Distance education between the student and the teacher through online sessions can make it difficult for a student who does not understand a concept to ask for clarification. Lack of a physical campus or social pressure from peers can demotivate students from completing their assignments. The framework of multi-intelligence English teaching based…

Since Ecuador has determined that it wants to be fully bilingual in ten years, this paper describes the experience of a Fulbright Scholar at a university Language Center in Quito; one helping language teachers improve the language learning skills of their students. The theoretical framework for this work comes from Learner Self-Management (LSM) or…

Children working alone is a common instructional strategy in some early childhood classrooms. According to foundational work by Johnson and Johnson (1986), however, cooperative teams employ higher levels of thought and retain information longer than children who work individually. Children engage in discussion, take responsibility for their…

Many people in Spain are studying English in order to find jobs in this country or to migrate as a result of the economic crisis. Language classes, however, are limited in duration and are often not enough to enable students to progress as much as they would like to. Language learners have to spend a considerable amount of time out of class…

For many years, research effort has been devoted to understanding the nature of listening strategies and how listening strategies used by good listeners can be taught to so-called ineffective listeners. As a result of this line of research, strategy training activities have now become a standard feature of most modern listening coursebooks.…

The Language Resource Centers (LRC) program provides grants to institutions of higher education to establish, strengthen, and operate resource centers that serve to improve the nation's capacity to teach and learn foreign languages. Eligible applicants are institutions of higher education. Duration of the grant is four years. Center activities…

There are numerous publications on language learner strategies, and this bibliography of books is by no means exhaustive. They have been selected because they can be considered classics in the field and are easily available as this special issue of the "Language Learning Journal" goes to press. Though some of the books were written several decades…

Outlines a new framework for teaching second-language teacher trainees that requires less time than the simple information transmission model and fewer manpower resources. The "loop-input" model entails mirroring the content of training sessions in the process of these sessions. (Author/CB)

Reports an effort to teach second-language students how to become autonomous in their language learning by combining learning-strategy instruction with course content. Examines usefulness of a required language-learning project for guiding students through self-assessment, goal-setting, planning, monitoring, and evaluating their own language…

Discusses methods by which a teacher of English as a second language in a foreign country can teach himself/herself the language of that country. Such methods include keeping a diary, studying grammar, using the mass media, and engaging native speakers in conversation whenever possible. (SED)

The study of less commonly taught languages (LCTLs) presents challenges different from those faced by more commonly taught languages. LCTL educators are challenged by the unavailability of instructional resources and opportunities and lack of access to cultures. Only recently have LCTL teachers and researchers begun to identify problems and…

Describes some aspects of the Internet that might be used in the professional development of language teachers, with particular reference to teachers in Canada. The article notes that teachers can attend cyberschool, use cybereferences and converse with cyberpals. To effectively use the Net, teachers must develop an effective search strategy.…

Discusses the comments of 30 in-service English-as-a-Second-Language teachers who participated in introductory lessons in an unknown language (Russian). Comments revealed a high level of anxiety, the need for security before and during instruction, and observations concerning implementation of various cognitive techniques to quickly master the…

Instead of teaching as many facts as possible about the cultural background of the target language, second language learners should be taught explicit strategies for making inferences from the language. This enables learners to gradually construct their cultural background knowledge in the same way that native speakers construct their cultural…

Presents several reasons delineating the need for teacher workshops directly applicable to foreign language teaching. Provides a detailed description of a two-week workshop, including the workshop activities, the problems encountered, the results expected, and the actual results. (Author/SED)