This article describes a programme of autonomous language learning (ALMS) introduced at Helsinki University Language Centre in 1994. The programme was developed to encourage students to become actively involved in their own learning in terms of deciding what they need and wish to learn, setting goals and objectives, achieving these objectives, and…

As a form of warning to educators who might mistake novelty for value, a nationally recognized expert compares the present influx of microcomputers into academia, with similar and now historic moves by motion pictures, educational radio and television, language laboratories, and teaching machines. (JN)

In this article, I explore some of the epistemological, technical, and ethical challenges in doing research on instructed second language (L2) learning in Canadian school settings. I examine these challenges from the viewpoint of classroom research that has been influenced by cognitive-interactionist theories of learning. This includes my own…

There is little research to link what happens during writing center (WC) sessions to how student writers revise their subsequent drafts. This gap in the literature is particularly evident concerning second language (L2) writers who come to the WC for assistance. This study is an effort to fill this gap, exploring the connection between WC…

Describes the Audio-Immersion language laboratory project, which made students responsible for their own progress in second-language acquisition and provided only marginal support as students learned to use the listening library consisting of a wide range of materials. (CB)

Illustrates the conditions (facilities, support staff, and faculty training) necessary for developing the technology-based teaching of languages and the sophisticated use of computers and video and audio equipment, including the type of environment which provides access to materials and information and opportunities for testing, publication, and…

Describes language laboratory program designed to help learners to move from comprehension of a spoken text through definite phases to their own utterance. Material used is an off-air recording from French radio. (Author/BK)

Describes the five language programs at a Toronto high school. (RL)

Suggestions are offered for ways to modify a typical community college language laboratory to serve diverse student needs. The discussion is based on experiences of Anchorage Community College, which modeled its lab on a learning resources center rather than a traditional lab. (LB)

Discusses Travessia, a Portuguese language curriculum that emphasizes development of communicative competence by using printed materials, the language lab, and a series of video tapes focused on Brazilian culture. (SR)

A review of stages in the evolution of the language laboratory shows that its function has changed in the past 20 years. Originally it was described as a way of providing a means for abundant practice of audiolingual drills. Currently, it is described as a learning center with multiple resources and functions. It might be characterized as a…

Three communication courses for nonnative English speaking pharmacy students at the University of Maryland, Mercer University, and the University of Southern California are described. (Author/MLW)

Explains the techniques and benefits of using a language laboratory which is arranged so that each of several groups can be programed and monitored individually from the console when teaching languages for specific purposes to groups of mixed-ability adults. (Author/MBR)

Describes problems associated with listening to recorded materials and the benefits of using a speech compressor/expander. The device speeds up or slows down recorded speech without distortions and has been used with success in second language instruction, research, and testing. (JN)

There has been a growing interest in the use of the computer in language learning because of its capacity to offer interactive learning and to handle a much wider range of activities than other educational aids. Although the traditional view of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) implies the substitution of the computer for the teacher and…