Description
The chasm between the successive proficiency levels (ILR 1, 2, 3, 4/ACTFL Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, Distinguished) is large. The Cusp Tables, developed with the support of the National Foreign Language Center, with input from large numbers of Level-4 language users and informed by proficiency testing instruments in use at the time, articulate proficiency elements believed to be most critical for passing from one level to the next. They suggest how to use this knowledge, along with formative assessment, to determine best next steps for individual learners based on their zones of proximal development (Vygotsky). The tables provided in this article for English, Russian, and Heritage Spanish can be used to guide the development of similar tables for other languages.
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