CONTENT-BASED METHODS OF TEACHING WORLD LANGUAGES K-12	4
T&L 575	WLE HISTORY, POLICY, AND CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT	4
BBE 407	EQUITY ISSUES IN ASSESSMENT OF LANGUAGE LEARNERS	4
SER 446	PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATION OF THE EXCEPTIONAL CHILD	4

Education Elective Course: 4 Quarter Hours Are Required, Grade of C or Better Required

Open elective credit also is required to meet the minimum graduation requirement of 60 quarter hours. Choose an Education course in consultation with the Academic Advisor or Content Advisor. Courses must be approved by the WLE Program Director prior to registration and requires graduate level registration.

Elective Course

Student Teaching: 8 Quarter Hours Required

Registration in student teaching requires completion of all requirements and procedures listed in the college core section. EDU 95 CLINICAL EXPERIENCE WITH CHILDREN AND YOUTH indicates to the Illinois State Board of Education that all field experience hours are complete.

Course List
Course	Title	Quarter Hours
T&L 592	WORLD LANGUAGES STUDENT TEACHING (grade of B- or better required)	6
T&L 593	WORLD LANGUAGES SEMINAR (grade of C or better required)	2
EDU 95	CLINICAL EXPERIENCE WITH CHILDREN AND YOUTH (non-credit, non-tuition, PA grade required)	0

Content Area Courses

All students need to have sufficient knowledge of the subject they will be teaching. Illinois State Board of Education requires a minimum of 48 quarter hours (32 semester hours) in the content area subject. Students should meet with their designated Content Area advisor at the beginning of their program for an official written content evaluation and provide a copy to your academic advisor. Requirements can be satisfied by undergraduate coursework or courses taken elsewhere. Content courses must be completed before student teaching.