A 3-year study of the effect of 3 years of audiolingually oriented FLES instruction on student achievement in French and Spanish classes in grades 7-12 is described. Samples of the language proficiency tests used as research instruments for grades 7 and 9 are reproduced in the extensive appendixes, along with the objectives of the FLES program.…

This volume on the language education of minority children is divided into three sections: (1) Multilingualism in the United States, (2) Bilingualism and Bilingual Education, and (3) Language Education in Practice. Following an introductory essay, "The Language Education of Minority Children," by Bernard Spolsky, the articles in the first section…

The Education Evaluation and Planning Package provides a performance statement check list approach to the comprehensive educational evaluation required by Massachusetts law for special education students. The vocational area of this package is intended to be used to assess various skills necessary to hold a job. There are four components of this…

A college-level course is described that is designed to increase oral proficiency and comprehension in Spanish and to introduce students to the culture of the Hispanic world. The course is taught in Spanish, and faculty members from other disciplines serve as guest lecturers to provide reinforcement of material learned in the areas of history,…

A study was conducted to supply data on the characteristics of young adult Chicanos compared with their Anglo peers. A stratified random sample of undergraduate Mexican-American (N=153) and Anglo (N=148) students was taken at the University of Texas, El Paso, where one third of the students enrolled have a Spanish surname. A self-devised…

Data on language competence and language use were obtained for 99 Spanish/English bilingual elementary school children (kindergarten through fourth grade) from Albuquerque. The children's language skills were assessed by teachers, interviewers, and the children themselves. The teachers and the children also estimated the extent to which the…

This article deals with the issue of gaining proficiency in oral expression in a second language. A functional approach to teaching oral proficiency is outlined, an approach which focuses on the audience as a determining factor in the speaker's linguistic output. Claims in the article are based on an experiment in the teaching of oral proficiency…

This paper questions the purpose of testing in second language instruction. Comments are based on an examination of tests used by the Defense Language Institute for students of English as a second language. Two kinds of tests are used: the English Comprehension Level (ECL), used primarily as a basis for setting exit requirements, and "Book…

This basic textbook for Latin American Spanish contains 10 units. The text is adaptable for use in an academic institution (Completion time is expected to be one year.), in an intensive program (Completion time is about 90-120 hours.), or in independent study. The vocabulary is limited and only basic, essential, grammatical structures are…

If we adopt an approach to language teaching which is closely based on the learner's specific needs and shortens the period that may elapse between the beginning of language study and the first time the learner can put his newly acquired knowledge into practice, we not only motivate existing learners to work harder and learn more but may also…

This handbook describes the nature, uses, and limitations of the Modern Language Association of America (MLA) language proficiency tests for teachers and advanced students. The proficiency tests are examined in seven areas of language teaching competence: listening comprehension, speaking, reading, writing, applied linguistics, civilization and…

The purpose of this study was to improve the English competence of Spanish-speaking students, to increase their success in school, and to help them develop stronger self-concepts. Control and experimental groups of students were selected from kindergarten, second, and fourth grades of elementary schools with a predominantly Chicano population.…

This guide describes well-established and practical pedagogical behaviors for a foreign language teacher in an ordinary situation, a classroom with 20-35 pupils who are beginning the study of a foreign language in school or college. The first chapter, "The Five Stages," discusses the stages through which an item (a word, construction, or idiom) in…

This collection of papers includes the following: "Style Wars: Teacher-Student Style Conflicts in the Language Classroom" (Rebecca L. Oxford, Madeline E. Ehrman, and Roberta Z. Lavine); "Articulating Learning in High School and College Programs: Holistic Theory in the Foreign Language Curriculum" (Janet Swaffar);…

In June of 1998, Proposition 227 was passed by 61 percent of the California electorate. The initiative was intended to significantly alter the ways in which the state's English learners (ELs) are taught. Proposition 227 requires that ELs be taught "overwhelmingly in English" through sheltered/structured English immersion (SEI) programs…