This paper describes the process of developing and designing a Japanese business course for intermediate level students at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo and for a non-credit intensive workshop for local business people. A needs assessment was conducted by means of a survey to find out the expectations and goals of students and…

In research and development it is not unusual to find the resources driving the instruction; this approach can be modified to a more acceptable one if the new technology is applied in such a way as to integrate sound instructional methods. Research and development personnel of the University of Victoria (Canada) Language Center often initiate…

A discussion of second language learning and second language underproduction proposes a differentiation between conscious avoidance and subconscious underproduction Reference is made to J. Schacter's avoidance theory, which was based on a study in which Chinese and Japanese students of English as a Second Language (ESL) produced fewer Relative…

This paper reports on a study done with Anglos and Hispanics in Texas, focusing on the pending English Only legislation and their awareness of and attitudes towards it and what biases these attitudes were based upon. A 1-page, 2-sided, questionnaire was distributed to 328 Anglo and Hispanic subjects in a predominantly Hispanic city. Forty-seven…

The case studies of three college students of beginning Chinese, all native speakers of English, were undertaken to examine how second language learners find a balance between linguistic knowledge and communicative competence. Data were gathered through classroom observations, oral and written coursework, and an interview concerning Chinese…

This report offers a synthesis of a Special Issues Analysis Center report based on a focus group that studied active learning and its implications for limited English proficient (LEP) students. Active learning is defined as the level of engagement by the student in the instructional process; it implies the development of a community of learners…

Attention to different aspects of communicative competence (form and meaning) in second language instruction creates different kinds of learning environments. Form-focused classrooms favor transmission of linguistic competence. Whole-class instruction and lockstep conditions restrict communication. Input from teacher language and attitudes toward…

The discussion presented here is intended to clarify terminology and concepts of learning strategies and language use strategies for second languages. It first provides working definitions for these terms: language learning and use strategies; language use strategies; language performance strategies; communication strategies; cognitive strategies;…

This paper describes the 3-year development of the Language Resources Centre at the University of Southampton. The Centre provides a range of self-access resources and facilities in a pleasant working environment for language learners. It offers assistance for languages taught at the university as well as for languages not taught at the…

To assist second language teachers, administrators, parents, and other teachers to better understand how foreign language instruction helps students develop literacy skills, this paper discusses research about the commonalities between first and second language reading and writing. It is an outgrowth of the North Carolina State Board of…

The report summarizes a survey of 600 Hispanic parents, each with one or more children in grades 1-12, designed to document parents' experiences with school programs for limited-English-proficient (LEP) students and to ascertain their attitudes about the programs' goals and practices. Parents drawn from five metropolitan areas with large Hispanic…

A study investigated beliefs about second language learning held by 27 adult students and 10 teachers of Arabic at the Yemen Language Center. The survey instrument consisted of 5 demographic statements and 47 statements concerning language learning in a Likert-type scaled response format. Results indicate students and teachers generally agreed…

Use of games in the second language classroom to assess class participation and development of oral skills is discussed. Difficulties in assessing oral second language skills are outlined, and a central issue is identified: the discrepancy between a syllabus in which class participation is required and students unwilling to participate due to lack…

Research indicates that nearly all language-minority children and adolescents are language brokers for their parents and other family members. Children from diverse language backgrounds and as young as eight or nine years old perform difficult and demanding linguistic and communication tasks normally done by adults, both related and unrelated to…

A study described, analyzed, and evaluated a project to rear three French-English bilingual children in a predominantly English-speaking environment. Using weekly tape recordings of spontaneous dinnertime conversation, a ratio of French-to-English utterances was calculated, and correlated with linguistically significant events documented in field…