This paper discusses how a TESOL teacher educator took reflective action in an ESL methods class with the goal of increasing pre-service and in-service teachers' use of cooperative learning (CL) activities in their own ESL classrooms. CL has been at the forefront of educational research and is a frequent topic in methodology textbooks, teacher…

Drawing on extant theorizing and research on reflective teaching, this paper discusses the impact of an innovative methods course designed around the activity of student teachers' reflections on their own classroom discourse, for their understandings of the connections between theory and practice. Situated in the context of foreign language…

Dscribes the format and content of a three-quarter-long methods course taught to teaching assistants in the German Department of the University of California at Davis. This includes a preteaching orientation program, a year-long methods course, continuing supervision, and rotating teaching assignments. The benefits of this expanded course are…

Reviews trends in the preparation of foreign language graduate students as teaching assistants, and identifies such teaching-assistant development program elements as preservice workshops, methods courses, classroom observation, practice teaching, instructor visits, class videotaping, and peer assistance. (CB)

Discusses the components of a foreign language in the elementary school methods course in a state where K-12 certification in second languages is now mandated, describing course emphasis on integrated or content-based instruction, second-language acquisition, a practicum allowing participants to demonstrate innovative teaching techniques, and…

It is proposed that professional preparation programs for English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) teachers can help teachers become better cultural observers by drawing on their prior experiences in developing perceptions about their own culture and the classroom culture. A theoretical framework and its application in one ESL teacher education program…

This paper envisions what a standards-based second language methods course might look like. In exploring the possibilities, the paper describes a current model for preservice training, generalizations gleaned from a study of a second language methods syllabi archive, and an analysis of and reflection upon a particular second language methods…

Describes the development of a course for preparing doctoral French language students for the teaching profession, covering such topics as the diversity of teaching assistant training, graduate student attitudes and prior knowledge of instructional theory, academic credit, and the use of authentic material. (CB)

An adaptation of the dialog journal technique, used for teacher training purposes, is described. The journals were used as medium of communication between novice teachers of English as a second language and their supervisors in a field practicum course. Journals were studied to quantify the types of student comments made, and to track the changes…

Describes the main features of a series of teaching methodology courses that are part of a masters' degree program at King Mongkut's Institute of Technology (Thailand) in English for Science and Technology. The basic course framework, course content, and syllabus are considered. (CB)

Describes how the use of methodology notebooks helped in an English-as-a-foreign-language teacher-training course which focused on language improvement at the expense of giving only brief attention to the teaching of methodology. (Author/CB)

The graduate program in French civilization at the Pennsylvania State University includes an experimental course in introductory teaching theory and methods, complemented by a one-credit course in research methods and bibliography. The methods course presents interdisciplinary techniques of cultural analysis and cultural history. An extensive…

Describes a teacher exchange program between the University of Cincinnati and a high school where the high school Spanish teacher observed the university foreign-language-methods instructor teaching the Spanish class. Idea sharing was encouraged between the two teachers. (CB)

With the publication of the ACTFL/NCATE Program Standards for the Preparation of Foreign Language Teachers in the fall of 2002, teacher preparation programs need to rethink the process of gathering materials that best represent the abilities of the teacher candidates they are training. This article discusses how one foreign language program has…

Outlines a preservice training program for university teachers of English as a foreign language. (CFM)