The manual includes teacher instructions and learning activities for a transitional, bilingual program of English as a Second Language (ESL). The program, which is aimed at elementary to college-age Spanish-speaking students from Mexico, Central America, and South America, uses soccer as a motivating cultural force. The ESL program is designed to…

The study examined antecedents to high educational achievement of 42 selected Mexican Americans (university professors, third-year law students, and third- and fourth-year medical students) in 5 southwestern universities (4 in California and 1 in New Mexico). Two related considerations prompted the investigation: failure of many Mexican Americans…

This paper reports on the process of modifying the ModelCreator item generation system to produce output in multiple languages. In particular, Japanese and Spanish are now supported in addition to English. The addition of multilingual functionality was considerably facilitated by the general formulation of our natural language generation system,…

Based on the experiences of a literacy center in Texas, this handbook is intended to assist adult educators in developing a similar program in their community. The purpose of the literacy referral system is to provide educationally and economically disadvantaged adults with an individualized educational and employment plan based on an assessment…

A study investigated the writing strategies used by bilingual and monolingual students. Specifically, the study looked at field dependence vs. independence, possible differences in strategies employed by the two groups when using a word processor, the effects of strategy on the types of revisions made, and the types of revisions and cognitive…

This guide for volunteer teachers of English as a Second Language to Spanish speakers in a home-based program outlines a suggested format for class time and activities. The guide describes how teachers can organize their class periods to promote learner-centeredness and participation in the English learning process. The structure, designed to help…

Five articles from this newsletter of the Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA) describe IDRA programs that are part of the organization's family literacy efforts. "The Family English Literacy Project: Promoting Adult Literacy in San Antonio" outlines a program to provide English language literacy for 125 parents of…

This teacher training guide includes three major units that deal with the teaching of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in Spanish in the bilingual classroom. Each packet includes objectives, materials, and activities that help develop and promote students' receptive and productive skills. Other major topics covered include: the…

Spanish translations of 19 of the Minneapolis (Minnesota) Public Schools' elementary school science units are presented. The materials were translated for use in a partial immersion program. Unit topics include, among others: magnets, organisms (grade 1), seeds and plants (grade 1), butterflies (grade 2), electricity (grade 3), the food chain…

The process of adapting the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) for Puerto Rico was begun with the following objectives: (1) to review the existing Spanish translation of the WISC-R; (2) to adapt the WISC-R to Puerto Rican culture and milieu; and (3) to standardize the scale with a representative sample of Puerto Rican…

Properties of maintenance and loss of Spanish/English bilingualism were investigated in 308 high school students of Mexican background. Key variables investigated included: (1) actual and self-reported proficiencies in Spanish and English; (2) self-reported language choice behavior in various settings; and (3) language attitude. The biggest…

The discourse of Mexican-American preschoolers during sociodramatic play was investigated to learn what the children knew about the social world and how this knowledge was organized in their speech. The theoretical framework for the study was derived from two sources: the psychological construct of the script and the sociolinguistic view of play…

The Iowa guide to foreign language curriculum development, the result of a 1985 state mandate, is designed to help local teachers and administrators build on and improve current curriculum and instructional methods. An opening section outlines the rationale, philosophy, and goals of the guide, and subsequent sections focus on curriculum design and…

A study of repair in conversations between students of English as a second language (ESL) focused on: (1) strategies of negotiation for meaning used by students with a common language background (Spanish) when speaking English; and (2) the dynamics of repair during pair work, a frequently used technique for eliciting conversation. Verbal…

A study of the process of bilingualization of second-generation immigrants to Catalonia, a region of Spain, is described and summarized. The study looks at the interrelationships between (1) linguistic context, all sources of messages in natural speech; (2) linguistic behavior, the real communicative use the individual makes of his expressive…