This book traces and summarizes the author's theoretical insights and empirical findings in the field of foreign language education. The volume explores themes such as individual differences in L1 ability and their connection to L2 aptitude and L2 achievement, L2 anxiety as an affective or cognitive variable, and the relationship between L1 and L2…

As with all learners, English learners (ELs) require more than basic reading and writing skills to successfully engage with rigorous academic content, progress through school, and be fully prepared for postsecondary education and careers. ELs must be able to access grade-level content while simultaneously developing proficiency and autonomy in…

In recent years, education data have become both more easily accessible and more important than ever to decisions about K-12 policies and practice. Under the "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA), states are required to publish data on how students, including English Learners (ELs), are performing in areas such as reading, math, and…

The overarching purpose of this document is to define a new vision for mathematics instruction that explicitly attends to the needs of English Language Learners (ELLs), addressing the interdependence of language and mathematics. The sections in this report are devoted to (1) making clear that the grade-level college- and career-readiness…

This professional paper builds on the work of TESOL's issue briefs, "Implementing the Common Core State Standards for English Learners: The Changing Role of the ESL Teacher" (February 2013) and Overview of the Common Core State Standards Initiatives for ELLs (March, 2013). It discusses the shifting landscape surrounding the new Common…

Because idioms are omnipresent in the authentic language students are exposed to, to successfully comprehend and produce natural language, learners of a second or foreign language need to possess a good knowledge of idioms and competence in idiom use. This paper examines the approaches to teaching and learning idioms. A discussion of the…

This survey was developed in 1991 by Marilyn Gillespie, David Spener, and JoAnn Crandall at the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL), and was used for a 2-year project with funding from the National Center for Adult Literacy, established at the University of Pennsylvania by the U.S. Department of Education. The survey was used to collect…

Discusses producing German language plays as a way to increase student facility in spoken German and at the same time promote campus-wide contact with German language and culture. (EKN)

Describes the Strategic Interaction Approach, which is built around the use of scenarios, rather than a grammar syllabus, and requires students to work through communication problems. Discusses its usefulness for short term courses aimed toward training professionals to gain working knowledge in specific fields. (EKN)

Discusses the national trend toward full-day kindergarten scheduling and a 2-year experiment involving alternate-day and half-day programs in Pasco, Washington. Early findings show no significant differences in children's achievement, classroom study habits, or social skills. Poor and minority children benefit from increased conversational…

This second edition of "Key Data on Teaching Languages at School in Europe" contains 44 indicators in five chapters entitled "Context," "Organisation," "Participation," "Teachers" and "Teaching Processes." It has been produced in collaboration with Eurostat and belongs to the "Key…

The Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) field continues to experience increased valuing of experiential practitioner knowledge. A welcome result of this evolution has been the broadening of research perspectives. The 16 practitioner narratives in "Insights on Teaching Speaking in TESOL" are written by…

The final report chronicles activities for the two years of a grant to develop an intermediate-level test of Russian language proficiency based on the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) proficiency guidelines. The resulting test is designed to determine proficiency levels of students with two or more years of high school…

Describes oral tests for different teaching levels that can be used by regular classroom teachers with normal size classes. At the beginning levels, oral assessment is done through role playing or "talk cards," and at the advanced levels, an oral interview is the major part of a mixed skill task. (EKN)

Faculty at McNeese State University (Louisiana) and local civic, educational, and cultural groups encouraged their community to commemorate the anniversary of the births of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, German scholars who recorded fairy tales, myths, legends, and folk songs that are now an important part of the western world's cultural heritage,…