Deconstruction for reconstruction is a classroom teaching technique designed to help students improve writing skills. The objective is to write natural expanded sentences that fit in a cohesive paragraph. The technique evolved from observation of many intermediate and upper-intermediate students of English as a Second Language for whom writing…

One of the major accomplishments of the New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) sponsored by the Council of Chief State School Officers has been the development of a set of standards describing what beginning teachers should know, be like, and be able to do. These standards have been translated into content-specific standards for…

This study investigated the attitudes of American students learning Irish as a second language about error correction. Subjects were 45 former students in summer programs in an Irish university, who were asked how they preferred to have their papers corrected by Irish language teachers. Most (64 percent) preferred full editing on essays, finding…

Use of games in the second language classroom to assess class participation and development of oral skills is discussed. Difficulties in assessing oral second language skills are outlined, and a central issue is identified: the discrepancy between a syllabus in which class participation is required and students unwilling to participate due to lack…

The guide is designed to assist second language teachers in developing and conducting reliable and valid assessments in their classrooms. A wide range of formal and informal evaluation techniques is discussed, including a number of alternative approaches. An introductory chapter gives an overview of the uses and aims of evaluation and previews the…

This paper proposes an integrative approach for teaching English as a second language to students in Hong Kong to develop their listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in English to meet the challenge of an English curriculum. The integrative approach provides an authentic language environment for learners to develop language skills in a…

This guide lists electronic discussion lists, bulletin boards, and conferences related to second language teaching and learning that may be of use in the second language classroom. It also offers suggestions for the use of these resources in teaching. The guide has three main sections. The first, devoted to electronic communication in a single…

The teaching of English present perfect tense to Japanese learners of English as a second language at the high school level is discussed, focusing on how this is currently done and how it could be done better. It is suggested that the greatest problem encountered by Japanese learners of English is aspect, and that students must dissect their own…

It is argued that a functional-notional syllabus is practical and useful for second language instruction at the college level. It constitutes a natural progression from secondary school curricula that emphasize communication in that it uses the same basic organization and similar categories. However, it differs from them in that it pays particular…

A study was undertaken to determine the effectiveness of a spelling instruction method using a computer spell-checking program. The proposed teaching methodology is supported by theoretical hypotheses drawn from the field of cognitive psychology associated with the learning of spelling and pedagogical principles associated with the teaching of…

The New England Multifunctional Resource Center (MRC) for Language and Culture in Education is funded by OBEMLA, Brown University School of Education, and the Education Alliance for Equity in the Nation's Schools. The MRC's service area encompasses Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. The MRC collects and…

Because of the concern about declining German second language enrollments in the United States, there is a need for enhanced cultural education in the second language curriculum. Current global circumstances, including an increasingly multicultural society and widespread need for intercultural communicative competence, not just grammatical…

Lack of success of some adult learners of English as a Second Language may be due to learning disabilities (LD). Review of research reveals that LD can affect every aspect of learning, impairing single or multiple skills and sometimes appearing in the second language when not in the first. Identification of adult ESL learners as having LD can be…

It is proposed that because (1) adult learners of English as a Second Language face great challenges in communicating with native English speakers; and (2) native English-speakers can learn strategies to compensate for some of these difficulties, there is a need for instruction in these strategies and skills for Americans in international…

This paper discusses the use of video cameras as a teaching tool in English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) classrooms, with emphasis on their use in EFL college courses in East Asian countries. The paper reviews the availability and use of video cameras, especially for instructors who may be unfamiliar with their operation. Language teachers can use…