To analyze and compare specific oral communication behaviors of primary school pupils who score high on reading and language tests with those who score low, a study was conducted on approximatley 200 students who were classified as (1) high language, (2) high reading, (3) low language, or (4) low reading according to their scores on the…

Four commonly used approaches to teaching English as a second language to limited English proficiency and non-English proficiency students have both advantages and disadvantages. The Natural Approach is based on children's acquisition of speech sounds and oral proficiency through spontaneous interaction in a natural environment. Although a natural…

As part of an examination required by the Alberta (Canada) Department of Education in order for 12th grade students to receive a diploma in French, this test, to be accompanied by the questions booklet, contains the reading selections portion of Part B, the language and literature component of the June 1988 tests. Representing the genres of…

As part of an examination required by the Alberta (Canada) Department of Education in order for 12th grade students to receive a diploma in French, this booklet contains the 80 multiple choice questions portion of Part B, the language and literature component of the June 1988 tests. Representing the genres of poetry, short story, the novel, and…

A case study investigated the linguistic and social contexts of an adult Indonesian learner of English as a second language (ESL) in Australia, and how these factors affected his language learning progress. The learner, raised in Indonesia, was a young adult of Chinese descent. The discrepancy between the learner's perceptions of his own language…

An analysis of the lexical content of four recently published textbooks for college-level introductory German is presented. The study investigated the extent to which the materials prepare students for the intermediate level, as cited in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages' (ACTFL's) proficiency guidelines. The lexical items…

Class activities for developing Spanish proficiency in third- and fourth-year high school students and first- and second-year college students are presented. Activities include a discussion of teaching for proficiency, drawing on recent research, and notes on the design and intent of the activities. Sample exercises for listening comprehension…

This paper isolates and examines separately three distinct sources of error in essay scores: lack of agreement between raters; inconsistencies in performance within mode of discourse, and inconsistencies in performance between modes of discourse. Essay prompts in the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) Writing Supplement were designed to assess…

A study examined the occupational differences between Hispanics and non-Hispanics. The study focused on the determinants of Hispanic occupational achievement; differences in the process of occupational achievement among different Hispanic ethnic subgroups; variations in the process of occupational achievement across geographic areas; and…

A study of the interrelationships of linguistic and communicative competence in English and Spanish, self-concept, field-independent cognitive style, and scholastic achievement among Mexican-American pupils at the elementary, junior high, and high school levels found that linguistic and communicative competence were highly related within…

This master list describes the competencies that a bilingual education teacher should demonstrate in order to teach reading and language arts in Spanish. These competencies are divided into 12 areas: (1) commitment to the philosophy and principles of bilingual-bicultural education, of which Spanish reading and language arts are a necessary…

Assessment of the Spanish-speaking bilingual child's language dominance is essential to bilingual education, but to date there is no universally accepted way of doing this. There are many tests on the market which purport to measure language dominance and achievement, and which involve various criteria and methods. This paper describes four tests,…

Two considerations are brought to bear on the reading approach presented here. First, because the major focus in a teaching method designed for use with bilingual education students is to increase both language facility and reading ability, the approach is designed to provide the student with the opportunity to read, use, and listen to a standard…

The leadership of the foreign language education profession convened to discuss the major issues for that profession in the 1980s. Several papers each were devoted to the following subjects: (1) curriculum and materials, (2) global education, (3) evaluation, (4) research, and (5) teacher education. Brief reaction papers for each subject are…

This report describes the results of the Massachusetts study of foreign languages, part of the second phase of the Massachusetts Educational Assessment Program. The assessment was conducted using a random sample of students from all over the state during one year of testing. The report is presented in five sections: (1) background of the study;…