Focusing on English as a second language (ESL) students' cognitive difficulties in content courses, a study evaluated the Retention Exemplary Model Project for 1986-87 of Hostos Community College of the City University of New York. The project's goal was to help advanced and post-ESL students acquire the language and cognitive skills required to…

The first two years of a study of the development of bilingual language proficiency are reported in separate volumes. The core of the work during this period was the development of a model of language proficiency. Other related studies addressed topics such as the relationship between aspects of language proficiency and scoring methodology on…

The Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools (MCPS) provide English language instruction to approximately 3,800 students with limited English proficiency. This report represents results of an evaluation of the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)/Bilingual services offered during 1981-82. The first phase focuses on the entry/exit…

Random parallel reading comprehension tests in Japanese and English were administered to a sample of native Japanese students enrolled in intensive English instruction. The students had been placed at three different levels of English language proficiency based on an independent proficiency assessment measure. Evidence for a threshold competency…

A discussion of the language problems encountered by professionals working overseas and of how to meet the English language needs of these individuals draws on analyses of native-speaker discourse and on excerpts from non-native-speakers' writing about professional subjects. The topics of the excerpts include management, technology, and forestry.…

A discussion of the implementation of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) second language proficiency guidelines in Florida's public schools and colleges includes a brief review of literature about the guidelines, background information on the oral proficiency movement, and a description of the effects of the movement…

A study examined the attitudes and learning strategies, and their relationships to achievement, of university students enrolled in elementary Spanish (n=88) and elementary Japanese (n=121) for one academic year. For both groups of students, the classroom was seen as the most relevant context for language learning. Specific classroom behaviors…

An alternative to the traditional standardized test of language proficiency administered to Israeli students at the end of secondary school is proposed as a means of giving schools more autonomy in the testing process. The test was designed based on the following assumptions: (1) the test matches the curriculum and not vice versa; (2) the…

A procedure for evaluating the oral language proficiency of limited English proficient (LEP) secondary school students is presented. The sample consisted of 101 twelfth grade students randomly selected from high schools in the Dade County Public Schools (Miami, Florida), including 72 LEP students. These students were or had been enrolled in…

A discussion of cloze procedure and Directed Reading and Thinking Activity (DRTA) proposes that the complementary use of the two procedures helps develop student awareness of language-learning processes (metacognition) for improved language proficiency. The paper defines metacognition, cloze, and DRTA, describes their use in teaching, reviews…

A collection of papers on the use of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Proficiency Guidelines for instruction and testing in less commonly taught languages includes: the 1986 ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines; "Testing Speaking Proficiency: The Oral Interview" (Pardee Lowe, Jr., Judith E. Liskin-Gasparro); a…

Intended for personnel in local school districts and state departments of education, this handbook presents suggested procedures and resources for the initial screening and diagnostic assessment of the English language skills of students whose dominant language is other than English. The handbook deals with the initial screening for placement and…

A study was carried out to assess the French language proficiency of students enrolled in two different programs at the kindergarten level in Montreal: an early immersion program and a "class d'accueil" program. Three groups of students were tested: (1) an early immersion class; (2) a "classe d'accueil," or class for immigrant…

In an appraisal of proficiency tests currently available for English as a second language (ESL), it is found that linguistic competence, rather than communicative proficiency, is being measured. Problems involved in developing standardized communicative tests for use with different age groups in a multicultural school context are discussed.…

Gains and grade level achievement in Total Reading and Language of four groups of fifth grade students, including LEP (Limited English Proficient) students, in SES (socioeconomic status) 1 and SES 2 schools were compared to determine whether the students were achieving at grade level in reading and at an equivalent level in language. Groups from…