Working as a school psychologist in Mexico is possible, even with no previous experience speaking Spanish. After graduate school, the author knew there would be no better time to go. He deferred his student loan repayments, enrolled in Spanish classes at a public Mexican university, and later got a job as a school psychologist in a private,…

Three years ago, the author was a newly minted library media specialist, a bit green, but excited, enthusiastic, and ready to educate her middle school students. Once she learned that four out of the twenty-five sixth grade classes she was required to teach were bilingual "Dual Language Classes," the author was determined to use her background in…

Describes mnemonic devices which can be taught to second-language students to improve their learning including mnemonic reduction, visual word pictures, elaboration, and the keyword method. (BK)

Examines form and gender correspondence rules for Spanish and attempts to evaluate them for potential utility to the foreign language user on the basis of formal and psychological criteria relating to how rules might affect performance, with specific reference to the role of rules as defined in monitor model. (Author/BK)

Discusses a general strategy for helping students acquire vocabulary, specifically how to master the vocabulary problem of "ser" and "estar." This is done by showing students, in interesting and recognizable ways, that English is sensitive to many of the same semantic differences of "ser" and "estar." (SED)

This final report describes a project in which videotapes of secondary school students performing linguistic and communicative tasks at various levels of French and Spanish instruction were produced. The videotapes are intended to illustrate levels of foreign language acquisition to language teachers. High achieving students were filmed after 2,…

Analyzes the omission, overgeneralization, and misuse errors in the compositions of first- through third-year university Spanish students, with major emphasis placed on the role errors play in the acquisition of Spanish as a second language. (EKN)

Suggestions are offered for involving advanced Spanish-language students more directly in watching and making later use of videotapes. Steps include preparing students to watch the videos, writing a survey on the video topic, and creating a computerized class newsletter. (LB)

This is a set of generic proficiency goals in reading, writing, speaking, listening, and culture developed for all languages and for French, German, and Spanish specifically. Both the common and specific goals are being field tested to determine their utility for college and university language instructors. In addition, a questionnaire has been…

Discusses techniques for teaching descriptive adjectives in second-language classrooms that rely on humor to help relieve the stress of learning situations. Specific examples of Spanish adjectives and humorous phrases are provided. (contains two references) (MDM)

Describes characteristics of learning disabled (LD) college students, noting pedagogical assumptions of foreign language (FL) faculty that make it difficult for such students to complete FL requirements. The paper lists strategies that address the needs of LD students in FL, proposing a systems approach to instructional design that could help in…

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…

Describes Project Orillas, a telecommunications network designed to improve the writing skills of bilingual and foreign language students studying English and Spanish in Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the United States. The electronic bulletin board system used for communication is explained and guidelines for joining the network are included. (LRW)

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…

The Orton-Gillingham method, a multisensory structured language approach which adheres to the direct and explicit teaching of phonology, is presented as an alternative instructional strategy for dyslexic/learning-disabled or other "at risk" students learning a second language. A method for adapting this approach to teaching Spanish is…