This chapter is a reflective account of the author's experience as a teacher of English at the University of Pavia during the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. It considers the design and delivery of an English for architecture and construction engineering course as well as the assessment stage of a text analysis course. It proceeds by…

Discusses the foreign language program of the British educational system and the problems that arise when a teacher wants to use innovative teaching techniques while at the same time preparing students for the traditional language and literature A level examinations. Suggests ways in which the problem can be resolved. (SED)

Discusses the foreign language requirements at Hunter College. By the fourth semester, a student is expected to read and understand a fairly advanced literary text and to talk and write about it in the target language. Discusses possible changes in these requirements, such as oral proficiency testing, and problems that may be encountered. (SED)

Debates the suitability of introducing a text containing cliches into a foreign language class. The article emphasizes that before using such a book, it is necessary to decide whether it is possible to teach with such a text and what purpose would be served in doing so. (Author/CK)

Contends that aims and goals of many language courses lack the precision needed for effective teaching and evaluation and that there is a need to write precise statements of objectives in terms of pupils' learning rather than in terms of teachers' activities. Suggests how to write learning objectives. (SED)

Discusses goals of teaching French as a foreign language as set forth in the "Recommended Statement of 16+ National Criteria for French" and compares them to the goals of Ontario's bilingual immersion program. Discusses the feasibility of accomplishing these goals within the framework of the compulsory education system in Great Britain.…

Discusses the fundamental principles of evaluation to show that the conventional approaches to testing have led to a situation where procedure requirements overshadow the objectives of the learning process. Advocates instruments that address realistic communication goals and states criteria based on the learner's need for continous, constructive…

The coordination, articulation, and implementation of informed teaching techniques and objectives will help to overcome the anarchy and confusion that characterize higher education advanced-level foreign language classes, and will begin to produce a pool of highly competent foreign language speakers and writers. (33 references) (CB)

Distinguishes between text authenticity and learner authenticity. A set of guiding principles for making textually authentic materials learner authentic is suggested. A 3-week supplementary English program, which was devised for a group of Hong Kong Polytechnic students based on these principles, is described. (12 references) (Author/CK)

Provides an overview of a content-based postsecondary German language course that uses youth literature to teach about the Holocaust. Philosophical as well as pedagogical problems of dealing with the Holocaust in DaF instruction are included in the curriculum. Curricular considerations are presented that deal with course objectives, learning…

The replacement of the grammatical syllabus with a communicative syllabus is discussed in terms of foreign language teaching practice. A syllabus is a device to assist in effective teaching and an administrative tool which involves generalizing about the nature of learning and specifies a progression to a stated set of goals. Developments in…

Describes a French introductory course that prepares students to travel in France and relies entirely on materials and themes related to such travel. Use of realia and props helps the instructors to stage real-life situations. Emphasis is placed on comprehension and oral language communication. (MES)

Presents an approach to task-based second-language instruction that relies on class discussion as the departure point. After proposing that communication be viewed as the expression, interpretation, and negotiation of meaning, classroom practices are developed that reflect all three dimensions. Four discussion questions are transformed into…

This paper examines ways that Hispanic culture can be dealt with in Spanish as a foreign language for business. First, rationales for teaching culture are offered, ranging from the abstract observation that knowledge of culture is a required part of a humanistic education, to the more pragmatic need of businesses for representatives who are fluent…

Discusses general principles of language testing, stressing objectivity and reliability as the key terms. However, maintains that it is impossible to obtain a direct measure of linguistic competence and consequently questions the value of standard grading procedures. Instead, proposes an evaluation system based on the achievement of specific…