Students in a Secondary Spanish II class studied Mexican folk art over the course of a week to improve their oral and written language skills and cultural awareness. The students wrote a paragraph and orally described each painting. The teacher tracked the students' written and oral growth across paintings. Results showed that most students were able to look at each painting, describe the cultural aspects depicted, and explain how they represented cultural products, practices, and perspectives.

1. The use of Mexican Folk Art to Develop Oral and Written Language Ability and
Cultural Awareness in the Secondary Spanish Language Classroom
Antonio Alanis
Lit Review: ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines and ACTFL Performance
Descriptors, World-Readiness Standards, Ortuño, Knapp, Edward
T.Hall’s Iceberg Theory of Culture.
Methodology: Secondary Spanish II class, studied over a span of one
week. Students wrote one paragraph per painting and then orally
described each painting. I tracked students’ written and oral growth
across each painting. Data Set 1: Data Set 2: Data Set 3
Results and Conclusions: the majority of my students were able to
look at each painting, describe cultural aspects depicted within each
painting and describe how these were products, practices, and
perspectives.