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…

Research suggests that the learner is the only one who knows, intuitively, the relationship between the objectives of the evaluation and his or her actual knowledge at any given time. Experience shows that students use some form of self-assessment in the normal classroom setting. The University of Ottawa's Centre for Second Language Learning…

A study of 215 Temple University (Pennsylvania) students investigated patterns in achievement (as measured by course level and grade), language attitudes, attitudes toward and acquaintance with Spanish speakers, and foreign travel experience. Results support previous studies and suggest that the relationship between attitudes and foreign-language…

The method used for assessing German language majors and minors at Bradley University (Illinois) is described. The method uses multiple assessment techniques, and has seven parts: (1) a re-taking of the German entry placement examination; (2) review of results of a two-part exit survey (questionnaire appended), designed to obtain information about…

A study investigated the effectiveness of training programs for teaching assistants (TAs) in language courses at the University of Texas at Austin. The programs provided for these students, offered through various language departments, are designed to introduce the most important teaching methodologies and provide opportunities for TAs to gain…

The University of Pennsylvania's foreign language requirement self-study resulted in re-evaluation of the existing language program. It revealed that most freshmen were not exempted from college second language study by standardized test scores and that the university's required courses were not producing the desired results. These findings…

A course in English as a second language for international graduate student instructors at the University of California at Berkeley is described. In its first offerings, the course served students from three Asian countries and a variety of disciplines. It consisted of work in language, culture, and instructional techniques integrated into all…

Explains Beloit College's 10-day program, designed to interest entering freshman in study of foreign languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Russian, and Spanish) and cultures. The program was successful in teaching the basics of the foreign languages and in eliminating anxiety about the study of those…

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 language laboratory could make a larger impact than it does on undergraduate language study. The growth of attractive new technology makes even more important the careful evaluation and exploitation of existing technology. A major obstacle in doing this is the lack of careful and rigorous research about the effectiveness of the language…

The foreign language faculty at College of Saint Scholastica Minnesota) developed and implemented 10-day Spanish and French immersion programs based on Peace Corps methodology as a means of affording students time for intensive study of those languages, improving students' fluency, and instituting a change in teaching methodology. The first…

Describes an attempt made at the University of Reading to support or discount claims made about the pedagogic value of communication games. Some evidence was found in support of games' roles in encouraging students to practice language skills. (Author/CB)

To address the special second language learning needs of deaf college students, a project was undertaken at Gallaudet University (District of Columbia), the world's only four-year liberal arts university for the deaf, to create 36 videotaped lessons in grammar, signed in American Sign Language, for first-year French and Spanish instruction. The…

This report details the third year (October 1, 1995-September 30, 1996) of a Trinity College (Ireland) program to offer second language learning modules to students who are not language majors. The modules' objectives are to develop students' communication skills for study, travel, or work abroad during undergraduate years, and to enhance their…

The report details the fourth year (October 1996-September 30, 1997) of a Trinity College (Ireland) program to offer second language learning modules to students who are not language majors. The modules' objectives are to develop students' communication skills for study, travel, or work abroad during undergraduate years, and to enhance their…