This digest introduces a specialized approach to teaching at-risk students a foreign language. In the dyslexia literature, the approach is referred to as "multisensory structured language." Because the methodology places a strong emphasis on the metacognitive aspects of language in both native and foreign language instruction, the term…

An institute in oral proficiency and teaching effectiveness for practicing secondary Spanish and French teachers is described. The spoken language classes of the institute took place daily, 4 hours per day for 4 weeks, using a modified Foreign Service Institute (FSI) method of small group instruction. Native speaker tutors were used who were…

Many examples of cooperative projects between English for Specific Purposes (ESP) units and university subject departments have been reported in the literature. Most are case studies of specific ESP programs, and explanations of methodologies have not been prominent. This paper reviews the different ways in which cooperative methods have been used…

Experiences of a San Francisco, California, kindergarten teacher whose students include 15 limited English speaking children are recounted, and observations on English Language Development (ELD) teaching strategies are offered. It is noted that the kindergarten program and classroom setting are both conducive to and appropriate for second language…

A self-paced introductory French course sequence offered at Francis Marion College (South Carolina) was begun in response to nontraditional students' difficult study schedules and varied language backgrounds and knowledge levels. This program of individualized instruction has objectives identical to that of standard French instruction at the same…

The report describes an experiment for increasing retention of foreign language vocabulary by using multiple intelligence approaches and memory enhancement tools. The targeted population was approximately 100 seventh- and eighth-grade Latin students. Student difficulty with vocabulary retention had been ascribed to the teacher's emphasis on…

After a review of the historical background, theories, and techniques related to teaching English pronunciation, this study describes the production of a Pronunciation Pictures videotape. The videotape shows animated "Sammy" diagrams presenting the physical movements needed to produce the initial consonants of English. The lessons provide…

Personality has largely been ignored or written off as a variable in second language learning. However, it should be considered as an alternative research perspective for four reasons: (1) the writing off of personality variables in second language research has been unjustified, and results from giving credibility to studies based on ill-conceived…

This article discusses the system of reference as one of the linguistic systems operating in English texts. It introduces reference systems as systems that code cohesive dependency relationships between entities in texts. References in texts are treated as ways of introducing and keeping track of text participants. The cohesive operation of…

Grade 3 and grade 4 classrooms in a California bilingual Spanish/English environment were studied. In the first study, reading lessons were observed and analyzed in a bilingual classroom. Using the analysis of this experience, in the second study a series of theory-driven experimental interventions were initiated. It was found that the achievement…

This study explored the age variable within the framework of Stephen Krashen's (1973, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1982) monitor hypothesis. The experiment conducted two types of English language lessons based on antithetical pedagogical strategies. The first aimed at the activation of monitor use, constructed around formal learning tasks and the second…

Focusing on how children learn to read in a language they have previously only spoken, this book illustrates the skill theory of reading development, which encompasses both new perceptual processes and modified but familiar integrative cognitive processes of language comprehension. The chapters discuss the following aspects of learning to read:…

The principles of the cognitive theory of learning are analyzed and applied to the process of second language learning. They are then evaluated in terms of the extent to which they contribute to a coherent theory and the extent to which they can be applied to instruction in general and second language instruction in particular. Recent empirical…

Writing samples of four Arab college freshmen students of English as a second language were analyzed. The objectives were to classify the lexical problems found, determine the causes of the problems, and examine the students' choice of certain lexical items in an attempt to determine whether the students were more attuned to the form or the…

This handbook describes Los Angeles Pierce College's (LAPC's) English Skills Tutorial Package, which seeks to identify specific areas of strength and weakness in students' language proficiency and to strengthen those specific areas through discrete and holistic approaches and, sometimes, conscious coaching. Following introductory comments about…