Answering calls to map college-level proficiency development (Modern Language Association, 2007) and longitudinally chart language learning (Barkaoui, 2014; Ortega & Byrnes, 2008), we mapped the oral proficiency growth of 1,922 lower-division college students of Chinese, French, Russian, and Spanish (in the second, third, or fourth semester of…

The purpose of this research was to ascertain if the reading comprehension skills of English-speaking fifth grade students improve when they study a second language. The research was done in an inner-city elementary school in Rochester, New York. The researcher provided a weekly after-school workshop in foreign languages for a group of children…

Examines whether and to what extent differences exist between learners of French, German, and Spanish with respect to range of motivational or motivation-related factors and whether the factor time has any significant effect in this. Concentrates on general or institution-wide language programs in universities. (Author/VWL)

The University of San Francisco developed a certificate program in Western European area studies covering French-speaking countries, and subsequently a Latin American area studies program for Spanish-speaking countries, in response to uneven language enrollments and as a means of increasing intermediate-level enrollment. The French program begins…

A foreign language segment was integrated into the exploratory curriculum of the sixth grade in Marion, Indiana's middle schools. The overall course offers nine-week segments in home economics, industrial arts, computer literacy, and foreign language, introducing the children to curricular areas they may select later in middle school. In the…

This paper addresses beginning level Spanish heritage language (SHL) learners' attitudes towards their language and culture. Heritage language (HL) programs and research have often overlooked beginning level learners, especially within university settings. The current study involved 20 participants from a beginning level SHL class in the…