A new program developed during 1975-76 as part of the English as a second language curriculum at the University of California, Davis, is designed to enable students to listen to their oral English for pronunciation and grammatical self-correction. Students are aided in identifying and correcting their errors through tape-recorded sessions with a…

This article attempts an analysis of the problems involved in creating a course in English as a second language for adult beginners. Various learning theories and linguistic theories are discussed, which should be taken into consideration in choosing a teaching method. In addition, care must be taken to distinguish among the four language skills…

The modern, miniaturized computer as in information processor has radically altered the logic of three commonplaces regarding computer-based learning: (1) that the machine exerts a dehumanizing effect on the educational process, (2) that computers are too expensive to prove cost-effective in education, and (3) that the computer's facility in…

This article surveys the teaching materials available in the United States for teaching Chinese at the college level. Suggestions are made for the improvement of existing materials and for the development of new ones. The main problems associated with the production and usefulness of language materials are that: (1) languages change through time…

The French department, commonly viewed by chairmen and faculty as the conveyor of culture, is admonished to revamp its curriculum and attempt to embrace a broader, more humane understanding of the nature of culture. With the traditional, belletristic, college French curriculum having been rejected in favor of programs based on "cogency, cohesion,…

Beginning with a review of current student attitudes on the campus toward foreign languages, language teachers, and teaching methods, this article discusses the nature and success of a computer-assisted instructional program in German under development since 1965 at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, Long Island. The multi-media…

An intensive language program in elementary German at the University of Texas in Arlington is described in this article. The program, enabling undergraduates with no previous experience in German to complete the university's four-semester foreign language requirement in a single semester, is discussed in terms of classroom activities, language…

Some of the teaching practices of 10 foreign language teachers in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area are reviewed in this study of second language (L2) instruction. Focus is on how idioms are taught in university German foreign language courses, which textbooks and reference materials available in the German and English fields highlight…

A project surveyed the instructional materials development needs of the less commonly taught languages (LCTLs) language teaching community. The national survey in 1992 covered 82 languages and surveyed approximately 1,000 language course instructors and program directors at national resource centers and universities in the United States receiving…

Questions have been raised about the status of English as a second language (ESL) in colleges and universities, especially with regard to ESL credit, admission of ESL students, and tenure for ESL instructors. These questions prompted Portland State University (Oregon) to send a questionnaire dealing with the topic to the directors of 174 programs…

Three major concerns affect higher education in the United States: the decline in student population with some curtailment of programs, high inflation rates with constantly rising tuition, and political pressures on public colleges and universities. These factors affect study abroad programs in several ways. Public institutions may experience less…

A study examined dimensions of oral proficiency curriculum and testing (OP) in American colleges and universities for the purpose of appraising the implementability of educational policy derived from them. The framework used for this policy analysis looks at the system environment, demands and resources, the process that converts demands into…

The English programs in two schools at the University of Nancy, France, are described and compared. At the School of Science, foreign languages are compulsory in the first two years; at the School of Pharmacy, short courses in English have been introduced for students in their fourth and fifth years. Recently the objective of the Science School…

The "Zertifikat Deutsch als Fremdsprache," an examination developed by the Adult Education Centers in West Germany and the Goethe Institute to measure a student's proficiency in German as a foreign language, consists of two main parts, group testing and individual testing. The group testing section covers listening and reading…

A committee was formed to examine the need for and the possible approach to foreign language instruction for International Business and International Relations students at St. Mary's University (San Antonio). Research literature of most interest to the committee described specific courses and programs in higher education, different formats ranging…