The current approach in teaching Japanese as a second language is questioned as inefficient. The forward-looking approach does not condition students to expect that they must learn all the items of a set before being able to learn anything else. (HP)

This report discusses the findings of an evaluation of the bilingual education program in the schools of the Niagara South Board of Education (Ontario). (DB)

Describes the rationale and design of the Zepeda/Saldate Spanish Language Proficiency Exam developed at the University of Arizona for use in evaluating the language proficiency of applicants for bilingual/bicultural teacher education programs. (JG)

In an effort to find an index of development for second language acquisition, compositions written by non-native speakers of English were classified into proficiency levels and analyzed. Measures that seemed most suitable as an index of development were average length of the T-unit and number of error-free T-units. (CHK)

Discusses the schedule, curriculum, participant interviews, and results of the Texas Oral Proficiency Certification Project, which works toward the implementation of proficiency standards (established by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) for the certification of foreign language teachers. (CB)

Differences between the academic (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages) and government (Foreign Service Institute) versions of the oral proficiency interview test are examined, and data from two studies of interrater reliability are presented and discussed. (MSE)

Contends that the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) has some very serious defects. First, it does not test either the ability to speak or to write English. Second, it has strong cultural biases. Third, a relatively large number of right answers can be obtained by guesswork. (SED)

U.S. educational policies reflect an economic need to socialize immigrants and minority group members to fill undesirable, low-status jobs. Transitional bilingual education programs prevent immigrant children from attaining academic fluency in either their own language or English. (JOW)

A longitudinal study measuring language, academic achievement, and social functioning was conducted of four groups of hearing-impaired children (N=23 per group). Those who had received home intervention were found to perform better in most areas than no-intervention children, with slight advantages found in those receiving earlier intervention and…

Reports on a longitudinal study of young immigrants' spoken Danish during the first months of their stay, focusing on the Albanian-, Vietnamese-, and English-speaking adolescents' syntactic development from a functional perspective. Changes in early syntax are seen as being rooted in cognitive as well as interactional dimensions of language use.…

Preliminary results of an extensive study of 50 native Yugoslav students who migrated to Denmark but still attended mother-tongue classes indicated that most had mastered the Danish language and used it with their peers and most learned their native language from their parents and continued to use it with them. (Author/CB)

Describes and assesses the general direction of French immersion research and establishes the need for more qualitative and theoretical approaches to research in this field. The areas of particular interest include (1)language learning environment; (2) children's language learning strategies; (3) classroom communication; (4) effective teaching…

Investigates the relationship between bilingualism and metalinguistic awareness in Puerto Rican Spanish- and English-speaking children. Findings indicate that native language proficiency, as well as the degree of bilingualism, affect metalinguistic awareness, and that these effects interacted with the types of items in the metalinguistic tasks.…

A study exploring the relationship between language-related attitudes of English-speaking immigrants in Israel and their choice of their native language or Hebrew for communication with their Israeli-born children showed that lack of proficiency in Hebrew just as often encouraged parents to choose that language as their child's native language.…

Because research strongly suggests that the requirements made for foreign language instructors are simply not supported by the product, instructors themselves should work toward (1) educating students in the important areas of world culture and the phenomenon of human language; and (2) producing foreign language proficient citizens equal to the…