Describes the design and implementation of a CD-ROM-based German exercise package for commercial distribution and a listening and culture package using interactive multimedia based on authentic German television programs. The project demonstrates how a set of specialized authoring tools can be brought to bear upon the real-world needs and…

Reviews the technical and legal issues surrounding the use of Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) and describes authoring possibilities that can simplify the ultimate delivery of interactive video materials to language learners. Details the process of creating a DVD title in a case study at Brigham Young University. (Author/VWL)

Describes a collaborative upper level Latin literature course taught at a secondary school and a university that used a variety of technologies, including a MOO and e-mail. The design of this course on Plautus'"Aulularia" is discussed, including objectives, learning goals, and collaborative assignments. Argues that informed use of technology can…

Proposes, on the basis of a host of curricular factors, a stratification of foreign language programs in U.S. institutions of higher learning into two graded and curricularly distinctive phases. The initial phase would be comprised predominantly of nonmajors who enroll in beginning courses to satisfy a language requirement. The professional phase…

Reports on the introduction of an action research component into an existing graduate foreign language teaching methodology course for beginning foreign language teachers (graduate teaching assistants and graduate students) at the college level. Discusses the implementation, benefits, and caveats of such a project, illustrated with samples of…

Fifty-nine English-as-a-foreign-language students in Saudi Arabia took a cohesion test in which they identified four types of cohesive ties in a reading text, including conjunction, reference, substitution, and ellipsis. Incorrect responses were analyzed. It was found that substitution was the most difficult cohesive tie to process. (Author/VWL)

Examines attitudes of mainstream teachers to English-as-a-Second-Language learners in the central part of the United States. Based on results of a survey of 143 junior high/middle school mainstream teachers, multiple predictors were identified that were interpreted as indicators of exposure to cultural diversity. Argues for inclusion of explicit…

Interviewed teachers from around the world to examine a specific purpose (SP) versus general purpose (GP) distinction in their orientations to the work they do. The difference in orientation was signaled in the criteria the teachers use to assess students' writing. (Author)

Examines whether learners initiate attention to form, as requests for assistance, feedback on error, modeling, or repetitions, recasts, and requests for clarification. Results suggest that learners can and do attend to form, though relatively infrequently. The most frequent way they they do this is to request assistance from their teachers.…

Argues that lexical, syntactic, organizational, and material aspects of writing construct identity just as much as the phonetic and prosodic aspects of speech do. Illustrates this with writing samples of graduate students studying in British universities. Recommends second language writing pedagogy that raises critical awareness about voice.…

Explored whether or not the C-test serves as a valid operationalization of the reduced redundancy principle. Investigated the frequency and type of micro- and macro-level cues that English-as-a-foreign-language learners employ to restore the mutilations in the C-test. A C-test comprising five texts was administered concurrently with the Test of…

Presents 12 ideas for meeting the educational and social needs of second language learners, including: assess student needs; empathize; foster a sense of belonging; assign a buddy; use sheltered English techniques; teach key words; read and reread books aloud; provide opportunities for success; keep track of language progress; value bilingualism;…

Data from interviews, questionnaires, and student essays of eight female Hispanic learners of English as a second language (ESL) were analyzed. Findings demonstrated how family, Hispanic culture, instructors, and the learning environment influenced performance. ESL participation had an impact on their linguistic, cultural, and educational…

Describes how a request to help evaluate an innovative bilingual project in an international school led to positive changes in project implementation and a more constructive way forward for the main participants. The article presents a model, called a "SPARE wheel" in order to emphasize the cyclical nature of evaluation. Results indicate the…

Argues that mastery of modal particles is important for interpersonal aspects of language development. The article outlines the difficulty of learning and teaching German modal particles with regard to the theoretical explication. The study shows how a teaching program improved initially poor comprehension and production skills in the area of…