Apprehension is the immediate reaction of some students when faced with multisyllabic words. Lacking strategies for decoding longer words, these students stop reading and seek help from an adult or a more accomplished peer rather than tackle the mysterious words themselves. Explicit strategy instruction is often recommended for students who have…

Implications of the "new grammar" approach to teaching French are examined, including the issues of nomenclature, definition, rules and generalizations, and native language use in the second language class. Grammar itself has not changed, and the principal concern is still good usage. (MSE)

A review of research on second-language speaking and its instruction focuses on (1) methodological issues concerning the form/function dichotomy and their implications for teacher and learner interaction; (2) the nature and scope of current teaching materials, particularly with regard to their representations of speaking interaction; and (3)…

Since the emergence of the concept of communicative competence, the language teaching field has focused on teaching appropriate language use in addition to general linguistic elements. Speech act studies have contributed to providing appropriate models for second and foreign language learners. In this paper, the effort toward the creation and use…

The comparison of languages can be an effective instructional technique if used well. The comparison of isolated elements is less effective than the examination of languages at several levels: system, norm, and usage. (MSE)

An approach to English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) teaching that helps students prepare for intercultural communication is described, drawing on the literature of second language learning and intercultural communication. First, potential barriers to intercultural understanding are examined, including the culture-bound nature of communication,…

Review of research on trends in teaching second-language listening focuses primarily on strategy instruction and a strategy-based approach but also refers to developments in terms of listening and "high-tech contexts," interactive listening, and academic listening. Classroom listening textbooks are discussed, with attention to the mismatch between…

This paper offers insights on how to facilitate student-student interaction in the science classroom. These insights derive from the education and the linguistics literature. Cooperative learning research offers a means of understanding what helps groups of students interact successfully. Systemic functional linguistics provides tools for…