The report, entirely in French, describes Alberta's curriculum for eighth-year French native language instruction, as revised in 1998. An introductory section offers background information on the curriculum's design, links between the core curriculum and French native language instruction, underlying principles of language instruction, the…

People write because they have something to say, when they have a rich experience to share, or when they have ideas to clarify and record. Effective writers learn how to communicate. This applies to adults as well as children. Teaching writing is about building on the language skills that children bring with them to school. Pupils need a rich…

A course in scientific English for science researchers and advanced civil engineering students in Belgium has a central problem--the heterogeneous nature of the group and lack of common research experience around which to build a curriculum. An attempt to overcome this difficulty by using two logical problems for discussion is presented. (MSE)

Examines the expectations and effectiveness of second language (French) education in Canada. Recommends curriculum modifications and program redirection focusing on positive attitude formation and ear training to stimulate continued language study. (NEC)

Describes a study in which kindergarten and first-grade students discussed the subject of shadows. Two students became teacher/leaders, and the rest asked questions for clarification or gave input. The classroom teacher modeled questioning and communication skills all year. The goal was to empower students to have a role in their own education.…

Investigates listening performance in a computer-based multimedia environment. Learner success rates were compared on comprehension of English as a Second Language and language recall tasks while using audio, video, and multimedia. Results of performance on tasks reveal more effective comprehension and recall while using multimedia than either…

Examines the English vowel productions of native speakers of Italian who immigrated to Canada between 2 and 23 years of age and of native English speakers from the same community. Findings reveal an increase in perceived accentedness on every vowel as a function of increasing age of arrival as well as high intelligibility scores for English vowels…

This article describes the effort to prepare college students for lifelong learning through "connected learning," in which learning occurs through active engagement. It also offers guidance for classroom practice including class discussion, reading lists, journals, cooperative learning, questioning and listening skills, and listening and teaching.…

Assesses children's ability to indicate verbally and nonverbally their awareness of two-octave pitch shifts in a familiar song. Compares abilities of English- and Spanish-speaking children by age and by native language. Discovers older children indicate changes more proficiently whereas Spanish-speaking children respond less often. Finds many…

Analyzes effect of brain hemisphere orientation on music appreciation. Reports results from 36 left-hemisphere and 36 right-hemisphere undergraduates who responded to a musical selection verbally or visually. Finds right-hemisphere students show greater appreciation, measured by attention, understanding, and enjoyment scores. Discusses…

Reviews the use of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) in second-language education and asserts that CALL is an instructional tool rather than a teaching method. More active involvement by educators in planning and developing CALL technologies and software for the second-language classroom is advocated. (83 references) (JL)

Summaries of eight language-related research projects are presented from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. Topics include children's reading, nonstandard spoken Indonesian, English speech act performance, classroom verbal interaction, journal writing, and listening comprehension. (LB)

Average performance on subtests of the Iowa Tests of Educational Development was compared for 177 high school students taking the test under silent reading (standardized) conditions and time limits and students listening to audiotapes of test material as they read the test. Poor readers were helped by the tapes. (SLD)

Focuses on English-language education in the Swedish compulsory school, where the framework and foundation for the achievement of English fluency is established. Oral skills and practical aspects of English learning are emphasized in the compulsory school curriculum. (Author/VWL)

Focuses on how skills required by the visually impaired to facilitate language learning are acquired in mainstream and special schools. (18 references) (CK)