This digest provides a brief overview of American Sign Language (ASL) and discusses its study as a foreign language in U.S. schools and institutions of higher education. The following questions are addressed: (1) Is ASL a language?; (2) If ASL is used in the United States, how can it be considered a "foreign" language; (3) Are ASL users…

This digest discusses the dilemma surrounding foreign language requirements at colleges and universities and students with learning disabilities. Many students and professionals question the reasonableness of foreign language requirements for students with learning disabilities, but, according to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973,…

This digest discusses Language Across the Curriculum (LAC), an approach to teaching language that works with faculty in other content areas to identify the specific vocabulary and genres that students need in order to function effectively in another language in their respective disciplines. LAC also draws from the content-based approach to…

This digest discusses the unprecedented U.S. need for individuals with highly developed competencies in English and one or more other languages and the untapped language resource: heritage language speakers. Sections address the range of proficiencies of heritage language speakers, the fragility of heritage languages, the limitations of current…

An increasing number of U.S. high school graduates enter college while still in the process of learning English. Referred to as generation 1.5 students because they share characteristics of both first- and second-generation immigrants, they do not fit into any of the traditional categories of nonnative English speakers enrolled in college writing…

Proficiency in a foreign language combined with knowledge and skills in another professional area is highly desirable in the marketplace. Business places the greatest emphasis on this combination, although language skills rank well below other selection factors. Most employers provide language training when necessary, but the amount of time…

The ability to communicate in a foreign language requires more than linguistic accuracy. To understand and be understood by others requires the ability to recognize cultural differences. For example, polite behavior in one language may not be the social equivalent in another language. In order to acquire cultural competence, students have to…

Language teachers recognize that improving their foreign language proficiency is an ongoing process. New ways of evaluating teachers' language skills, and curriculum changes emphasizing performance highlight skill inadequacies. Many teachers have not reached functional language levels, and language skill upgrading is a more relevant issue than…

Rapid demographic changes and an increasing recognition of the critical need for professionals who are proficient in languages other than English have led to an interest in developing language programs and classes for "heritage language learners" students who are raised in a home where a non-English language is spoken and who speak or at…

Schools and teacher education programs have begun to rethink preservice and inservice professional development to take into account the need for teachers to work effectively with students learning English. New approaches to teacher education are based on the belief that English language learners' access to challenging content can be enhanced…

Census-based estimates suggest that at least 3.5 million children in the United States are limited-English-proficient or non-English-speaking. Half of all U.S. teachers have one or more of these children in their classes, but only one in 17 has any specific training to teaching English as a second language (ESL). Of those actually teaching ESL…

One of the challenges facing many foreign language programs today is maintaining high quality instruction despite increased enrollments and teacher shortages. One strategy for meeting this challenge is collaborative teaching. Collaborative teaching can occur in various settings and for different purposes. Studies of team-teaching have shown its…

The typical route to certification for beginning foreign language teachers requires the candidate to complete an approved program of teacher education in a four-year institution, have a certain minimum grade point average, and have completed a specified number of foreign language credit hours. Notable trends in foreign language teacher…