Describes a study in which measures of musical ability (pitch, loudness, and rhythm), auditory discrimination, and memory were used to account for variance in attained English as a second language (ESL) oral proficiency. Proposes research programs to determine whether training in musical abilities might be useful to ESL instruction. (SED)

Recommends that foreign language courses in college be restructured to provide separate tracks for students pursuing language study for different purposes. The tracks are: (1) for language majors, (2) for students preparing for international professions, and (3) for students who need to fulfill foreign language requirements. (SED)

This study evaluates the quality of the teaching in an English immersion program on a South Pacific island. Naturalistic versus rationalistic language acquisition is discussed. The language proficiency of nonnative English speaking teachers is tested and related to the children's language proficiency. (MT)

Examines the syntactic complexity and grammatical transformations used by students of English as a foreign language. Suggests that they use and expand syntactic structures in a manner similar to native speakers. (EL)

Recent research on native speakers' reactions to nonnative speech that views listeners, speakers, and language from a variety of perspectives using both objective and subjective research paradigms is reviewed. Studies of error gravity, relative intelligibility of language samples, the role of accent, speakers' characteristics, and context in which…

Discusses methodological implications of a proficiency orientation focused on speaking, placing proficiency in the context of grammar, communicative competence, and functions/notions. Discusses repercussions in foreign language teaching of the varying emphases on these contexts. Asserts that a proficiency orientation allows tailoring of teaching…

This article provides a rationale for and gives a detailed description of the use of student-improvised dialogues in ESL classrooms. The focus is on techniques suitable to small classes of students with advanced English proficiency. (CHK)

This book offers a much needed alternative to the more traditional texts used to teach writing instruction. Grounded in history, the book clarifies changing theoretical and practical approaches to teaching writing, critically assessing each approach in relation to the social and political movements of the day, both within and beyond the…

This book examines how the underlying linguistic competence of second language (L2) learners is constrained by the same universal principals governing natural language. It is assumed that there is an innately given universal grammar (UG) which constrains L1 grammars, limiting the kinds of hypotheses that L1 acquirers entertain about the nature of…

Modeled after the pioneering French immersion programs developed in Canada in the 1960s, foreign language immersion programs in the United States are designed to enrich the education of native-English-speaking students by teaching them all of their academic subjects in a second language. The goal is for students to become proficient in the second…

This report examines the use of foreign language skills within the Army, Department of State, Department of Commerce's Foreign Commercial Service, and Federal Bureau of Investigation, discussing the nature and impact of foreign language shortages, strategies for addressing these shortages, and efforts to address current and projected shortages.…

This study of immigrant language skills used data from the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Australia, which followed a cohort of settler arrivals for the first 3.5 years of their residence in Australia, surveying them at three points in time. The survey examined determinants of improvement in English language skills with time among immigrants…

Although calls for educational reform have been raised in many nations, just how accountable are schools, teachers, or students themselves in Japan for their own language teaching or learning? While the use of course evaluations has come into vogue, many colleges do not assess English majors' linguistic ability in a professional manner, for…

Research reports major concerns over classification and measurement for students with limited English proficiency (LEP). Poor operational definition of the English language proficiency construct and validity concerns on the existing language proficiency tests are among these issues. Decisions on including LEP students in large-scale assessments…

Validity and reliability issues in standardized testing of students of limited English proficiency (LEP) were studied. Existing data from four different school sites were obtained for LEP and non-LEP students for three different standardized tests, the Stanford Achievement Tests (Ninth edition), the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, and the Language…