This publication is a compilation of the papers presented at the 1974 Washington Language Testing Sumposium. The volume also includes much of the discussion that followed each paper. The participants were an international group of language testing specialists from academic institutions, research centers, and government agencies. The primary focus…

This document reports the rationale, design, and execution of a longitudinal investigation of the intellectual achievement effects of a cognitively oriented preschool for disadvantaged Mexican-American children in San Jose, California. Seven groups of children ages 3-5 were studied. Two groups were exposed to two ten-week successive summer…

A study of two public school kindergarten classes in New York City, heterogeneously grouped according to ethnic origin and social background, revealed that the maturity and fluency of the children's language varied according to the type of classroom activity in which they were engaged. From observational recordings of teacher-class interaction, it…

The program discussed in this report is designed for teaching English as a second language to disadvantaged adults among the Indian and Metis population in the northern prairie lands of Canada. It is especially intended for adults who are not literate in their own language and realizes that the students must speak English before they can learn to…

This document presents a comparative study of two approaches to English as a second language and cultural education for immigrant children recently arrived in Canada. Both approaches have the same basic philosophy that the child should learn language and culture together, at his own pace, stimulated by his curiosity and his growing awareness of…

Bilingual education programs which foster literacy first in the mother tongue and then in the second language, before the second language is used as a medium of instruction, are proving to be successful in a number of locations around the world. Several social, psychological, and pedagogical advantages result from this bilingual education…

An adult immersion program in the Mohawk language took place in an Iroquois community in southern Ontario. The class was limited to 12 students who had taken a readiness course that introduced them to basic grammar and vocabulary. The class met daily in the relaxed setting of a house. The preparation and sharing of meals, the presence of fluent…

Argues that there is no pressure to make Irish an official language in Northern Ireland because the sociolinguistic preconditions for bilingualism do not exist. The article demonstrates that those Irish who do not speak or learn Irish have no less a sense of having an Irish identity than do fluent speakers or those learning Irish. (26 references)…

This article discusses the expression of gratitude in spoken English by Japanese and American college students in the United States. Five hypotheses were tested: (1) Advanced non-native speakers would find expressing gratitude difficult in the target language; (2) A verbal expression of regret would occur whenever the Japanese speaker believes he…

A collection of essays addresses the connection between the study of communication and its sociocultural contexts and the approach to second language teaching based on the concept of communicative competence. Essays include: "From Communicative Competence to Communicative Language Pedagogy" (Michael Canale); "The Domain of Pragmatics" (Bruce…

Research findings regarding speech errors made by second language learners and affective reactions to native speakers as a basis for error correction are considered. A research design is presented for investigating sensitivities to 15 types of grammatical errors typically made in speech by American learners of French. Findings of the research are…

This volume is part of a series, which is in turn part of a course entitled "Contact Canada" and designed for adult Francophone students of English as a second language. The series contains exercises for learning conversational tools. This volume deals with opening formulas, which are grouped under the following categories: (1)…

This volume is part of a series, which is in turn part of a course entitled "Contact Canada" and designed for adult Francophone students of English as a second language. The series contains exercises for learning conversational tools. This volume deals with linking formulas, which are grouped under the following categories: (1)…

The status of foreign language in the elementary school (FLES) is discussed in an attempt to dispell the myth that there are few successful FLES programs in the U.S. Results of an eight-state survey show that 18% of the responding elementary schools report that they do teach foreign language. Descriptions of eighteen innovative programs confirm…

The Council of the European Economic Community (EEC) developed a plan to increase student mobility in higher education across national borders. The plan is characterized by efforts at common policy in such matters as admission, credit transfer and equivalence, a student handbook on opportunities, and a plan for grants for short study visits in…