The UFR Lansad (Language centre teaching languages to specialists of other disciplines) was created in 2014 at the University of Lorraine. The process leading to its creation was led by a small number of teachers and researchers, from the pre-existing teams of the previous Lorraine universities (Molle et al. 2019). It is the result of didactic…

In 2015, language faculty and administrators at the University of Virginia met to evaluate the needs of the more than 20 language programs offered on campus. A priority emerged for language-learning space better equipped to facilitate authentic interaction and communication. The committee conceived of an alternative language-learning space that…

An increasingly interconnected world requires people to become versatile communicators in a variety of different settings. Language centers have a critical role to play in this process by offering language and culture training in multiple languages to students, professionals and the wider community alike. They may do so from the perspective of…

English language tutoring and/or self-access centers are services commonly offered as curricular support to English language program students in educational environments worldwide. This paper argues that the theory of self-directed learning (SDL) from the field of adult education should be considered alongside the equally-important areas of…

This study investigates the ways in which synchronous and asynchronous activities create an online language laboratory that mediates second language (L2) learning for 188 L2 university participants over a 6-week period. Completion of tasks and pre-, post-, and weekly surveys were analyzed. Statistical analyses were run on self-rated questions…

This volume presents a systematic approach to developing advanced English language competence at tertiary level. It includes the reflections of experienced language teachers and teacher-researchers in the English Language Competence programme at the University of Vienna and provides examples of good practice, amalgamating teaching expertise and…

Democratic principles and human rights, the core values of the Council of Europe, informed the development of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages" (CEFR; Council of Europe 2001. "Common European framework of reference for languages: Learning, teaching, assessment." Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.…

The role of research in university institutions whose primary task is to provide teaching remains ambiguous and controversial. In principle, all university teaching is based on pertinent research. However, for some university units, such as language centres, the basic tasks, and consequently their funding, are very often defined in a manner which…

Language laboratories, developed in the 1970s under the influence of the Audiolingual Method, were superseded several decades later by computer-assisted language learning (CALL) work stations (Gündüz, 2005). The World Wide Web was developed shortly thereafter. From this introduction and the well-documented and staggering growth of the Internet and…

Today's language classroom is vastly different from that of the mid- to late 20th century. The study is a meta-analysis of recent research which provided the means to identify current and emerging trends in the field. Informed by this research, some identified trends that are shaping the 21st century language classroom are outdated practices such…

Tapping into technology for foreign language learning is important, given that such learning is seen as vital to the nation's economic and cultural well-being. The development of technology has dovetailed nicely with a new paradigm of foreign language education, says Marty Abbott, director of education for the American Council on the Teaching of…

Argues that instructor monitoring in a language laboratory is an inefficient instructional method. (CK)

THE TEACHING OF MODERN FOREIGN LANGUAGES (FRENCH, GERMAN, ITALIAN, RUSSIAN, SPANISH, AND ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE) IN THE AMERICAN PUBLIC ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS HAS BEEN REVOLUTIONIZED SINCE WORLD WAR II, WITH THE DEMAND FOR NEAR-NATIVE CONTROL OF A SECOND LANGUAGE FOR COMMUNICATION. THE PUBLIC FELT THAT THIS NEED MUST BE MET, ALONG…

Presents guidelines for the preparation of language teachers planning to use a language laboratory. (AM)

Two small-scale studies of foreign language test validity are reviewed. The teacher variable is found to be the great threat to test validity, even when grammatical material is presented in the language laboratory. Suggestions for compensating for teacher influence are offered. (JB)