This study represents an attempt to describe the second-language competence of English-speaking children who are learning French as a second language. The performance of fourth- and sixth-grade children taking part in a French immersion program was compared to that of French-speaking children of the same age using an elicited imitation task. The…

The guide is addressed to the colleagues of the foreign language assistant in the languages departments since the assistant's work, to a large extent, depends on a successful relationship with them. The foreign language assistant is defined as a native speaker of a foreign language, e.g. French, German, Spanish, Italian, who serves in a British…

This paper presents a "natural" method of second language learning which stresses contact with native speakers and de-emphasizes textbook learning. The method described here is that used by Baptist missions in eastern Africa to teach Bemba, but is transferrable to any language. Some of the main principles of the method are: (1) language…

The autonomous learning strategy for adults which has been used to teach English as a second language at the University of Nancy for the past two years is described here in detail. Several case studies are provided on learners with both specific and general language needs, illustrating the roles of the helper, learner and the institution, and the…

The means for ethnic language retention (ELRET) should be built into bilingual education programs in the United States. Currently there are very few programs designed to help a foreign speaker maintain his mother-tongue ability as he learns a new language. Materials designed in this field should take advantage of the concept of "domain…

This report describes bilingual education programs in England that promote the Welsh and Gaelic languages. The section on Welsh includes discussions of: the history of the Welsh language, the Welsh books scheme to promote the availability of published materials in Welsh, the activities of the national language unit of Wales, external examinations,…

This conference report was a finale to the first National Indian Bilingual Education Conference (NIBEC) and a prelude to the second. The first conference was inspired in part by a 1972 meeting called by the U.S. Office of Education in Denver for participants in the Indian Title VII programs. The report covers the first NIBEC held in Albuquerque,…

In contrast with declining interest in the study of commonly taught languages in recent years, there has been a significant growth in the demand for instruction in the "neglected" or "other" or "less commonly taught" languages; schools and universities are therefore faced with the problem of providing the opportunity…

Foreign language educators should make themselves known in the field of bilingual education because they have a good deal to offer. While bilingual education differs basically from foreign language programs in that it entails the use of two languages for all or part of the curriculum and not simply instruction in the language as such, it does…

For several years in Switzerland it had been clear that adolescents with previous learning difficulties in their own country experienced even greater academic problems in Switzerland where they were expected to attend school with native speakers of French. Therefore, an experimental class was organized of Spanish and Italian-speaking children who…