Discusses the political involvement of the foreign language profession. Describes some of the bills or programs currently in Congress that affect the profession. (EKN)

Discusses the position of foreign language teachers who are nonnative speakers of the languages they teach and suggests that they can be cultural mediators challenging the rigid categories of identity to bring out productive discussion and unexpected understandings about the self and the other. (Author/VWL)

Details six major research findings regarding second-language acquisition, including transitional stages for acquiring syntax; fixed-order emergence of grammatical morphemes; language acquisition progress from unmarked to marked elements; first-language influence; rule-governed learner output; and learner access to input. (27 references) (CB)

Provides the Modern Language Association's salary recommendations for entry-level full-time and part-time foreign language department faculty, as well as general staffing recommendations. (Author/VWL)

Outlines four characteristics essential to foreign language teachers and describes how they should be incorporated in teacher preparation, as both the field and students change. (Author/VWL)

Endorses the AAUP statement on distance education and articulates special concerns of language and literature teachers with respect to distance education. (Author/VWL)

A historical review of the establishment of the Association of Departments of Foreign Languages and its bulletin highlights both the changes that have occurred and are continuing to occur in the foreign language profession and the association's focus on covering the multifaceted perspectives and needs of the profession. (CB)

An experiment was conducted at Bentley College (Massachusetts) using native-speaking peer tutors to help foreign language students. The experiment met with some success, however, it is noted that, for major universities, the logistics of administrating thousands of tutor-student meetings is a substantial hurdle. (GLR)

Reviews some issues which should be of concern to the President's Commission on Foreign Language and International Studies, and encourages language professionals to seize the opportunity to make the needs of the profession known to the commission. (AM)

Discusses advantages and disadvantages of being a full-time lecturer in a foreign language department. Lecturers like the emphasis on teaching, the ability to affect student learning, and freedom from the pressures of publishing. Drawbacks include lack of time, money, and job security. Frustration, caused by a lack of empowerment, comes from an…

Reviews the form most interviews take for candidates seeking positions in foreign language departments at colleges and universities. Offers recommendations about what and how much to say, that kinds of questions to ask, what to wear, and how to handle difficult situations. (Author/VWL)

Reviews recent research on classroom anxiety and student beliefs about foreign language learning, and highlights students' differing reasons for studying foreign languages and their reactions to instructional practices. Educators must continue to examine conflict among teacher expectations, instructional practices, and individual student…

Four theoretical discourses and their implications for teaching are reviewed: language-based theory; cultural studies; postcolonial theory; and posthermeneutic theory. Connections between language and literature, literature and culture, Europe and the globe, and the literature of single nations and comparative literature are noted. (LB)

Addressing the graduate foreign language curriculum, focuses on the integration of language study and literature to help students become self-reflective scholars and teachers. (Author/VWL)

Presents examples of ways that different institutions have responded to the crisis in foreign-language education, emphasizing the importance of focusing on foreign-language departments in training future K-12 teachers and describing three institutions that integrate teacher education with other parts of the curriculum (the University of Delaware,…