Educators have been very aware of the crisis due to student unrest, which in turn is due to political, economic, or racial tensions. Another crisis is at hand: students, like others in our society, have developed a distrust of authority, and consequently of traditional education. Vocational schools are flourishing because they have weeded out the…

Student ratings of instruction for lecture types varying in substantive teaching points covered (high, medium, low) and expressiveness of delivery (high, low) were investigated. Half were offered an incentive to learn before the lecture; the other half after the lecture. Students then rated lecture effectiveness and completed an achievement test.…

This article maintains that advanced language learning is inseparable from subject study in the foreign language in question, and that the teaching of specific disciplines in a foreign language should be the cornerstone of advanced language study. Curriculum and methods for advanced levels are discussed. (CLK)

In discussing ways in which schools can be more responsive to youth needs, the article outlines psychological principles used in successful vocational programs. The principles address student needs for meaningful learning materials, emotional involvement, novelty, and success. Factors of control along with freedom within structure are included in…

Suggests having foreign language students write business letters to stimulate interest in developing writing skills. This project gives the students the opportunity of travelling abroad vicariously and to collect souvenirs while improving their communication skills in the foreign language. (CFM)

This article summarizes the content of the discussions at the 1977 M.L.T.A.V. Congress. The main issues were the relationship between language and culture, the aims and objectives of language teaching, problems of motivation and individualization, school language policies, examinations, and teacher training. (CFM)

Examines the effects of aptitude, field independence, attitude, and strategy use upon four areas of language achievement: formal/oral, formal/written, functional/oral, and functional/written. Test results indicated that aptitude and field independence are related, as are strategy use and attitude; only aptitude and strategy use, however, affect…

Suggestopedia is a learning technique which claims to provide students with a better and richer learning experience than is generally found in most educational systems. It also claims to accelerate the learning process by giving access to so-called unused "reserves of the mind." (SW)

Questionnaires are presented which ask the student to check characteristics of the teacher which motivate them to study a foreign language, ways they would like the teacher to act in class, and parts of their day they would like to change. The objective is to increase systematic dialogue between students and teachers. (SW)

The English as a second language (ESL) curriculum should focus on tasks which embody the kinds of thinking that students might encounter outside the ESL class setting. A sample ESL unit having tasks to provide intrinsic motivation to use certain linguistic structures is presented. (SW)

Middle College High School, located on the urban campus of LaGuardia Community College in New York, concentrates on motivating potential dropouts to graduate from high school and go on to college. Its establishment in 1974, problems, and successes are described, along with other institutions' efforts at dropout prevention. (LBH)

Discusses a collaborative writing assignment on the Annunciation and the difficulties posed by summoning personal experiences to help in writing about an unfamiliar situation. The resulting poem is included. (HTH)

Among the underserved are gifted students who lack achievement motivation or environmental nurturance or have developmental delays or learning disabilities. Unified efforts by those involved in the education of the handicapped and the gifted can improve the identification of individual needs and individualization of instruction. (Author/CB)

Use of French television commercials as a pedagogical tool has a great advantage over "two-dimensional" advertisements because they provide authentic and current spoken language which is often reinforced by repetitions and musical tunes as well as visual slogans on the screen. (CB)

Discusses the use of collaborative writing for children who are resistant to schooling--who are delayed developmentally for social, psychological, or biological reasons. Provides examples of collective writing centered around a novel created by a junior high school remedial class. (SKC)