This dissertation compares the relative effects of two contrasting approaches to bilingual instruction and of bilingual education as compared to traditional English monolingual education upon the dual language development and use of a group of first and second grade Italian dominant students. The sample of the study consisted of 106 Italian…

The International Student Advisor Office (ISAO) provides a variety of services and activities aimed at assisting foreign students to adjust to their new environment. A portion of these activities and services is formalized in the Summer Orientation Program, which attempts to introduce students to life in the U.S. in general and the academic scene…

Three facets of literacy measurement were examined in this study: the assessment of functional literacy with an instrument designed to reflect practical reading tasks; the effect of mode of test administration on literacy; and the relationship of literacy to sex, schooling, and traditional measures of reading. Subjects were 626 young adults…

In a study conducted at the University of Alberta, an attempt was made to use Piagetian-type observations as an assessment of intellectual capacities and to determine whether learning a second language at an early age has beneficial or detrimental effects on cognitive functioning. For this purpose an 18-question test dealing with conservation…

Current preschool programs for Mexican American children are examined. Programs are categorized as either experimental or as non-experimental. The emphasis of the experimental section is upon research findings, while the emphasis of the non-experimental section is upon the curriculum and its implementation. Six studies are discussed in the…

Given that thousands of Spanish-speaking children attend school in almost every state, it is strongly recommended that every teacher-to-be learn Spanish and be exposed to the culture of those who speak it. (Author/SJL)

Deaf ethnicity, as the social phenomenon of deafness, is presented as the proper context in which to consider language learning, language teaching, and language planning in the education of the deaf. (Author/NCR)

The first institution-to-institution undergraduate academic exchange between a Soviet institution--Moscow's State Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages-M. Thorez--and an American university is reported. The four-month exchange program began in 1974 and has expanded each year since. (LBH)

Describes a college course on the written literature in Spanish of the Chicanos, Puerto Ricans, and Cubans of the United States, including the rationale, resources, and course structure. Such a course helps to shatter misconceptions regarding Hispanics and further expands the intellectual horizons of students. A bibliography of Hispanic literature…

Illustrates how advance organizers can be used to aid the second-language decoding process. Devices considered include cognate recognition, syllable-morpheme information, contextualized meaning, chronological ordering, time-frame reference, cross-cultural differences, redefinitions, and direction of discourse. (CB)

If comparative literature's current emphasis on literary theory is balanced by its participation in a practical and well-calibrated international studies curriculum, it may have arrived at a comprehensive definition of its nature and mission as an academic discipline. (CB)

Group creative writing activities encourage foreign language students to participate on various levels as thinkers, writers, readers, and critics. Students stimulate, correct, and give feedback to each other about writing skills. (CB)

Identifies foreign language anxiety as a conceptually distinct variable in foreign language learning and interprets it with the context of existing theoretical and empirical work on specific anxiety reactions. Discusses the effects of this anxiety on language learning and its pedagogical implications. (SED)

Describes a study of the intelligibility of three dialects--standard English, New Yorkese, and Black English--for working-class adult English learners. Results showed that comprehension was significantly affected by dialect and that learner judgments of the speakers in terms of job status, friendliness, and appearance paralleled the…

Examines the predictive validity of the "Attitude/Motivation Test Battery" (Gardner, et al, 1979), specifically the three composite measures derived from the battery--motivation, integrativeness, and attitudes toward the learning situation. Results demonstrate that the three factors are relatively consistent predictors of second language…