This is an English communication instruction system designed to teach children basic, easy to remember conversation strategies without the use of a textbook or to serve as a supplement learning system to a textbook. This English communication training method provides learners with concrete language patterns, a broad spectrum of vocabulary and…

Asserts that common techniques for the teaching of question formation disregard the speaker's purpose and the situation. Moreover, they are frequently based on transforming written sentences, which does not facilitate oral communication. Suggests criteria for judging question-teaching techniques and provides samples of "good"…

Proposes model of language teaching designed to balance teacher/learner input, whole class teaching vs. small group work, and teaching language as either form or function. Although amount of teacher intervention varies, all classroom activities are communicative, providing a situation where students are involved, contributing and interacting with…

Special emphases in language instruction for career purposes include relevant vocabulary, speaking and listening skills, dialog, pronunciation, and cultural material. Special techniques include role playing, avoiding use of English, and de-emphasis on grammar, reading, and writing. (MSE)

This practical book is designed for the classroom teacher of a second or foreign language at any level. The articles are grouped into two distinct but interdependent sections on general considerations and specific techniques. The contents of the first section are as follows: "Moi Tarzan, Vous Jane?: A Study of Communicative Competence" by P.B.…

Suggests the use of jokes in the English as a second language class to promote oral fluency, awareness of sociolinguistic rules, and understanding of certain values in American culture. (CFM)

This book addresses what kind of analysis of spoken language is appropriate to the assessment and fostering of fluency at the various stages of a student's development. It is easy to define fluency in general terms, but it is difficult to discern what linguistic and paralinguistic options are involved. This book begins by exploring perceptions of…

Criteria for developing an advanced conversation course for second language learners are examined. It is suggested that the teacher needs to approach the development of the course with an awareness that most students enrolled will probably be suffering from an acute lack of self-confidence when conversing in the target language. The proposed…

This guide describes 94 classroom games designed to teach communicative skills in English as a second language, allowing students to use communication strategies in English in realistic situations similar to those in which they would use their native language. An introductory section outlines the rationale for the use of games in communicative…

This issue of "Cross Currents" includes the following articles: "An Experience with CLL" by Earl Stevick; "Accuracy vs. Fluency in the English Language Classroom" by Kenton Sutherland; "Predicate Markers: A New Look at the English Predicate System" by Phillip L. Knowles; "'Let Your TV do the Talking':…

Audio-Lectal Practice (ALP) as a second language teaching methodology is described. In this program, students recite progressively difficult texts in the language laboratory, and compare their recitation with the taped recitation of a native speaker. The method facilitates exposure and rigorous work on the oral discourse features of the target…

Second language learning in small groups with creative student-centered activities is discussed. A rationale for teaching for communication is offered, along with classroom management procedures that encourage communication in the target language and some communication activities that have been successfully implemented in the classroom. Three…

This paper describes the method adopted in a short course to improve group interaction in the foreign language classroom by giving students the opportunity to engage in group interaction and in this way sensitizing them to group dynamics. It provides the outline and rationale of the course, a detailed description of one unit, and evaluation…

The MEXUS program, a transnational, undergraduate, dual-degree program in the United States and Mexico, addresses the problem of how universities can better prepare students to manage business in an interdependent global marketplace. The program was initiated as a consortium of four institutions (San Diego State University and Southwestern College…

This final report describes a project at the University of Connecticut-Storrs, begun in 1993, to create a 5-year interdisciplinary, undergraduate, double-degree program, combining a bachelor of science in engineering with a bachelor of arts in German. The program, called Eurotech, is intended to provide students with practical, integrated foreign…