Almost since the moment the Berlin Wall crumbled, American schools' interest in teaching Russian did likewise. But precisely because the numbers of Russian learners fell off sharply, Glastonbury and the few other schools that have stuck with the language are finding their students very much in demand. In this article, the author reports how…

What happens to English academic achievement when valued class time is devoted to a foreign language in the elementary schools (FLES) program? Is there a reduction in achievement as suggested by a time-on-task hypothesis, or is there some form of compensation, as suggested by additive bilingualism? The school district in this study started a FLES…

The increasing number of immigrants living and working in Greece has proven to be a challenge for the social as well as educational policy of this country. In order to help adult immigrants to integrate into society and facilitate their access to the job market, the Greek state has introduced special language education programmes. This paper…

In a period of declining state support for education, we argue S/FL teachers and teacher educators would do well to become oriented to language program preservation and advancement. We discuss three areas such an orientation could take, namely organizing, direct action, and fundraising, so that teachers and students can become more involved in…

This paper surveys some current developments in second language vocabulary assessment, with particular attention to the ways in which computer corpora can provide better quality information about the frequency of words and how they are used in specific contexts. The relative merits of different word lists are discussed, including the Academic Word…

Curricular changes at all levels of foreign language education provide alternate ways to provide valid learning experiences. There is new freedom for students to explore varying time arrangements, different learning styles, diverse content, and various locations for instruction. A discussion of student learning styles concerns individualization,…

There is a dearth of research involving advanced second language (L2) learners in the USA [Brantmeier, C., 2001. Second language reading research on passage content and gender: challenges for the intermediate level curriculum, Foreign Language Annals 34, 325-333; Young, D.J., 2003. Workshop on overcoming anxiety in the foreign language classroom.…

Foreign Language Exploratory or Foreign Language Experience (FLEX) programs offer one approach to initiating foreign language instruction for children. One survey reported that 41 percent of United States elementary schools offering language instruction had FLEX programs. Statistics on FLEX programs in middle schools are unavailable. Most FLEX…

Although she is now teaching Spanish in a new school full time, Linda Smrokowski, spent 9 years teaching in a once-per-week second language program. Because many once- or twice-per-week programs still exist, she shares strategies for writing and implementing detailed lesson plans that worked for her while she was teaching in a once-per-week…

Three research studies conducted at Thai universities involving language testing and courses in General English and English for Academic Purposes (EAP) are discussed. The first study examined the predictive validity of different types of language tests on academic achievement in General English and EAP courses. It found that the test format, as…

This paper reports on foreign language instruction in the community colleges of Florida. A brief rationale for increasing the importance given to language instruction is followed by a review of the literature concerning the latest classroom and laboratory foreign language techniques such as computers, video taping and analysis, audio tape…

Parents of children in elementary and secondary school foreign language programs want to know what outcomes they can expect from the programs and how they can support and encourage their children's language study. Learning outcomes vary with program goals. Program types include immersion, partial immersion, foreign language in elementary schools…

French was added to the early childhood curriculum at the New School in Fayetteville, Arkansas, after a review of the literature on the subject indicated potential beneficial effects of teaching foreign languages to young children. Some of the advantages to be gained by the children were greater readiness for school work in general, greater…

Educational goals and objectives of foreign language programs in the United States are described. Trends in objectives are divided into a practical and a personal domain. Practical considerations include: (1) the duty of the school systems to provide a thorough basic education for the taxpayers' dollars, (2) career education, (3) equality of…

THE EXPERIENCE OF FLES TEACHERS WITH "BONJOUR LINE" (FOURTH AND FIFTH GRADE) AND "VOIX ET IMAGES DE FRANCE" (SIXTH GRADE) IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL FRENCH CURRICULUM OVER A 2-YEAR PERIOD IN SHAKER HEIGHTS, OHIO, HAS RESULTED IN A NUMBER OF CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE WAYS IN WHICH AMERICAN AND FRENCH…