A review of the history and the literature of second language teaching for business and the professions suggests that the language teaching profession has certain operational premises for developing this curricular area. These assumptions are that: (1) the educational system must be responsive to the needs of society, one of which is for citizens…

An approach to teaching academic writing to foreign graduate students at the University of Florida is described. The course combines general and technical writing assignments to sharpen students' critical thinking skills while improving their organizational techniques and editing strategies. Assignments are designed to help students discover the…

English as a Second language (ESL) instruction for business and commerce at Marymount College (California) serves a population with diverse characteristics but one central need: to develop a clear understanding of a relatively unfamiliar world of work while also acquiring terminology from an unfamiliar language to describe that world. The course…

The state of English language instruction in Taiwan and its impact on firms doing business there are examined. The analysis draws on case studies of language training and use in four national and multinational corporations, each representing different nationalities and a different industry: Texas Instruments, Kaohsiung Monomer Company Limited,…

The current growth in language study for business-related communication should be viewed as a two-fold opportunity: to extend the ideals of a liberal arts education to a broader base of students and at the same time allowing humanities students to gain skills useful in today's world. Just as the study of humanities can help create a more balanced…

Suggestions are made for the organization of a business German course. It is proposed that course material be divided into chapters, one per week, each containing five sections. The sections include: (1) a broad selection of typical German business letters exemplifying operations in all branches of export and import, followed by a special…

An outline of the French curriculum used in the Radford, Virginia schools is presented. It consists of outlines of the major and supplementary materials and linguistic content used in each year of the four-year Foreign Language in the Elementary School (FLES) program. A brief introductory section describes the program's origins and instructional…

A guide to instruction in English as a second language (ESL) in Alberta's junior high schools describes approaches and techniques to promote the language development of ESL students in all areas of the curriculum. The first section outlines the stages of cross-cultural adaptation and their implications for the classroom teacher. The second section…

It is proposed that student motivation can be maintained and enhanced when teachers combine authentic oral and written language with activities leading the student to identify with sympathetic individuals in the target culture. Suggested activities, emphasizing language training at the intermediate level, include interviewing native speakers, work…

An exploratory course was designed to give secondary school students exposure to all languages in the foreign language curriculum, in sequence, so they may decide which, if any, to enroll in. This course was begun in 1979 to counter an elitist image of foreign language courses. Course topics encouraged students to explore the languages fully by:…

The curriculum for a three-year Ukrainian second language program in Alberta public schools is designed to provide for articulation and continuity. The program outline provides: (1) a set of objectives reflecting basic educational objectives and a rationale to support inclusion of Ukrainian in a school program; (2) specific minimum expectations…

Three Army programs in English as a second language (ESL) are evaluated. The programs had lengths of 3 weeks, 6 weeks, and 6 months. The evaluation was carried out with a standardized group test of English comprehension, an individually administered test of oral proficiency, questionnaires, observations, followup questionnaires and tests, informal…

Content-based instruction, a method of foreign language instruction in which the main topics being taught come from the regular content-area curriculum, is used in elementary school foreign language programs to integrate language development with content-area learning. This goal is accomplished by providing activities in which the learner's…

To address the economy's growing reliance on international business, San Diego State University has recently introduced a program in international commerce. The program was developed by packaging coursework in three existing areas: business administration, language training, and area studies. Although still in its infancy, the international…

This document presents eight scholarly articles on the multicultural milieu in which children grow and develop. Readings address the following questions: (1) What is culture and how is it formed? (2) How do people develop their cultural orientation? (3) What are some major insights about culture that are critical to the early childhood educator's…