APPROXIMATELY 480 HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS TAKING JAPANESE AT FOUR LOS ANGELES CITY HIGH SCHOOLS WERE STUDIED TO DETERMINE HOW EXPOSURE TO JAPANESE OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM INFLUENCED THE STUDENTS' WORK IN CLASS. THIS REPORT IS BASED ON RESPONSES TO QUESTIONNAIRES FILLED OUT BY 303 OF THE STUDENTS ABOUT THEIR EXPOSURE TO JAPANESE AT HOME, THEIR BIRTHPLACE, AND THEIR SELF-EVALUATION OF PROFICIENCY IN READING, SPEAKING, LEARNING VOCABULARY, AND UNDERSTANDING GRAMMAR. FIVE GROUPS WERE ESTABLISHED RANGING FROM THOSE WITH DAILY EXPOSURE TO JAPANESE (157 STUDENTS) TO STUDENTS WITHOUT ANY CONTACT WITH THE LANGUAGE OUTSIDE OF CLASS (37). IT WAS FOUND THAT THOSE GROUPS WITH GREATER EXPOSURE TO JAPANESE RATED GRAMMAR MORE DIFFICULT THAN VOCABULARY OR "HEARING." STUDENTS WITHOUT FREQUENT EXPOSURE TO THE TARGET LANGUAGE HAD MORE DIFFICULTY WITH "HEARING" THAN WITH GRAMMAR. THE TEACHERS OF THESE CLASSES COMMENTED THAT READING ABILITY AND GRAMMAR LEARNING SEEM LEAST AFFECTED BY OUTSIDE EXPOSURE TO JAPANESE, WHILE THERE IS A MARKED DIFFERENCE AMONG THE GROUPS IN RATE OF LEARNING VOCABULARY AND SPEAKING ABILITY. THIS REPORT INCLUDES SUGGESTED TEACHING TECHNIQUES FOR HETEROGENEOUS CLASSES. IT WILL BE FOLLOWED BY A SECOND REPORT ANALYZING THE RESULTS OF WRITTEN AND ORAL TESTS GIVEN TO THE SAME STUDENTS. THIS PAPER WAS PRESENTED AT THE 20TH UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY FOREIGN LANGUAGE CONFERENCE, LEXINGTON, APRIL 27-29, 1967. (JD)