This pilot study looks at the effect of learning second language vocabulary with gesture. Specifically, this current study asks whether researcher-instructed or student-constructed gestures are more effective. Depth of processing theories (Craik and Lockhart 1972) as well as more recent educational frameworks like ICAP ("Interactive,"…

A business Spanish curriculum that presents the full spectrum of general and specialized areas--including management, banking, finance, marketing and advertising--might seem ambitious for a single course. A course that aims to present the full picture would seem to impose an undue burden on memory and retention of the content. By emphasizing…

Even though many post-secondary institutions offer a variety of Hispanic linguistics classes (Hualde 2006; Lipski 2006), research on the pedagogy of Hispanic linguistics is an underdeveloped or non-existent area of the discipline. Courses in Hispanic linguistics can present not only linguistic challenges for non-native speakers of Spanish, but…

Explores the few studies that compare the psycholinguistic processes characterizing second language acquisition in the classroom and native-speaking environments. A description of a study that found that, although intermediate Spanish students extensively monitored language usage in both environments, their monitored knowledge was still quite…

Presents an approach for developing oral proficiency in the advanced conversation course that proposes, as an organizing principle, the use of Swales's concept of genre as a class of communicative events that share a communicative purpose. It is concluded that focus on genre can improve proficiency performance and articulation. (eight references)…

Analyzes the omission, overgeneralization, and misuse errors in the compositions of first- through third-year university Spanish students, with major emphasis placed on the role errors play in the acquisition of Spanish as a second language. (EKN)

Notes that beginning foreign language learner-readers lack linguistic and cultural knowledge assumed in foreign language literary texts, gaps often resulting in possible "mismatches" between the readers' actual cognizance of linguistic and cultural norms and the level of understanding assumed in the foreign text. (40 references) (Author/CK)

Suggests four methods to help students make intelligent guesses and expand their Spanish vocabulary through induction of cognate patterns, including making students consciously aware of cognate patterns; emphasizing general patterns of English abstract words and their corresponding Spanish cognates; enhancing inductive learning strategies through…

Terrell's natural approach suggests that such interactive activities as music and art induce and improve student communication in language learning. Explanation of the method's steps uses the poem "Abenamar" as an example. The teacher first presents the work in historical context, then reads the work accompanied by visual aids, then…

Argues that the focus of foreign-language instruction needs to be on students learning to become more efficient in using another language. This focus means charting each student's progress along the continuum of proficiency from novice to intermediate to advanced levels, not just checking off a list of what has been taught from the curriculum. (CK)

Presents daily activities that facilitate complete sentence response, promote oral production, and aid the learning of vocabulary in foreign-language classes. Because speech is the primary form of communication in the foreign-language classroom, it is important to stimulate students to converse as soon as possible. (Author/CK)

Notes that one way to ensure that students understand the importance of developing communicative abilities is to utilize Spanish language resources in the United States, as in an excursion to a "tienda" (shop), where they negotiate with the Spanish-speaking owner. (seven references) (Author/CK)

Examined strategies that students reported using in the comprehension and learning of new information while listening to two radio broadcasts in Spanish. The findings have implications for both the use of authentic listening materials in instruction and for listening strategy research. (51 references) (LB)

Comparison of how English and Spanish speakers express contrastive emphasis revealed that, while English speakers used pitch and intensity, Spanish speakers used changes in syntax and lexicon as well as pitch and intensity in showing contrasts. (CB)

It is beneficial to integrate the teaching of computer use into the foreign language business course through such activities as simulating business and commercial situations. Students will not only learn computer terminology in the foreign language but also expand their practical working vocabulary. (CB)