ESL (English as a Second Language) teachers must keep several things in mind when preparing materials. Linguistics is still a major descipline to turn to for insights. Recent language research too is valuable. Teachers should be aware of the many good materials already in existence which can be adapted. (CFM)

Language syllabus or curriculum designing is examined studying the five basic syllabus types, the decision-making process in design development, and curriculum implementation within the educational system. A contingency syllabus design model is suggested as a suitable answer in harmonizing the many interactive components and adapting to changing…

Describes how plays can be improvised and written by English-as-a-Second-Language students, and how the end-products can be modified in a variety of ways to create new teaching material. (six references) (GLR)

Groups of editors and authors used a variety of technologies to create a cohesive team that produced a textbook series with instructor manuals along with a supporting Web site. Describes the development of the groups for this materials publication project in terms of six areas--situation, leadership, individual versus group goals, norms, roles,…

Trap setting is a concept based on a psycholinguistic explanation of the acquisition of second language skills emphasizing cognitive and creative processes over the auditory, visual, and imitative. It proposes that opportunities for repeated attempts at solving new problems through constant testing and retesting of creative hypotheses bring the…

This study describes and assesses the state of bilingual curriculum development activities in the National Network of Centers for Bilingual Education. Recommendations are made for improvement in the creation, production, and distribution of bilingual instructional materials. The overall approach to the study was tripartite and focused on: (1) the…

ONE OF THE DIFFICULTIES OF PRODUCING ENGLISH SKILLS MATERIALS OR TEACHER-TRAINING MATERIALS FOR SPEAKERS OF OTHER LANGUAGES IS THAT EXTREME VARIATIONS BETWEEN THE STUDENT'S CULTURE AND THE MATERIALS WRITER'S CULTURE CAN CAUSE SERIOUS INTERFERENCE IN COMMUNICATION. A SPEAKER'S VISION IS STRUCTURED BY THE KINDS OF TRAINING, BOTH FORMAL AND INFORMAL…

The author discusses "the parallels between learning English as a foreign language and learning English as a native language and their relevance for the construction of appropriate teaching materials." Four postulates or language universals are presented about the order in which children learn the phonological features of their native language…

This article describes an experiment undertaken to analyze the learning habits of Latin students in Germany, discusses the implications therein for programed instruction, and relates the advantages of such instruction. In the experiment, students were found to confuse similar words which had been presented together in instruction (e.g.…

For bringing students to the point of free discourse, the dialog is especially suitable. The various types of dialog are discussed, and the various steps through which the student must go. Hints are given for producing dialogs useful for teaching FL. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Language and cultural modules are multimedia in nature and non-sequential. Modules should be used in association with the themes and vocabulary found in the main course textbook. Reference is made to the "A-LM German Language Programs" and modules produced by Ontario German teachers in 1976 in West Germany. (SW)

Cautions that the chief value of programmed instruction is in drills and reviews. Then describes the development of a program in the use of the simple present and the present progressive, with special attention to its structure, teaching aids and the functions of sketches and tests. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Recounts how the author planned one computer-based language lesson, which she describes as a "disaster," and how she combined her own analysis with feedback from the students to plan a more successful second lesson. Discusses student failure, purpose and motivation, appropriateness of materials, process-oriented learning, and openness between…

Course books are said to be the core of language teaching and learning processes on which the EFL teachers and English language institutes obviously base their activities. EFL students often consult teachers for a suitable textbook or even a good institute to be recommended to them for self-study or regular classroom attendance. Frankly speaking,…

An attempt to demonstrate the erroneousness of the principle that language teaching materials must be based on a detailed analysis of various parameters of texts of the target language, such as frequency, usefulness, basicness, or productiveness of lexical or structural items. (Author/FWB)