Describes the language skills gains made by elementary students who have been in Latin classes in schools through the country. (IRT)

The effectiveness of alternative programs for teaching French as a second language in Ottawa and Carleton schools was evaluated. French proficiency, English skills, and academic achievement were assessed among students in grades 3-8 in the core French program, grades 4-6 in extended French, grades 10 and 12 in the bilingual program, and grade 8…

What happens to English academic achievement when valued class time is devoted to a foreign language in the elementary schools (FLES) program? Is there a reduction in achievement as suggested by a time-on-task hypothesis, or is there some form of compensation, as suggested by additive bilingualism? The school district in this study started a FLES…

This report describes the results of the Massachusetts study of foreign languages, part of the second phase of the Massachusetts Educational Assessment Program. The assessment was conducted using a random sample of students from all over the state during one year of testing. The report is presented in five sections: (1) background of the study;…

The 12-week program described here was designed to improve a Hebrew language immersion class' ability to correctly use the simple past and present tenses. The target group was a sixth-grade class that achieved a 65.68 percent error-free rate on a pre-test; the project's objective was to achieve 90 percent error free tests, using student…

Factors which influence the acquisition of a second language within the framework of the British educational system are examined in this study. An ongoing, 10-year, language experiment (1964-74) involving 18,000 students ranging in age from 8 to 13, concentrates on determining the desirability and practicability of starting modern language…

A project was begun in 1973 in the Indianapolis Public School system based on the hypothesis that English language skills and the control of syntactic structures can be measurably improved through participation in a specially designed Latin FLES program stressing the importance of Latin root words. Goals of the project were to assess whether or…

Evaluation of a French and Spanish second language program in grades four through seven of a rural school system has begun with a formative evaluation for the first three years and will conclude with a one-year summative evaluation. The research questions focus on four concerns: (1) school personnel and parent perceptions of the program during its…

This study of two student groups enrolled in secondary school foreign language programs evaluates comparative achievement covering a four-year sequence of study. The control group results, reflecting previous foreign language elementary school (FLES) instruction, provide strong contrasts favoring the continuation and further development of FLES…

A pilot program of foreign language instruction in Scottish elementary schools is evaluated. The program consisted of 12 projects in 76 elementary schools, articulated with their 12 associated secondary schools. French was taught in six projects, Spanish in four, and German and Italian in one each. Regular classroom teachers were trained and given…

The aim of this guide is to raise the quality of instruction and to advance the opportunities available to all pupils for better learning. It is to be completed by each foreign language teacher in the elementary schools and by the program coordinator. The items consist of standards and practices that generally characterize good programs. The areas…

In Florida, foreign language teaching has consistently followed national trends. Currently, there is a renaissance in language study. Enrollment has increased dramatically at all educational levels, due to a mandated state university system entrance requirement and two programs, the Florida Academic Scholars Program and Foreign Languages in the…

Articles in this book on early second language learning are presented in 13 categories, with each category containing 4 to 7 papers. The categories include the following: the advantages and disadvantages of FLES (elementary school foreign language programs), FLEX (foreign language exploratory programs), and immersion program models; at what age an…