By James Tabafunda
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Changing the learning of world languages in Washington state is underway.
The Washington State Board of Education (WSBE) voted on Sept. 10 to approve a legislative proposal that would move world language credits—including Chinese, Japanese, and other languages—out of core high school graduation requirements and into an expanded set of elective-style requirements.
The five-hour meeting, held online via Microsoft Teams and livestreamed on TVW, focused on the Washington FutureReady State Graduation Requirement Framework, a multiyear effort to update the state’s 24-credit diploma system. Under the proposal, two credits of world language would move into what the board calls the Personalized Pathway Requirement (PPR), a category of courses that students are expected to take, but can substitute with other coursework tied to their postsecondary plans.
The two language credits could be fulfilled through any combination of the same world language, American Sign Language, or a tribal language, according to WSBE documents.
The WSBE voted to approve the proposed FutureReady legislation and delegated authority to WSBE Executive Director Randy Spaulding to manage the legislative request process for the upcoming 2027-28 legislative session.
Board defends changes as flexibility, not elimination
Spaulding told board members the legislative request reflects months of revisions based on feedback from the public and other groups. “We’ve made a couple changes based on the later feedback,” he said. “We have a much longer public comment period than is necessary. It does have to be open during the session.”
Spaulding asked board members to weigh three questions as they reviewed the proposed FutureReady legislation: “Does the statement clearly communicate the board’s intent? Does it reflect the board’s priorities? Is there anything missing that we need to be including?”
WSBE board member Ron Mabry read aloud the vision statement adopted as part of the FutureReady framework, using it as a benchmark for evaluating the legislative intent. “Every Washington student is empowered with the knowledge, skill, and support needed to plan their future, prepare for lifelong success, and thrive in an ever-changing world through an equitable and inclusive education system in partnership with families and caregivers,” he said.
Language teachers say proposal weakens graduation standards
The Washington Association for Language Teaching (WAFLT) has publicly opposed the change. In a letter dated Sept. 8, WAFLT Executive Director Catherine Ousselin urged stakeholders to keep world languages as a core graduation requirement.
“This is an urgent call to action for all World Language, Dual Language, and Indigenous Language educators, their students, and their communities,” Ousselin wrote. “On Thursday, September 10th, the Washington State School board is expected to formally introduce changes to the FutureReady Graduation Framework. This proposal would move world languages out of the core requirements and into the Personalized Pathway—making them optional and easily replaced.”
Ousselin wrote that the change would not expand opportunity for students, despite the board’s messages. “While this change might seem to provide more options for students, just the opposite is true,” she wrote.
“The proposed graduation framework will reduce choice and options for all students and disadvantage our students in Washington by reducing educational opportunities, making high school degrees obtained in Washington state less competitive.”
WAFLT’s formal statement, posted alongside a Change.org petition, argues that treating language credits as substitutable sends an unintended message to students and families.
“The Washington FutureReady State Graduation Requirement Framework [is] … sending the message that language learning is optional rather than essential,” the statement reads. “World languages are vital for preparing students to succeed in a global society. They build communication skills, cultural competence, and cognitive flexibility; promote empathy and tolerance; and provide access to diverse career opportunities.”
For educator Betty Lau, those opportunities have included decades of work in Seattle public schools. “I’ve been involved with building Asian language programs since the mid ‘70s,” said Lau, a former Mandarin teacher who later wrote grants supporting teacher training and certification in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, and Russian—languages she said were identified as critical to “national defense, diplomacy, and trade.”
The WAFLT’s statement cites research from the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, the Modern Language Association, and the National Heritage Language Resource Center, finding that sustained language study improves workforce competitiveness and academic achievement.
“Without this requirement, language learning risks becoming a choice only for students who already understand its value and the commitment needed to achieve proficiency,” the statement reads.
The proposal is not new to the state’s graduation framework. Under current rules for the graduating Class of 2024 and beyond, both of the two required world language credits can be swapped out for a PPR, according to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. The proposed FutureReady legislation would formalize and expand that flexibility across the broader graduation framework as the state moves toward the Class of 2031.
Meeting shifts focus to résumés, computer science credit
Despite the attention on world languages, board discussion during the online meeting centered instead on other elements of the framework, including language requiring high school seniors to complete a résumé or activity log and cover letter by the end of the school year, and a proposal allowing Advanced Placement Computer Science to count as a “quantitative reasoning course” substituting for a third math or science credit.
Superintendent reports on statewide test scores
Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal briefed board members on statewide assessment results, saying Washington’s performance on international and national exams is mixed. “PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) scores, international exams for 15-year-olds in math and science, and ELA (English Language Arts) continue to go down around the world,” Reykdal said. “Actually, our rate of decline is slower than the rest of the world right now.”
Chris Reykdal, Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction
He said Washington remains ahead of international peers in reading but continues to lag in math. “We’re still below the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) average in math,” he said. “It’s absolutely from a data standpoint the biggest gap we have anywhere is mathematics.” He added science scores have trended upward for roughly seven years, calling the trend “very hopeful.”
Reykdal also outlined the office’s next budget request, asking state lawmakers for $500 million to $600 million annually over the next two years to cover basic education costs, including substitute staffing and transportation, along with efforts to restructure levy equalization funding to focus resources on high-poverty school districts.
What happens next
Spaulding told board members the timeline for the rulemaking process tied to the proposed FutureReady legislation remains on track. The WSBE filed its notice of rulemaking, known as a CR-101, on June 15, and he said he expects proposed rules to be ready.
“We anticipate that we will have rules ready for the board to adopt at the October meeting,” Spaulding said. “That would allow us to file the following week, which would move us into publication in the (Washington) State Register in the beginning of the public comment period officially on November 4th.”
The WSBE’s proposed FutureReady legislation is scheduled to be submitted to the governor’s office on Sept. 14. Adoption of proposed rules is set for Oct. 15, with filing to follow on Oct. 20. Publication in the Washington State Register and the start of the public comment period is scheduled for Nov. 4, with a final FutureReady report and proposed rules expected in December.
The Washington Legislature convenes its 2027 session Jan. 11 through April 25, when lawmakers will consider the WSBE’s proposed legislation.
A public hearing on the proposed rules is scheduled for April 2, with adoption of final rules set for April 15, according to the WSBE’s published timeline.
For more information on FutureReady, go to sbe.wa.gov/our-work/futureready. To enter public comments, go to sbe.wa.gov/FutureReadyPublicComment. For more information on the Change.org petition, go to www.change.org/p/keep-world-languages-in-wa-s-core-graduation-requirements.
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