Over the years, careers have transformed to be flexible and changing rather than stable, life-long commitments to an organization. As such, making work meaningful, controlling the work environment, and taking the opportunity to get required training for the next job are as important as the financial advantages. Educators' careers cannot be…

Human raters are normally involved in L2 performance assessment; as a result, rater behavior has been widely investigated to reduce rater effects on test scores and to provide validity arguments. Yet raters' cognition and use of rubrics in their actual rating have rarely been explored qualitatively in L2 speaking assessments. In this study three…

Bullying is one type of violence that threatens a youth's well-being in schools and neighborhoods. The impacts of bullying are felt by individuals, families, schools, and society and may result in youths feeling powerless, intimidated, and humiliated by the aggressive acts of other youth(s). This document is designed as a tool to help…

Discusses students (in two different settings, and both native and nonnative speakers) who were quiet in their English classrooms. Finds that dimensions of schooling which created barriers were opportunity to talk, self concepts, and texts and other course materials. Includes responses which consider how students can be helped to talk. (PA)

The fill-in-test, a modified version of the cloze procedure, is relatively easy to construct, is easier to score than the cloze procedure, and yields a greater number of questions per line of text than the conventional multiple choice comprehension test. The fill-in-test is constructed by inserting blank spaces into a text and providing a number…

Two methods of teaching advanced English as second language reading were compared in a sample of 24 Asian college students who were non-native speakers of English. The subjects were divided into three matched groups, each with one of two different teachers using different teaching methods, but both using the same text. It was hypothesized that all…

Ways in which pronunciation of English as a second language can be taught through listening are presented, involving such activities as: identification tasks; minimal pair sentence tasks; inference, word counting, and dictation tasks; and stress and intonation tasks. (CB)

Project ALMS (Adult Literacy Mission Support) was designed to improve the communication skills of semi-literate or illiterate adults, help participants become more self-sufficient, provide an ongoing program for other such individuals, and provide a manual of guidelines and suggestions for other programs. Three groups were established to make a…

The role of different types of testing instruments in second language programs is discussed. Knowledge-based tests, including discrete-point and integrative tests are contrasted with direct tests, including the Foreign Service Institute Scale and the Australian Second Language Proficiency Ratings (ASLPR). The ASLPR is described in detail in terms…

A language typology based on common errors made in pronunciation of English by speakers of other languages is presented and discussed. The classification system was developed from the concept of interlanguage, the intermediate step between a language learner's native and target languages, and the notion that interference in learning a new language…

A guide to the development of programs in English as a second language (ESL) outlines the program development process and necessary considerations. A foreword describes the two major types of limited-English-proficient (LEP) students and notes differences between LEP students in general and their monolingual English-speaking counterparts. Chapters…

A handbook for teachers, administrators, and bilingual education specialists who deal with limited-English-proficient, Japanese-speaking students is designed to assist this language minority to get the best educational opportunities. Chapters discuss the background of Japanese-speaking people in California, historical and sociocultural factors…

Topics covered in papers presented at an international meeting on foreign language methodology include the following: how to sort out the new approaches to foreign language teaching methods; unconscious assimilation in foreign language learning; the lack of concrete answers arrived at during this meeting; methodological considerations in applying…

This document provides guidelines for designing mentoring programs to facilitate the professional development of adult basic education (ABE) and English-as-a-second-language (ESL) instructors. Chapter 1 discusses the rationale behind mentoring in ABE programs. Special attention is paid to the following topics: how mentoring fits with adult…