This study investigated whether a self-efficacy course would raise English-as-a-Second-Language learners' English ability by raising their self-efficacy. It also examined the reliability and validity of a self-efficacy questionnaire and English test. Participants were 293 Japanese college freshmen. Researchers developed two versions of an English…

This report provides annual information for the 2000-2001 school year on grade-level retention in the Texas public school system, based on the Public Education Information Management System. Data on retention are provided by grade, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, gender, participation in special education, degree of English proficiency, and…

This paper uses a language classroom role-playing scene from a Woody Allen movie to examine the language student who has traditionally been asked to emulate and copy the native speaker and to discuss roles that teachers ask students to play. It also presents the changing paradigm of the native speaker and his or her role inside and outside the…

Two studies assessed the impact of short-term memory on English as a Second Language learning. The first involved 20 graduate students at a Taiwanese university, who were randomly divided into treatment and control groups. It investigated differences in the performance of phrase recollection when the information was chunked versus unchunked.…

Interest in and support for language study has been strengthened in the United States in recent years by the growing recognition that proficiency in more than one language benefits both individual learners and society. For the individual language learner, research has found a positive link between second language proficiency and cognitive and…

This document provides environmental educators with background information on English language development theory and practices. Information was derived from a series of workshops that focused on the objectives of increasing facilitators' familiarity with the theory and practices of English Language Development (ELD) and demonstrating how the…

This digest describes the implementation of a successful district-wide elementary school foreign language (FLES) program that resulted from the superintendent's vision to have all students in the district study a common foreign language throughout their schooling. This vision was based on the superintendent's belief that American secondary school…

This statement examines the nature and impact of foreign language proficiency and personnel shortages in the Army, State Department, Central Intelligence Agency, and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), discussing strategies used to address these shortages and efforts made to address current and projected shortages. All four agencies reported…

The new emphasis on communication of ideas and problem solving in mathematics teaching places an additional burden on limited English proficient (LEP) students with relatively poor language skills and their teachers. This research addresses the question of how students' language proficiency affects teachers' assessment of students' mathematical…

The process and results of a project to develop a Turkish language proficiency test are described. The project was undertaken by the American Association of Teachers of Turkic Languages, and involved development of two sample tests for intermediate and advanced levels in four skill areas (speaking, listening, reading, writing) using…

The variety of theories relating to teaching ESL learners leads to contradictory ideas about teaching a second language. This paper focuses on the continuing importance of grammar in teaching and the current resurgence in interest in returning to grammar as an important component in the classroom.

Reviews the difficulties teachers face in evaluating the competence of their students in using English, and suggests recognition of the influences that may inhibit language performance in the classroom when the speaker comes from a minority sub-culture. (Author/JM)

Investigates a reversed cloze procedure in which high information words are deleted from a passage. Concludes that this procedure is both reliable and unique. (VJ)

Special issue devoted to foreign language instruction in adult education. (WB)

Highlights the complex relationship between earnings, nativity, and national origin among Hispanic men. States that human capital characteristics, notably education, work experience, and English language proficiency, significantly influence annual log earnings for all groups, but the patterns of effects depend on nativity and national origin.…