Examines the background factors that may be related to the French proficiency development of candidates applying for the foreign and second language teaching option at the University of Ottawa. Candidates have to pass tests of oral and written French, and this study sought to determine what makes a candidate successful on the test. (Author/VWL)

Investigated the relationship among identity, affective variables, and achievement in English as a foreign language (EFL). Participants were 135 native Hebrew speakers and 53 native Russian speakers studying advanced EFL at an Israeli university. Results showed that ethnolinguistic identity was a greater predictor of achievement than any of the…

Provides the results of a survey of Irish language instructors at tertiary level institutions in the United States. Identifies the Irish textbooks in use, assesses students' needs and goals, and refers to research articles involving syllabus design. Data from the survey provides rich data that will serve to inform future textbook designers.…

Examines language in the workplace, specifically the construction industry in Hong Kong. Provides detailed information on language use in a professional context at the time of Hong Kong's return to China and shows that written communication is mainly in English, while spoken language is predominately Cantonese. (Author/VWL)

Investigates the role of the three major languages in Hong Kong by looking in depth at one secondary school where Putonghua has official status rather than English or Cantonese. Motivation for code choice is investigated through interviews and questionnaires. While Putongua has a special role in the school, the use of Cantonese was found to…

Investigates expressions of gratitude in Japanese and American English, focusing on the sociocultural factors influencing the deeper level of these expressions. Data are collected through the written answers to the discourse completion test, which has ten different situations designed to elicit a variety of expressions of gratitude from the…

Investigates writing skills in English (the second language) and Arabic (the native language) to see whether there is an association between poor writing across languages. Data were collected from 150 students who wrote on the same topic in English and Arabic. Confirms that poor writing in English correlates with similar deficiencies in Arabic.…

Examines the importance of English language teachers' knowledge about language, and their insights into the relationship between such knowledge and their classroom practice. With reference to grammar, data is presented from classroom observations and interviews with teachers. (Author/VWL)

This article provides one English language teacher's reflections on how to bring her teaching closer to her beliefs about old writing pedagogy within the present institutional framework. Different aspects of writing, such as audience, purpose, time pressure, and feedback are inspected, and their implications for the classroom are explored.…

Data are presented on the development of tests of reading skill for primary school pupils in rural Tanzania. Instruction in these schools is in Kiswahili, a regularly spelled language. Three graded tests were developed to test children who had only some letter knowledge, could read single words, or were proficient readers. The tests correlated…

Discusses opportunities for English-as-a-Second/Foreign-language professionals in corporate universities. Discusses how a corporate training program differs from other programs, the different teaching issues in this new environment, the focus on oral English, and the importance of achieving high linguistic levels in one or two class meetings a…

Highlights the learner test-writing process, in which pupils write their own tests. The process consists of a number of steps, including reviewing the material learned, writing the questions, taking the test, and going over the graded test. (Author/VWL)

Discusses alternative assessment in light of the New English Curriculum, considers why teachers and students in Israel may be reluctant to use alternative assessment, and provides a summary of different types of alternative assessment used at an Israeli high school. (Author/VWL)

Examines the uses of CMC in English-as-a-Second-Language teacher education through examples of Web-based bulletin board discussion. Qualitative and quantitative analysis revealed differences in the structure of participation from the perspective of initiation, response, and evaluation moves as well as different levels of participation by the…

Examines issues related to time, timing, and timetabling to discuss how the timetable can be constructed to support the development of English language proficiency in a 3-year plan leading to university entrance for academically competent English-as-a-Second-Language learners, using a semester system. (Author/VWL)