Reports the results of a survey of high school and college foreign language teachers participating in 24 collaboratives around the country. Information about the effects of the alliances on the teachers' attitudes and instructional effectiveness are reported, and an update about current programs in academic alliances in foreign languages is…

The negotiation and legitimation of academic values are explored through a discussion of a university foreign language department's definition of foreign language requirements, curricular and instructional needs and methods, and staff requirements. The instructional staff's lack of power in defining the program limited their ambition and…

Describes instructional stages in a first-year Russian undergraduate course, at Nottingham University (England), that make use of video. Video enables students to explore areas often neglected in traditional language courses, contributes to cultural awareness and language skills, and helps learners assimilate into the target culture more easily.…

Describes the use of computer labs in a Texas high school. Highlights include word processing; a study skills course; software programs currently in use by English and English-as-a-Second-Language classes; physical layout, including security considerations and furniture; hardware, including printers; and guidelines for the selection of software.…

Describes study of college freshmen in Taiwan that was designed to investigate whether the use of television in the language laboratory would affect attendance, scores, and student attitudes toward the second language class, the instructor, and the teaching materials. Positive effects of TV on the attendance, scores, and attitudes of students in…

A review of statistics regarding minority representation in higher education (particularly in the foreign language fields) showed little increase in the percentage of minority faculty members or bachelor and doctoral degree recipients since the 1970s. Strategies for increasing minority representation involve mentoring, junior college transfer…

Defines and introduces four language planning terms (status planning, corpus planning, policy planning, and language cultivation) into the English for Specific Purposes (ESP) literature. The utility of these terms as descriptors for the language teaching problem-solving process is exemplified with reference to two language problems encountered by…

Discusses the choices made in a large-scale textbook project concerning the cultural content of a new English course for Moroccan secondary schools, and recommends an idealized procedure for deciding on the cultural content of such courses. (Author/CB)

Explores the development and application of syllabus and textbook design principles in the creation and use of an English-as-a-Second Language textbook that completely replaced the use of a structurally based course in Sri Lankan schools. Course components, the structural and functional syllabus, testing problems, and materials team training are…

Recent research on effective teaching and the literature on the motivation of learning provide the second-language teacher with specific strategies to help reduce negative student attitudes toward the language course. These strategies are presented and discussed. (42 references) (Author/MSE)

Discusses why and how American Sign Language should be used to teach English literacy skills. It is argued that previous studies have not systematically investigated the effects of American Sign Language on the development of English. (22 references) (CB) (Adjunct ERIC Clearinghouse on Literacy Education)

The following are the basic theories concerning the teaching of English to African-American students: (1) the laissez-faire approach (noninterference with the language of the student); (2) the bidialectical approach (teaching English as if it were a foreign language); and (3) the eradicationalist approach (teaching standard English, emphasizing…

Describes how to incorporate English as a second language (ESL) reading and listening comprehension strategies into an intensive ESL program using authentic materials about Canada. Instructional material selection and task design strategies for pairs and groups are illustrated through examples of methods using geography, map skills, and cultural…

The goals of an intensive summer pilot project at Stanford University included (1) enabling beginning learners of Spanish to achieve one-year equivalent Spanish proficiency; (2) allowing teacher trainees to observe, critique, and practice foreign language lessons before embarking on their practicum; and (3) helping language-minority students to…

Discusses issues concerning foreign language teaching (FLT) policy in the European Community with special focus on The Netherlands, under the headings: (1) needs; (2) provision; (3) objectives; (4) methodology; and (5) the role of adult education and commercial interests. (LMO)