Content-based instruction (CBI) has been touted as an effective curricular approach in a wide range of educational contexts, including immersion and English as a second language. Yet this approach to curriculum design is rarely implemented in conventional K-16 foreign language (FL) programs in the United States today. The phenomenological study…

Predominant, if not exclusive, use of the target language has long been considered an important principle of second language (L2) instruction. Previous research has attempted to quantify the amount of the first language (L1) used in the classroom and has explored the purposes or functions of teachers' "lapses" into their students' L1. The present…

This study analyzed the implementation of a pre-writing activity that was designed to address L2 student writers' tendency to focus on grammatical accuracy to the exclusion of content and structure. The participants, students in a university-level Spanish composition course, were given a rubric with which to evaluate three previously written…

Describes a research project based on a questionnaire designed to determine the language needs in French of English-speaking Canadian diplomats assigned overseas. (AM)

This article reports on a study of pre-service French immersion teachers who were required to compile second language (L2) portfolios as part of their professional development. Documents included a brief biography of the students' lives as speakers and learners of French; an action plan in which students assessed their L2 proficiency and set…

Three case studies illustrate how recent classroom observation research has led to more active participation on the part of teachers, principals, and supervisors. The groups have worked closely to understand how the core French program works in the classroom. Participatory research is seen as an important professional development opportunity for…

Describes the development of instructional materials for an advanced French course for English-speaking Canadian diplomats. (AM)

A long-term inservice project, involving collaboration among teachers, consultants, and a researcher and resulting in development of materials for a core French curriculum, is described. The features of cooperation and extended duration are seen as contributing to the project's success. (Author/MSE)

Examines classroom research as a means of professional renewal for language teachers, drawing on experiences in an Australian program to train teachers as action researchers with the support of a research community. Concludes that incorporation of professional renewal processes in formal classroom research projects is a way to maintain teacher…

Four positive changes in foreign-language education are projected: improved language skills of foreign language teachers; better teacher preparation of the teaching/learning process; teachers as mentors and classroom researchers; and an outward-looking foreign language profession. (Contains three references.) (LB)

A discussion of French teacher training at the University of Saskatchewan includes an outline of innovations in credit courses, especially those taught in French on subjects other than language, literature, or teaching methods. The discussion includes a description of the noncredit programs for professional and linguistic development. (MSE)

Discusses teacher shortages in French language instruction areas in Canada, both core and immersion; the rationalization of programs; staffing and financial support among Alberta's tertiary education; language teacher preparation; and continuing professional development. Suggestions are made as to how a smaller university can better fulfill its…