Considers various theoretical and practical issues in language teaching that could help bridge the current methodological divide and proposes several reforms to the way that languages are currently taught in secondary schools and higher education. The paper emphasizes contemporary approaches to grammar, use of the first and second language in the…

Discusses francophone studies as a race-diversifying strategy in higher education, examining the role of Romance language and literature departments. Francophonia requires an intercultural examination of French culture in the context of the cross-cultural (which could occur through an interdisciplinary alliance of the French department and African…

Examined the effectiveness of a year-long integrated language and music program (the Expressive Language and Music Project) to enhance Singaporean kindergartners' English oral-language competency. Found that the natural communicative setting and creative use of resources and activities based on the Orff and Kodaly approaches facilitated language…

Examined efforts to develop cross-cultural communicative competence in students enrolled in an M.A. course in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). Focused on the conceptualization of culture utilized in the program, professional and cultural identity formation processes that appear to be occurring, and characterization of…

Argues that despite the decline in enrollments in German at elementary and secondary schools and colleges and universities, there is reason to hope that interest can be invigorated. Suggests that there are easy instructional methods and materials for developing a new motivation in learning the language. (Author/VWL)

Investigated the effect of near peer role models (NPRMs). Examined the impact of a video with four exemplary, slightly older Japanese NPRMs in a Japanese English department--who were expressing beliefs and attitudes thought to facilitate second language acquisition--on non-English majors in obligatory English courses. Results show students'…

Global managers in Mexico identified what their U.S. counterparts should know about Mexican culture to do business effectively. Suggested Mexican and U.S.cultures are exact opposites in many respects. Discussed differences in building business relationships, attitudes toward time, family and religious values, communication patterns, and…

Examined the motivation to learn English among first-year Puerto Rican high school students. Attempted to isolate discrete clusters of motivation and sought to investigate the relationship between type and strength of motivation. Factor analysis revealed two motivation clusters that resembled instrumental and integrative motivation. (Author/VWL)

This ethnographic study examines the local enactment of literacy practice in the new policy context created by California's Proposition 227. Considers the influence of the law on two elementary schools in a rural district that allowed schools to choose how they would implement Proposition 227. Analysis explores the connection between the…

Evaluated the WLPAN method of intensive language teaching by studying 7 students at Cardiff University's Centre for Teaching Welsh to Adults. Using questionnaires and interviews, factors affecting students' ultimate ability to speak Welsh were examined. Factors included students' motivation, background in Welsh or other foreign languages, and…

Examines 11 research projects on multilingualism and education in Lebanon, many of which focus on multilingualism and language learning. The research emphasizes three areas: different multicultural aspects of life and communication; specific patterns of multilingual communication (e.g., emphasizing home communication and children's language…

Examines the role of noticing in the second language writing process. A case study was conducted with two Mandarin background adult learners of English as a Second Language. The study documents the relationship of noticing, both in the composing stage and in the reformulation stage, to the improvement of the written product in the posttest of a…

Examines whether there is a strong relationship between second language learners' noticing of benefactive auxiliary verbs and their use in communication. Participants were university students who had acquired Japanese at home without receiving any formal instruction. Data were collected in face-to-face interviews, an interpretation task with 20…

Investigated the participant roles learners adopted in two different writing environments: synchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) and pencil-and-paper group journals. Subjects were students of intermediate German who participated in two CMC and two group journal assignments over the course of a 15-week semester. (Author/VWL)

Elementary and middle school children in California who speak Vietnamese as a first language reported high levels of oral competence in Vietnamese and a desire to maintain Vietnamese language and culture. There was no evidence that the development of the first language was a barrier to second language acquisition. (Author/VWL)