Thurston High instructor proposes Portfolio Deutsch to replace 1998 German text

Thurston High School’s German instructor, introduced by the superintendent as Seely, presented a recommendation to replace a 1998 German textbook with Portfolio Deutsch, which she described as more culturally responsive and pedagogically current.

Seely walked trustees through an extensive review she led—narrowing options and consulting external reviewers, including a sister who teaches in Germany. She said Portfolio Deutsch is published by a reputable German publisher and embeds grammar in meaningful, project-based contexts such as creating a weather forecast or planning a trip to Germany. "It is designed to involve students in their own learning," she told the board, emphasizing scaffolded differentiation and classroom activities that promote relevance.

Seely noted a limitation: Portfolio Deutsch’s technology component is subscription-based and does not integrate with Canvas or the district’s MyStar system; she said she would not purchase the subscription because her instruction relies heavily on personal interaction, Google tools and teacher-developed resources. She proposed 40 classroom copies for German 1 (which she said typically has larger enrollment) and about 20 copies for German 2, and anticipated multi-year classroom-only use to preserve the books.

Board members asked about how many years the series would cover and Seely said the Level 1 text would serve German 1 and 2 while the Level 2 text covers German 3 and could support a future German 4 class. No formal vote on textbook purchase was taken at the meeting; Seely thanked trustees for their time and offered to answer follow-up questions.

Next steps noted in the discussion included board review of the recommendation and clarification of any procurement details if the board advances the item.