Describes a study of the listening comprehension of first-year, nonnative English speakers in a large North American university that sought to find out how students--all economics majors--were coping with listening to economics lectures and to try an experiment in mentoring by linking them with a lecture buddy. The mentoring project was found to…

Describes various projects of the Didascalia computer-assisted language-learning research center, reflecting major steps in the development of the center and illustrating facets of the prevailing bottom-up approach: from the general lexical programs towards the more contextualized, to the company specific, to the language testing programs. (15…

Describes a prototype of computer-assisted language learning software, "BUSCA," that attempts to bridge the gap between commercially available, but pedagogically unsound, Spanish Foreign Language learning programs. The article notes that "BUSCA" is designed to be integrated into a formal course to assist students to become…

Cloze tests were administered to native- and second-language speakers in Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom to analyze problems that demonstratives pose for second- language students of Japanese and English and to suggest future improvements for existing explanations and grammatical accounts for each language. (25 references)…

Describes the contributions portfolios can make within a discourse community awareness framework through a "disciplinary portfolio" pedagogy. Outlines the case for such a pedagogy and describes a teaching situation in which the disciplinary portfolio has been employed within an English for academic purposes context. (34 references)…

Reviews the nature of Web-based course management systems (WCMSs), which are designed to help teachers create learning environments in which students have the necessary means to interact effectively with their peers, their instructors, and the course material. Focuses on their advantages, disadvantages, and potential for language learning by…

Discusses the integration of innovative technologies into the K-12 curriculum and its impact on instructional programs for linguistically and culturally diverse students. Describes the debate over whether the culture of computing is inclusive or exclusive, examining: educational technology standards; information technology and fluency; speech…

Research suggests electronic mail can be a powerful motivator for authentic second language (L2) interaction, but little is known about the efficacy of this medium in the development of target language proficiency. This study examines Email exchanges between university learners of Japanese as a foreign language and native Japanese university…

This article applies whole language techniques to children with cultural and linguistic differences and provides guidelines for enabling speech-language pathologists to assume a role of active involvement. Whole language can provide a context for involvement in the areas of bilingual education and other language and dialect learning and for…

An interview with Wilga Rivers focuses on advances in language teaching over the last 50 years, changing student needs and teaching methods, the differential success of teaching methods, program design, student immersion, teacher training, and technological advancement in relation to language teaching. (MSE)

Examines the conditions under which oral translation from a first language to a second language can be used as an exercise to build vocabulary. Depending upon the teaching situation, oral translation can be made both interesting and useful while being compatible with communicative approaches to language teaching. (Author/CB)

Examines the academic and linguistic needs of writers for whom English is a second language within the context of current research and publications on second language acquisition, affective variables that influence acquisition, the development of audience awareness, collaborative learning, "sheltered" content courses and…

Describes an effort to develop resources to make French and German more accessible to deaf students. This article focuses on assisting teaching colleagues who are overwhelmed at the prospect of teaching the deaf, providing insight into the teaching of French to the profoundly deaf, and outlining work underway to meet the needs of disadvantaged…

Describes South Africa's Molteno Project, an initiative devoted to primary-school and adult-education language teaching and learning materials. Its primary aim is to improve the English-language skills of Junior Primary students in anticipation of year-five English instruction. Courses are learner-centered and emphasize a natural approach. (SLD)

Describes the bachelor of arts program in applied language at the University of Brighton, England, which combines second-language learning and linguistics. The limitations of the program as it was originally conceived are examined, as well as recent improvements. Course objectives, content, and teaching methods are discussed. (17 references) (MDM)