Considers several factors that combine to hinder a learner in the task of second language acquisition, including barriers related to culture and society and the classroom environment. Appropriate teaching strategies for Spanish classes and research opportunities are also discussed. (CB)

A study investigating peer learning, second language acquisition, and computer-assisted language learning among first-year students at the University of Calgary suggests that, while the computer appears to have a somewhat limiting effect on student interaction, it does encourage students to talk. (Author/CB)

A "French for Business" course is used to illustrate how emphasis on oral performance (communicative competence), at the expense of objective evaluation and correction, can encourage students to communicate at rudimentary levels, thus undermining more fully developed and complex target language communication. (Author/CB)

A teacher-developed questionnaire responded to by Peruvian secondary school students (N=236) about learning four basic skills in English revealed that 2.1 to 17 percent preferred to be taught only one or two of the skills, while 73.7 percent preferred to be taught all four basic skills. (CB)

Examines style shifting in the use of three past tense morphemes by 17 intermediate learners of English as a second language. Style shifting is explored within a single discourse mode--narrative--according to the amount of time made available. Data were collected under three conditions: (1) planned writing; (2) planned speech; and (3) unplanned…

Keyword mnemonics compares favorably to other devices for learning words in a foreign language. The keyword approach provides both an acoustic link between a native-language word and the second-language word and an image of the keyword interacting with the native-language word or phrase. (LMO)

Investigates the interrelationship of several factors--phonological similarity between L1 and L2, transfer, and markedness as they relate to the acquisition of two English vowel phonemes by native speakers of Brazilian Portuguese. Phonetic and phonological similarity between L1 and L2 appear to be important factors. (LMO)

A longitudinal case study examining the learning of English (focusing on grammatical morphemes) by a Tunisian adolescent speaker of Arabic and French showed that the second language learner relies on his prior linguistic knowledge to facilitate new learning and that second language learning like first language acquisition is a creative process.…

Investigation of the simultaneous effects of and interaction between both culture-specific content schemata and formal schemata on English as a second language reading comprehension revealed that familiar content and rhetorical form yielded good reading comprehension. Results for "mixed" conditions indicated that content schemata affected reading…

Investigation of the extent to which young bilingual children's code differentiation correlated with language mixing revealed that children who avoided using their other language when naming pictures of objects which were not known in one of the languages showed significantly less mixing in their speech than children who freely substituted words…

Students of German need to be made aware of the pragmatic contrasts between American English and standard German to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings. Examples are given of contrasts such as power relationships between speaker and listener, affecting choice of verb; the uses of "bitte" and "danke" versus "please"…

Attempts to establish a practical approach to teaching the various meanings of the German verb "handeln". Exercises that aid advanced students in understanding the verb's meaning include a complete list of all possible meanings of the verb, as well as sample sentences using the verb in a wide range of contexts. (LMO)

Much research in second language reading uses a free written recall task to measure comprehension. The significance of differences in research design is analyzed. Sixteen groups of college Spanish students (N=20 each group) were given a recall task (in appendix). Research variables, including level of study, language of recall, and pre-reading…

Trends affecting the shape and scope of foreign language major programs involve: (1) accountability and explicitness of instructional goals; (2) the dichotomy between the pragmatic, market-oriented perception of language and the profession's view of the humanistic value of language study; and (3) a sense of realism in the climate of foreign…

More than 1,500 high school foreign language students were tested for comprehension of authentic texts. First- through fifth-year French, German, and Spanish students read texts of the types mentioned in the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines at the intermediate and intermediate high levels. All students captured some meaning from each of the texts.…