The centrality of culture and language learning in foreign language instruction is highlighted in the "Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century" (National Standards, 2006) and the MLA report, "Foreign Languages and Higher Education: New Structures for a Changed World" (MLA Ad Hoc Committee on Foreign Languages, 2007).…

Reviews recent research which suggests that promoting listening comprehension skills before focusing on oral skills results in increased language acquisition and suggest ways in which to structure classroom activities so that young students first understand before they speak. Focuses on global listening skills, following directions, introducing…

Investigates the effects of pictorial and textual glosses and a combination thereof on incidental vocabulary growth of foreign language learners. Subjects from second-semester German classes read a narrative text passage under one of three marginal gloss conditions: textual gloss (English translation); pictorial gloss; and text and pictures in the…

Visuals depicting places and high frequency nouns (car, tree, bike, bus, etc.) which students learn in the first semester of studying French are described. These will facilitate instructional presentations and, by reinforcing grammatical concepts, assist language acquisition. (PMJ)

A classroom experiment involving 79 first-semester Spanish students measured the relationship between foreign language vocabulary visual aids, vocabulary achievement scores, and student modality strengths. Results suggest a need for further research for devising the best combination of visual aids, particularly for predominantly visual or auditory…

This study is an examination of the use of captioned video with beginning students of Spanish. Two groups of students watched a Spanish-language video with or without Spanish captioning and the groups' comprehension scores were compared. Students in the captioning group described how they used the pictures, sound, and captioning to understand the…

Describes how foreign stamps can be collected, catalogued, photographed, and arranged in thematic areas in order to be incorporated into a language curriculum or culture cluster. (Author/AM)

Reports on an experiment, conducted on 664 beginning French students at a university, designed to measure the advantages of illustrations in the development of reading comprehension skills. (Author/AM)

Describes a prototype electronic device that may be used in the classroom or in the laboratory to display pedagogical models and student articulations of target language sounds simultaneously. (Author/AM)

Driver instruction through the medium of a foreign language is useful in teaching vocabulary, grammar, and culture. The maps, driving manuals, and cars stimulate discussion and communication. Course techniques can include Asher's concept of Total Physical Response wherein students act in response to commands in the foreign language. (PMJ)

Bulletin boards in language classrooms can be highly motivating learning activities. Examples are given here of several activities used successfully at beginning and intermediate levels of Spanish in secondary schools. (CHK)

The Guichard technique is a response to the need for lively, sustained conversation in the language class. Referring to simple blackboard drawings by the non-artist teacher, students create people and situations involving an imaginary French family. (Author/SW)

Describes a slide presentation program for French students at the elementary and intermediate levels, and offers technical and pedagogical advice on using the slide show to assist in the teaching of linguistic and cultural information. (AM)

Presents the sources and solutions of listening-comprehension anxiety as reported by foreign-language students and discusses the pedagogical implications that relate to the results. (Author/VWL)

Describes how instruction and exposure contributed to the development of oral proficiency in English as a Second Language in mutually exclusive learning situations in Nepal. This study finds that both instruction and exposure contribute to second-language acquisition, the former promoting accuracy, the latter promoting fluency. (Author/VWL)