Total enrollments (undergraduate and graduate) in languages other than English dropped by 9.2% between fall 2013 and fall 2016, as reported in the Modern Language Association's twenty-fifth language enrollment census. Despite the overall drop, there were gains in nearly half of all language programs (45.5%) that mitigate somewhat the downward…

The purpose of this study was to describe perceptions of stakeholders (leadership of Concordia Language Villages, staff members and villagers of "Lac du Bois", the French Language Village of Concordia Language Villages), related to achievement of the mission statement. The research question was: How do stakeholders in "Lac du…

This comparative case study explored the motives and goals of two American students participating in short-term study abroad (SA). Findings, interpreted from an activity theory perspective, demonstrated that despite similar language-learning histories and demographic characteristics, the students were learning French and participating in SA for…

Compares the French language competence of Ontario high school immersion graduates with that of core program graduates of a six-week summer course in a francophone environment. The immersion graduates performed functions well, but at the expense of accuracy, while summer students showed fewer discrepancies in speaking skills. (Author/CB)

This is the final report of an evaluation of exchange programs operating under the Canadian Bilingual Exchange Secretariat. Two types of exchange programs are evaluated: a summer program between groups of secondary students from selected schools in Quebec and Ontario, and a school-year program between groups of students from selected schools in…

The University of Oregon offers summer institutes designed to help secondary school teachers of foreign languages to gain new perspectives on the interdependence of humanistic disciplines and lead to much-needed curriculuar changes in the schools. The summer programs offer interdisciplinary study in foreign languages, literature, and history. (CB)

Canada's Summer Language Bursary Program is a joint national-provincial effort providing immersion in French- or English-as-a-Second-Language to Canadian students. Despite 18 years of success and the benefits gained at small expense, the program is not well-known and risks losing funding. Self-promotion and lobbying are necessary. (Author/MSE)

The teachers' guide for a 4-week, 4-hours-per-day elementary school summer program in French consists of information and suggestions for program implementation and materials for use with students. The introductory section contains a general program description, including broad program objectives for language comprehension, language production, and…

The Summer Language Houses (SLH) in French, German, and Spanish at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln have been extremely effective in teaching language skills and encouraging students to continue language study. The five-week intensive language programs at the second-year level emphasize oral communication but provide practice in all language…

An internship program in France, through which a group of French and business students from an American university spent 4 weeks in a medium-sized business, is described. The program's origins, development, and structure are reviewed, and the obstacles to implementation and their resolutions are discussed. Choices made and lessons learned from…

Opportunities for English-speaking French immersion graduates to do some or all university studies and activities in French are discussed, including bilingual institutions and programs, French language and literature courses, nontraditional subject-matter courses taught in French, academic exchanges, extracurricular and summer activities, and…

Between 1982 and 1985, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro held five summer institutes designed to improve French and Spanish foreign language instruction in elementary and secondary schools. The institutes were intended to: (1) revitalize teachers' language capabilities; (2) increase their cultural knowledge; (3) expose them to new…

In a 3-year, federally-funded program, faculty at St. Olaf College (Minnesota) have developed a series of behavioral and natural science courses in which students with at least the fourth semester of foreign language do a portion of the course readings in the second language and meet once a week to discuss them in that language with the regular…

A study of second language learning processes had three goals: to establish a grounded theory on the role of tension, both euphoric and dysphoric, in the formal language learning process; to provide a comprehensive ethnography of the 7-week intensive beginners' class in the French School of Middlebury College (Vermont); and to demonstrate how a…

In response to the changing world economic market, foreign language teachers of the University of Akron and Akron Public Schools (Ohio) began a joint project, federally supported, to strengthen foreign language teacher proficiency in the area of careers in business, education, and government service, strengthen oral proficiency of high school…