To promote inter-American understanding, a number of public-school systems, teacher-preparing institutions, State and county education departments, and the U. S. Office of Education recently cooperated in a series of experimental or demonstration centers. This bulletin describes the work carried on by 22 of these centers aided by a grant from the…

National evaluation of Head Start bilingual curriculum development project indicated bilingual children receiving bilingual preschool services made greater preschool gains than comparison group children receiving regular English-language preschool services; English-preferring children placed in bilingual classrooms achieved similar preschool…

A cooperative program of the economics and foreign languages departments offers three undergraduate majors: an economics B.A., with two foreign languages; a B.A. double major of economics and either French or Spanish, complemented by a second language; and a B.S. in business administration, individually designed, with one modern foreign language.…

Reviews three linguistic studies from 1970s in light of approaches used in 1980s: (1) pretest-posttest analysis of spoken Spanish and English of Mexican American bilingual children; (2) assessment of Spanish grammar among Culver City Spanish Immersion pupils, and (3) effect of summer vacation on Spanish language retention among English speakers…

Four primary classrooms, three bilingual and one monolingual, were studied. Final observations showed that "language climate" and the extent to which the two languages developed were influenced by the teacher's style, the organization of the school day, and by the ethnic balance of the class and the neighborhood. (SJL)

Explains how community-based organizations (CBOs) have become increasingly ineffective in fighting unemployment and how the role of such organizations has become that of watchdog for CETA activities since that 1973 legislation. Details the current conflicts between SER, CETA, and local government in Houston, Texas. (SB)

Affirms the advantages to the child of early immersion second language learning programs. The second language proficiency of English-speaking Canadian students who received all instruction in French and English-speaking American children who received all instruction in Spanish surpassed that of students in more traditional language programs. (PMJ)

Describes the author's personal version of the action research cycle, focusing on two research experiences to point out what can be learned from research involving listening to language learners. Suggests that one can learn in two different and equally important ways; one can learn about the research question studied and about how to improve the…

The teaching of Spanish to Hispanic bilingual college students, viewed as a distinct field within language education, is growing. It calls for greater emphasis on planning, coordination, and integration of what has developed into an interdisciplinary research area that touches on both first and second language acquisition paradigms, bilingualism,…

Describes a two-week Mexican immersion program for teachers including language instruction, homestays to enhance language and cultural development and a course focusing on the systematic exploration of how to integrate authentic materials into daily instruction. Results suggest that the program was successful in preparing teachers to meet the…

Examines the research needs relative to the use of foreign languages in tourism activities in Australia and New Zealand. Findings indicate a lack of precise information on the ways in which the tourism industry in these countries provides appropriate language assistance to non-English speaking inbound visitors. Suggestions for future research are…

Investigates the revision strategies of Spanish native-speaker undergraduates writing in two different discourse types and in two time conditions by analyzing postwriting interview protocols. Results suggest that revision strategies may be initiated by past learning experiences and respond to the perceived nature of the task and the current…

Discusses politeness strategies used by native and Dutch speakers of Spanish, contrasting the act of making requests by these two groups of speakers. One of the article's conclusions states that native speakers of Spanish are more direct in their requests, and that nonnative speakers attempt to sound less face-threatening and less offensive. (23…

Discusses the design of oral assessment measures to test the language proficiency of incoming Hispanic students into community colleges. The article emphasizes that focusing on oral skills has helped nontraditional English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students realize that they can master English. (nine references) (Author/CK)

Phenomenological study focused on a Spanish-speaking immigrant mother's interactions with primarily English-speaking educators in schools attended by her son. Interactions around four disciplinary actions reveal language and culture as barriers to the mother acting on her son's behalf. She didn't understand school practices and culture and felt…