An overview of English training as offered by IBM for its employees. Describes methodology, teacher training, optimum time allotment and learning site, course objectives and student grouping. (MLA)

This article describes the Aspira Consent Decree as an attempt to bring about the educational reorganization of the entire school system. (Author/NCR)

The communicative aspect of the reading skill resides in the ability to interpret culturally authentic messages in the foreign language environment. A task-analysis procedure is useful in identification of appropriate communicative materials, strategies effective for the decoding process, and evaluation techniques that capitalize on the…

A study was conducted to test various explanations of the error of unmarked noun plurals made by first generation Italian immigrants. The error appeared to be "fossilized" or not eradicated over a period of time. (SW)

There are insufficient resources for providing instruction in English as a second or additional language for Vancouver's Chinese-speaking adult population. A pilot program designed to reach this population is described. The first volume of the series "Practical English," used in San Francisco, was revised for the pilot project. (SW)

Investigation of native English-speaking adults' and native Spanish-speaking children's acquisition of noun gender and its function in Spanish revealed significant differences in first- and second-language acquisition, suggesting a developmental progression in acquisition of noun gender for both groups. (Author/CB)

The Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA) provides transitional instruction for upper elementary and secondary students (at intermediate and advanced levels of English as a second language) through three components: a curriculum correlated with mainstream content subjects; academic language development activities; and learning…

A discussion of trends in foreign language testing covers current preferences in test types (especially for oral proficiency testing) and external influences on instructional program development and student evaluation strategies. (MSE)

Discusses the role of second-language proficiency from international, national, and state perspectives, including consideration of the need for such proficiency in science, technology, and research for economic development. Trends indicate that a more internationalized curricula in higher education and a greater demand for second-language…

Examines the role and significance of systematic error correction and explicit grammatical explanation in adult foreign language education. The type and nature of certain grammatical errors which are characteristic of the interlanguage of Arab learners of English as a second language and which seem insusceptible to defossilization are…

Study of native speakers of Yoruba who spoke English as a second language found that transfer of learning from one language to the other decreased with increasing proficiency in English. Transfer from Yoruba to English was higher than from English to Yoruba at lower levels of proficiency in English. (Author/CB)

Describes the revision of the program of study for foreign language majors at Bates College (Maine). The strengthening of the college's literature component and cultural studies are recommended for other small, liberal arts colleges. (CB)

A study of acquisition of new word formation devices in Hebrew as an indication of near-native competence is based on data collected from written questionnaires. The three tasks to be completed included: (1) production, requiring suggestions for new nouns; (2) evaluation, choosing the most appropriate innovation; and (3) interpretation,…

Analysis of data from the first six months of acquisition of English as a second language by a Japanese five-year-old illustrated the role of modular "chunking" and coupling in the second language acquisition process, apparent in the child's pre-copula and copula referential utterances. (Author/CB)

First-year University of Hong Kong students were subjects in a study using sex, verbal intelligence, personality, and attitudinal variables as predictors of English language skills. Results showed that levels of proficiency in reading, writing, listening, and speaking were independent of one another. (LMO)