Research on second language learning suggests that age or age-related factors are a major variable in the acquisition of a second language for school. In the early stages of acquisition, older students are faster and more efficient learners, with the advantage of more advanced cognitive development in the first language. This early advantage…

Examining how students respond to gender-related issues, a study observed six classroom discussions of Fundamentals of Interpersonal Communication, an introductory level college course which integrated gender issues. Four different classes, each consisting of 25-30 male and female students averaging 18-20 years of age, participated in the study.…

Based on the premise that effective teaching depends on successful communication, this booklet discusses the nonverbal dimension of communication. The booklet contends that humans use nonverbal communications for the following reasons: (1) words have limitations; (2) nonverbal signals are powerful; (3) nonverbal messages are likely to be more…

Aspects of the perception that assessment is a large-scale testing program conducted at institutional or state levels to determine what students have learned from college is questioned. Small-scale assessments conducted continuously in college classrooms by discipline-based teachers to determine what students are learning in what class are also…

A study examined the effects of teachers' use of explicit explanation on students' levels of metacognitive awareness of the reading process and on their reading achievement as measured by a standardized test. Subjects, 22 fifth grade teachers from 13 different elementary schools, were observed by researchers who had been trained in using a…

The papers include: "Applied Linguistics and Comunicative Language Teaching" (Christopher Brumfit); "Evaluation of the East Midlands Graded Assessment Feasibility Study" (Elaine S. Freedman); "Aspects of Standardisation within a Communicative Assessment Syllabus" (Nicola Lees); "Experimenting with…

A one-week, five-hour course in survival Spanish taught at an Elderhostel at Winthrop College included in its content the process of introductions and courtesy expressions, numbers and counting, telling time, days of the week, months, seasons, colors, cognates for describing people, talking about jobs and hobbies, verb forms for questions and…

Based on the realization that professors' cultural and personal backgrounds affect the way they transmit information and the way they interact with men and women students in their classes, this booklet is designed to help faculty members assess how they are presenting subject matter to their students. The first section of the booklet,…

A review of several classroom observation and survey studies of comprehension instruction, content area reading for homework, and aspects of reading assignments raises the question of whether enough is being done in Irish schools to develop critical reading competency. It appears from these studies that many students are being left to their own…

This study investigated the seating patterns of target students in science classrooms to see if there was an action zone or t-zone present. Fifty-six physical science and chemistry classes were observed using the Brophy-Good Teacher-Child Dyadic Observation System. Target students were identified and their interactions were compared to non-target…

A study analyzed and compared the classroom interactional strategies of two teachers of Catalan immersion classes and one teacher of Spanish as a native language in Spain at the kindergarten level. The theoretical framework guiding the study is based on analysis of the native-speaker/non-native-speaker distinction. Two comparisons were made: (1)…

Noting that collaboration can enhance children's ability to solve problems of increasing difficulty, this paper discusses the theory of collaborative talk in the classroom and how it can be applied. The first section of the paper introduces the notion of collaborative talk by describing a classroom setting and offering an excerpt of two children…

Based on a humanistic approach and on national effective schooling research findings translated into practices that were tested in actual school settings, the monograph provides elementary teachers of Indian students with techniques and information on how to deal effectively with specific situations common to Indian education. In a "how…

Noting that many of the functions undertaken by classroom teachers involve communication skills or skills dependent on an ability to communicate effectively, this paper outlines a course in speech communication specifically for teachers. The paper first lists the teaching, managing, and decision making activities teachers undertake that involve…

Results of an ethnographic study indicate that one elementary school teacher's management plan reflects interaction between teaching goals, strategies which are hierarchically arranged, and the selection criteria she considers relevant. Selection criteria include teacher beliefs about the student's personality, the student's level of required…