This study investigated the effectiveness of providing content-based English language instruction to Japanese nursing students in their second and final year of professional training. Participants were taking a full-year elective class in oral English. The control group included students from the same nursing cohort who did not attend the oral…

This paper demonstrates how Taiwanese English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) college teachers and students collaborate and negotiate to design various learner-centered activities based on the Chinese film, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." These activities are intended to enhance students' listening and speaking abilities. The paper…

This workbook for elementary school teachers is designed to help make their first few weeks of school successful. It provides lesson plans, classroom management strategies, student assessments, and special aids for teaching bilingual students. After an "Introduction" that discusses the ups and downs of a first-year teacher, there are nine…

Part 1 of this document describes the background, format, and early groundwork that went into the development of a test sponsored entirely by private enterprise. The discipline imposed by a financial bottom line imposes special pressures but also offers new opportunities. This private enterprise model is a multi-constructional process where…

The report, entirely in French, describes Alberta's curriculum for seventh-year French native language instruction, as revised in 1998. An introductory section offers background information on the curriculum's design, links between the core curriculum and French native language instruction, underlying principles of language instruction, the…

Developed as a vehicle of communication for the Reading Recovery Council of North America, this journal represents an international effort to connect researchers, teachers, and all those interested in early literacy. Articles in the first issue of this second volume are: "Oral Language: Assessment and Development in Reading Recovery in the…

Investigates, within the context of the question-answer framework of a foreign language oral proficiency test, the interactive nature of spoken discourse between Canadian students and assessors when there is trouble in talk as perceived by the assessors, with a focus on how they accommodate to the students. The study has implications for rater…

Reports on a study investigating how Americans respond to English as a Second Language (ESL) speech depending on the non-native speaker's accent and whether there were errors in the ESL speech. Findings indicate that Americans exhibit different cultural prejudices towards different foreign speakers depending on the accent of the speakers. (50…

Describes experiences with developing language and listening skills through storytelling in two multigraded elementary classrooms. Discusses how to: launch the program through literature and storytellers; implement the program, including storytelling ideas; maintain a supportive environment; assess children using anecdotal observation sheets; and…

Discusses mixed ability teaching within the British comprehensive foreign language educational system. Findings reveal that the British system will not soon return to selective modern language teaching (MLT) focusing on grammar and translation, and it is concluded that differentiation is the key to successful MLT for the next century. (CK)

The article presents a framework for understanding the pragmatic, semantic, syntactic, text, and phonological aspects of language that underlie both oral and written communication. It gives suggestions for ways speech-language pathologists can assess children's language skills that are essential for success in a whole language program. (Author/JDD)

Reports on studies focusing on individual attrition of English as a Second Language in an environment where Hebrew is the dominant language. Age, sociolinguistic features, input variables, and linguistic variables are discussed as well as major trends of change in language use that identify a limited reversal of the acquisition process. 29…

Presents the results of a study of the reliability of teacher assessment of the oral examination at General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) for Modern Languages. Teachers' opinions of different types of marking criteria were collected through semistructured interviews after each teacher had assessed a tape-recorded free conversation task…

Studies social interaction between native speakers and second-language learners by examining the native speakers' role ininteraction using data collected with microethnographic methods. Findings indicate that native speakers should be trained to interact with second-language learners and language interaction should be a goal of the class as a…

Compared the use of conditional logic in adult-adult and adult-child conversation. Results indicated that conversation patterns and inferences were similar except that children made fewer independent inferences and shifts in taxonomic level and responded more frequently to socially controlling statements than did adults. (AA)