This study investigated the effect of a bilingual education program on the achievement gap in language development between at-risk kindergarten students with minimal English proficiency and students who were proficient English speakers. Limited English Proficient (LEP) students were included in an Extended Foreign Language (EFL) program designed…

These Proceedings document an educational research forum held at Wake Forest University (Winston-Salem, North Carolina) on December 8, 2004. Table of contents and 26 research studies of high school teaching are included. Studies include: The Use of Authentic Materials in the K-12 French Program (Katherine Elizabeth Baird), Surveying Students: What…

This culturally appropriate booklet, written in English and Hmong, Laotian, Vietnamese, Nuer, Arabic, Somali, Bosnian, Russian, and Spanish, describes what to expect from birth to 5 years of age. The booklet explains that different cultures have different child rearing practices that influence the course of the child's development, and there are…

Project-based learning can be used when creating simulated authentic cultural experiences via virtual trips on the World Wide Web. Project-based learning is a comprehensive, constructivist-based approach that engages students in the investigation of authentic problems. This paper focuses on the theoretical basis for project-based learning and…

This digest reports on a study that examined the impact of participation in a two-way immersion program on the language and achievement outcomes of former program participants and on their current schooling path and college plans. The study explored outcomes for three groups of students: (1) Hispanic students who began the two-way program as…

The interest in the effects of computer-mediated communication on language learning has increased in recent years. It is asserted by proponents that use of e-mail in second language learning promotes more effective discourse management, the use of more foreign language functions, and greater levels of student participation. E-mail puts learners in…

This paper argues in favor of dual language programs over typical bilingual education programs because in the dual language program the minority language has a status equal to the majority language. Through the use of the language experience approach, this study examines the role of elicited response from a small sample of English and Spanish…

This brochure, written in Spanish, for Spanish-speaking parents of gifted adolescents discusses strategies to use to support the interests of their children and how to recognize and extend their children's talents. Parents are urged to: (1) increase their knowledge about the child's areas of interest; (2) discuss the child's present and future…

These eight papers address the five goals of the national standards for foreign language learning: communication, cultures, connections, comparisons, and communities. They include the following: (1) "From Rhetoric to Reality: Applying AATSP Standards to the Spanish Classroom" (Maria J. Amores and Frank W. Medley, Jr.); (2) "Standards for Teaching…

"Dimension" is the annual volume containing the selected, refereed, edited proceedings of each year's conference. By selecting "Models for Excellence in Second Language Education" as the 2003 conference theme, the Board of Directors of the Southern Conference on Language Teaching (SCOLT) demonstrated an eagerness to invite presentations…

A study examined whether written language in general and dialog journal writing in particular is the preferred vehicle for syntactic acquisition of some adult learners. Subjects were five adult English-as-second-language (ESL) students, all literate in their first language, which was Spanish. Subjects were observed over a period of 16 weeks.…

Designed for individuals with disabilities and their families, this handbook (in both English and Spanish versions) provides information about vocational opportunities in Idaho and how they may be accessed by young adults with disabilities. Topics addressed include: (1) work related and individual and family supports; (2) types of adult service…

A practicum project implemented a developmentally appropriate intervention to increase school success for at-risk children in kindergarten through grade 3. Two corollary aims of the project were to determine the causes of at-risk status before retention or school failure occurs, and to involve parents in their children's educational process. An…

This report, printed in English and Spanish versions, is the first Nebraska State Report Card. It provides a snapshot of Nebraska schools using statewide averages. Nebraska students scored better than students nationwide in reading, with 60% of Nebraska students in grades 3-4, 7-8, and 10-12 scoring above the median on a standardized reading test.…

This paper compares bilingual education policy and practice in Panama and the United States. Particular issues studied include the following: the social context of bilingual education in the two countries; programming and policy differences; teacher qualifications; availability of age-appropriate materials; and administrative support, level of…