The proceedings presented consist of summaries and reports of the presentations given during a summer institute on teaching linguistically and culturally diverse learners. Summaries of the following papers are provided: "Education 2000 and Beyond: The Challenge of Our Culturally Diverse Students" (Eugene Garcia); "Second Language…

Two articles highlight different issues on foreign language learning and instruction in Denmark. The first article describes a research project at Roskilde University Center that focuses on group organized and self managed foreign language acquisition. The idea for the project came about as a result of concern over problems related to foreign…

Computer software and multimedia applications for Russian are scarce and most of the available software still falls into a traditional grammar/drill category. It is necessary to actively pursue Russian language software development of a more communicative, interactive nature. A review of commercially available software for Russian using Brown's…

Given recent research that encourages more frequent use of the discussion method in teaching, this digest reviews the role of instructional conversations (ICs) in second language learning. ICs, instructional in content and conversational in quality, offer natural and spontaneous language interactions that are free from the didactic characteristics…

Traditional methods of both first and second language teaching have commonly relied on simplification, restricting the range of language forms and functions to be learned and then practicing those forms to achieve mastery. These methods, however, fail to consider seriously the questions of how language develops in natural contexts, what language…

This study examines the use of teacher and student humor in the English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) classroom. A summary and synthesis of previous research on theories of humor, humor and its use in society, and applications of humor revealed its importance as an object of study. An analysis of audiotaped transcripts of samples of ESL classes…

This article stresses the idea that teaching communicative competence and the ability to deal with a variety of language situations should be the goal of foreign language teaching, with grammar instruction in a secondary position. Teaching by means of "dialogues with options" is discussed and sample dialogues for Italian instruction are given.…

This article discusses the advantage of using cassette recorders in Russian language instruction, specifically for teaching intonation and pronunciation, and for error analysis. A program in which cassette recorders were used at the beginning, intermediate and advanced levels is outlined. (CLK)

"Learning Languages" celebrated ten years of publication with this issue. A Ten-year anniversary is one of those significant milestones that provide occasion for celebration, for looking back, and for reflection. Here, Carol Ann Dahlberg pauses for a few minutes to look back at the profession over the last decade and discuss some of the…

The development of second language skills through teaching modified subject matter content has the potential for assisting limited-English-proficient (LEP) students in development of the academic language skills they need to participate successfully in the mainstream classroom. Rather than focusing on language forms and functions alone,…

In recent years, a number of articles have been written concerning the value of instruction in second language acquisition and the type of instruction that is most valuable for second language learners. Consequently, the place of the teaching of grammar in the second language classroom is being questioned. Generally, much of the research seems to…

The origins of error analysis as a pedagogical tool can be traced to the beginnings of the notion of interference and the use of contrastive analysis (CA) to predict learners' errors. With the focus narrowing to actual errors committed by students, it was found that all learners of English as a second language seemed to make errors in the same…

This paper discusses the relevance of language content and language instruction in an interdisciplinary educational program, and explores the interrelationship of language and the interdisciplinary thrust as the basis for a pedagogical approach. One of the effects of the intense preoccupation in the late fifties and early sixties with education in…

This paper constitutes an analysis of the audiolingual concept in terms of what it was originally intended to mean and what it has come to mean in second language teaching. Basic to the concept is the notion that language was originally a matter of oral communication, and that although writing and writing systems are central, they have secondary…

This volume is a collection of articles, activities and resources in the foreign language field from both state and national sources. The collection deals with teaching methods, trends in the field, instructional materials, learning activities and creative student work. Various kinds of resources for foreign language teachers, including…